Trappist Haven Monastery
Lantau Island is surrounded by the sea and has many mountains. From the early to the mid-20th century, some places were sparsely populated. This attracted many religious groups and people to build religious venues on the island.
The Trappist Haven Monastery on Lantau Island is a monastery under the Order of Cistercian of the Strict Observance. The monks must abide by the Benedictine rules and live a simple monastic life. Their main activities are praying, working and studying. They must pray seven times a day.
The Trappist Haven Monastery was founded in Zhengding, Hebei, in 1928. Owing to the Chinese Civil War, the monastery was moved to Chengdu, Sichuan, from 1947 to 1949. In 1950, the then abbot, Reverend Paulinus Lee, finally arrived in Hong Kong after passing through many places. They found a place in Tai Shui Hang, Lantau Island, to rebuild the Trappist Haven Monastery. Rev. Lee contacted the scattered monks in Mainland China and summoned them separately to Hong Kong. Some of the monks made it to Hong Kong.
When the construction of the monastery was underway, Rev. Lee discussed the situation with the Most. Rev. Abbot General Sortais, who came to Hong Kong in 1952 to discuss the development of the monastery. The Most. Rev. Abbot General Sortais pointed out that raising cattle was a tradition of the Cistercian. He agreed with Rev. Lee's suggestion to operate a dairy farm and instructed him to run it in the monastery compound. With the help of Sister Gertrude, from St. Joseph's Home for the Aged, in Ngau Chi Wan, the monastery purchased two cows and a bull from St. Jude Cattle Farm in Ngau Chi Wan. In 1957, the monastery purchased 15 breeding cows from Australia, and dairy cows were successively donated from California, United States, a hotel in Hong Kong, and so forth. A small DC generator and milk disinfection equipment were installed. In 1958, China Light and Power Company connected electricity lines to Lantau, solving the dairy farm's electricity problem. The monastery's dairy farm reached a considerable production scale. The monastery co-operated with another company to expand the scale of milk production in the 1980s.
Places with distinctive features in the monastery include the "Bridge of Our Lady of Perpetual Help", the chapel, and the Pavilion of Our Lady. On the side of the church facing the sea are two big characters "TM", representing Trappist Monastery. The letters can be seen from the ferry from Peng Chau. The entrance to the Pavilion of Our Lady features a gate made of granite. The front and back are decorated with the Latin blessings "PAX INTRANTIBUS" and "SALUS EXEUNTIBUS", symbolising wishes for a safe passage.
The monastery changed its English name to “Our Lady of Joy Abbey” in 2000. There are no longer cattle grazing in the courtyard, but the buildings with religious features still stand, and the monks continue to follow a monastic life.
