Principal's Foreword for the 75th Anniversary

Tsung Tsin College was founded in 1950 and this year celebrates its 75th anniversary. With hearts full of gratitude, our whole school community joins in this joyous occasion, bearing witness together to God's guidance over three quarters of a century.

The origins trace back to 1847, when the Revs. Theodore Hamberg and Rudolph Lechler of the Basel Mission were sent by God to China to preach the Gospel, establish churches, and found hospitals and schools. Through many years of labour, the Basel Mission gradually expanded in South China, and the number of believers grew steadily. The Tsung Tsin Mission (meaning "to worship the True God and to revere the True Way") was established in 1924 and, in 1956, received approval from the Legislative Council to become a statutory body under the name "The Tsung Tsin Mission of Hong Kong." On New Year's Day 1928, the Sham Shui Po church was dedicated and opened; in 1931 it was formally named the "Chinese Christian Tsung Tsin Church, Sham Shui Po." On 1 September 1950, the Sham Shui Po Tsung Tsin English College commenced classes, and the following year it moved to Basel House at 58 Tai Po Road. The Sham Shui Po church subsequently opened a kindergarten and a primary school in 1951 and 1959, respectively, taking "興學傳道" (education for evangelism and evangelism for education) as its mission and providing comprehensive secondary, primary, and kindergarten education to the residents of Sham Shui Po. In 1975, Tsung Tsin College was approved by the Education Department to become an aided school.

In 1982, the roof of Basel House collapsed and the premises were closed; owing to the shortage of space, the College adopted a half-day schedule with morning and afternoon sessions. In 1985, the Sham Shui Po church obtained approval from the Education Department to establish Shatin Tsung Tsin Secondary School, which received some of our students and teachers; thereafter, at the Department's suggestion in 1988, the school relocated to Tuen Mun. In 1992, the College moved in phases to the new Tuen Mun campus, while the former site was assigned to the private primary school and kindergarten. Tsung Tsin College has served at "No. 9 Leung Choi Lane, Tuen Mun" to this day - now for thirty-three years.

I joined Tsung Tsin College in 1993 and have witnessed God's servants in Tuen Mun carrying forward the endeavours of the two missionaries and of the pioneers who founded the school in Sham Shui Po. At that time Tuen Mun was still a new town. Principal Cheung Man-biu (the 13th Principal of Tsung Tsin College) shuttled tirelessly between the old and new campuses, extending to the new district the educational work begun in Sham Shui Po, gradually establishing in the new school both its systems and its caring culture. From this were nurtured the concepts of "Health Education" and "Abundant Life Education," forming generation after generation of well-rounded students. After Principal Cheung's retirement, his successor, Principal Lai Tai-chi, deepened this work, advancing the educational policy of "Cultivating Virtue and Advancing in Learning," and emphasizing the equal importance of character and scholarship. In 2019 I succeeded Principal Lai. Though we have faced many challenges, the Lord's grace has been sufficient for us; His power is made perfect in weakness (2 Cor. 12:9). With "Faith, Hope, and Love" (1 Cor. 13:13) as our school motto, Tsung Tsin College became in 2003 the first school in Hong Kong to receive the World Health Organization's Gold Award as a Healthy School. Our students are upright in conduct, modest and courteous; our teachers cherish them deeply and seek every means to support their healthy growth. Beyond guiding them to master subject knowledge and to form sound character and values, we also proclaim the Gospel to them, that in their youth they may come to know God and His Word.

Today, as the world, our country, and Hong Kong society advance in technology and digitalization, education must respond accordingly in order to equip students for the future. For our 75th anniversary, we were honoured by the presence of Dr Choi Yuk-lin, JP, Secretary for Education, who officiated at the unveiling of our new facilities. The completion of the new Library symbolizes teachers' unwavering expectation that students will pursue knowledge and wisdom; the Digital Music Mixing Studio manifests concrete action in the transformation of our school curriculum. The anniversary theme is "照亮人，榮耀神。In His Grace, Go Beyond and Above." Through hymn-writing and worship we extol the Lord's gracious favour and offer our thanksgiving. Looking ahead, Tsung Tsin College will surely continue to glorify God and bless people. The God who has ever watched over us, who keeps covenant and shows steadfast love, will-as before-be with us, so that, under His gracious leading, the school will Go Beyond and Above.