A multicultural and earthly city like Hong Kong consists of various customs and traditions of all religions and ethnic groups. The city’s cosmopolitan philosophy is to allow people to openly worship according to their own beliefs. This religious freedom is one of the most fundamental rights enjoyed by Hong Kong residents (“Religion in Hong Kong,”n.d). The law in Hong Kong protects and respects the right of citizens to freely believe in, or not to believe in, any religion. The law regards that believing in or not believing in religion is a person’s personal choice, and no state, public organization or individual may put pressure on any citizen regarding this matter (“Religion in Hong Kong,”n.d). Moreover, there are large variety of religious groups in Hong Kong’s Special Administrative region, including Buddhism, Taoism, Confucianism, Christianity, Islam, Hinduism, Sikhism and Judaism. All of these groups have a considerable number of adherents (“Religion in Hong Kong,”n.d).
Among these groups, the most prominent religions in Hong Kong are Buddhism, Taoism and Confucianism. The diversity of these religions in Hong Kong is visible in the city’s culture and architecture (“Religion in Hong Kong,”n.d). These influences have led to 600 Buddhist and Taoist temples, 800 Christian churches, five mosques, three synagogues, a Hindu temple and a Sikh temple (“Religion in Hong Kong,”n.d). In addition, the various public holidays also show an influence of more than one religion in the city. The public holidays are Christmas, Buddha’s birthday and the Chinese New Year. These religions account for 90% of Hong Kong’s population and the remaining 10% account for Christians. (“Religion in Hong Kong,”n.d) Apart from offering religious instructions, many major religious bodies have established schools and provided health and welfare facilities (“Religion in Hong Kong,”n.d). The following are the different religions and their influences on Hong Kong...