The protests have morphed to focus on actions by police that many have denounced as police brutality, including allegations of sexual assault by police officers.
Bishop Ha is among many Catholic clergy who have spoken out in support of the protesters. Ha stressed that "we're Catholics and we're part of our community. According to [the] Catechism of the Catholic Church and Social Teachings, we're obliged to participate in improving our community and [speak] out when there's injustice."
"As Catholics, we have our daily prayers, holy Mass, holy communion and so on to nurture our conscience so that others would recognize we're followers of Christ," he told CNA. "I do not mean that we, Catholics, are better than the others. On [the] contrary, we're all sinners and we have to pay special attention to our mind and soul."
The apostolic administrator of Hong Kong, Cardinal John Tong, has asked the government to eliminate the extradition law completely, and for an independent inquiry into the excessive use of force by the Hong Kong police.
Cardinal Joseph Zen, bishop emeritus of Hong Kong and a sharp critic of the Sept. 2018 Vatican-China deal on the appointment of bishops, celebrated Mass on June 16 at the invitation of the Hong Kong Federation of Catholic Students in front of the government headquarters.
Edwin Chow, acting president of the Federation, told CNA in August that he would like to see Catholics and other Christians take on a larger role in ongoing protests against the government.
"For this movement, it's a great chance for the Catholics and [Protestant] Christians to cooperate with each other," Chow told CNA on Aug. 16.
"It's a good chance for us to become united. Because I think for most of the Catholics and Christians, we have the same values, the same goal...so that's why we cooperate, and I think after Christians and Catholics cooperate, or strengths, our power becomes stronger."
While Chow said that Christians, among them Catholics, had a more major role when the protests began- leading the singing of hymns such as "Sing Hallelujah to the Lord" in the streets during the protests, for example- their role has since diminished.
"For the Catholic groups, for the Christian groups, we have the responsibility and we have the power to calm our friends down," he said. "Because I think singing hymns, just in the beginning, it creates a peaceful atmosphere, and it has a power to keep everyone very calm. So I think we can use this when we do this again."
Jonah McKeown is a staff writer and podcast producer for Catholic News Agency. He holds a Master’s Degree from the University of Missouri School of Journalism and has worked as a writer, as a producer for public radio, and as a videographer. He is based in St. Louis.