Catholicism has had an important place in Macau since the earliest days of Portuguese colonisation in the sixteenth century. This book, based on extensive original research including in-depth interviews, examines in detail the everyday life of Catholics in Macau at present. It shows how, despite facing challenges, the personal piety and ethical religious outlook of individual Catholics continue strong, and have a huge, and possibly increasing, impact on public life through the application of personal religious ethics to issues of human rights and social justice, and in the fields of education and social service.

Chen Hon-Fai is an Assistant Professor of Sociology and Social Policy at Lingnan University, Hong Kong.

Introduction

1. Changing Contours of Religious and Spiritual Life

2. Moral Community and the Catholic Tradition

3. Social Justice and the Obstructed Path of Democracy

4. Emerging Forms of Catholic Civic Engagement

Conclusion