UCANews: China will continue its practice of electing and ordaining bishops independent of the Holy See, according to a 2015 working plan by the State Administration for Religious Affairs (SARA). The plan, which appeared on the SARA website on January … Continue reading
AsiaNews: It took five months. Msgr. Ma’s beautiful blog posts had, to some extent, relieved our anxieties. Beijing’s silence was understandable: they were otherwise occupied. A one-line comment arrived from Rome on July 8 and then a mention in the … Continue reading
AsiaNews: Bishop Thaddeus Ma Daqin, ordained auxiliary bishop of Shanghai on July 7, with the approval of the Pope, was taken away by a group of religious officials in the evening, but nobody knew where they took him to. Some … Continue reading
AsiaNews: Catholics in Harbin (Heilongjiang), in far north-east China, are praying and fasting to avert an episcopal ordination without papal mandate. Sources tell AsiaNews that “no one wants this ordination: neither official nor underground Catholics not even the candidate himself. … Continue reading
Catholic Culture: A special papal commission on the Church in China has exhorted Chinese Catholics to resist the efforts by the government-backed Patriotic Association to control the Church. Full report here.
AsiaNews: The Easter holiday will be “very discreetly” celebrated this year in unofficial (underground) communities in China. Many community leaders, bishops and priests, were in fact called in by the police for a “conversation” and even underwent weeks of indoctrination … Continue reading
The pope created a new cardinal in China, the current acting Bishop of Hong Kong, John Tong Hon. Here is part of what he had to say in an interview with Asia News. www.Chiesa: On the occasion of his appointment, … Continue reading
The Chinese “Catholic” Patriotic Association opposes these appeals for restitution of properties partly because the Association receives hefty rent revenues from the tenants. Asianews: A Catholic nun and priest were violently attacked when they tried to get two Church properties … Continue reading
Zenit News: The French agency Eglises d’Asie is reporting that China’s next illicit ordination will happen in the coming few days. This will be the third episcopal ordination without the Pope’s approval since June 29. Read full report here.
Catholic Culture: In a strongly worded statement, the Vatican has announced that a Chinese bishop installed by the government-backed Patriotic Catholic Association last week “has no authority to govern the diocesan Catholic community.” Read more about this here.
Catholic Culture reports: Chinese authorities say that they are making plans to appoint new bishops, pointing toward a new clash with the Vatican. More on this here.
CNA reports: China’s government-run Catholic organization has ordained a bishop without the approval of the Pope. In response, a prominent cardinal said the action never should have happened. Read more of Cardinal Zen’s reaction here.
AsiaNews: The vice-president of the Patriotic Association, Liu Bainain confirmed to the media that the ordination of Fr Joseph Guo Jincai as Bishop of Chengde (Hebei) will take place tomorrow November 20. The ordination of the 42-year old priest, the … Continue reading
I posted a column last week on the ongoing persecution, direct and subtle, of the Catholic Church in China. This afternoon I read an excellent account written by China expert, Father Bernardo Cervellera of Asia News, that I think supports … Continue reading
If the axiom “the corruption of the best is the worst” is true of persons, it can also be true of institutions, and perhaps even of nations as well. Too often this proverb, which ought to be a perennial caveat, … Continue reading
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