Bethanie & Nazareth – French Secrets from a British Colony (Hardcover)

Bethanie is one of the notable historical buildings of Hong Kong, built by the French Missionary Fathers in 1875, it was used by them until 1974. It gradually deteriorated until 2006 when it was carefully restored and converted for use by the Hong Kong Academy of Performing Arts. This book is a lavishly illustrated history of this notable building and its missionary occupants. The French Missionary Fathers were active Catholic missionaries groups in China. The strains of working in the China mission field were such that missionaries needed a place to rest, recuperate and rebuild their physical and spiritual strength. Bethanie was built to provide both accommodation and a fine chapel for them. However, after 1949 China was closed to missionaries and the need for it diminished and finally the Fathers sold it. In 2003, it was decided to restore it and convert it for the Academy of Performing Arts. This history of this historic building and of the missionaries for whom it was established has been written by Alain LePichon, a professor at the Sorbonne, who divides his time between Paris and Hong Kong and is uniquely qualified to write the story of the building and of the missionaries. A wealth of photos, plans and dcounments has been found in the archives in Hong Kong and Paris and used to illustrate this handsome book.