Beijing is Persecuting the Church Because It Fears China Will One Day be Christian

One day the superpower will be Christian, and Communism just a distant memory

Worshippers at a Catholic church in Taiyuan, China (CNS)

We are very lucky, here in the United Kingdom: it’s been years since any cleric has been sent to jail for the crime of being a cleric. The Anglicans had some ritual martyrs in the nineteenth century who fell foul of the Public Worship Regulation Act of 1874, but these must have been the last men to have been imprisoned for a specifically religious offence in British history. The last Catholic martyr to be executed in England was St Oliver Plunket who suffered in 1681, during the Titus Oates disturbances, though anti-Catholic legislation remained on the statute books until the twentieth century, and only really disappeared with the Catholic Relief Act of 1926.

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Cardinal Zen Skewers Atheist China's Attempt to Run the Catholic Church

It is absurd to hear the statements of politically correct state puppets defending Beijing's policies 

Statement of Cardinal Joseph Zen Ze-kiun

Hong Kong

July 26, 2011

These last few days, Catholic faithful inside and outside China have noted with sadness and indignation words pronounced by Anthony Liu Bainian and Reverends Joseph Guo Jincai, Johan Fang Xingyao and Joseph Yang Yu, which are hardly distinguishable from being schismatic. But yesterday’s statement by the State Administration for Religious Affairs (SARA) has reached the extreme of absurdity.

We may understand if the government comes out to defend their puppets by saying that they are politically correct, or to praise their courage in resisting foreign pressure; but now they come out to praise their “ardent Catholic faith” and to say that the ordinations without papal mandate are necessary for “the normal running of the Church and for the needs of pastoral and evangelizing activity.”  This is absolutely preposterous and ridiculous, given that as some scholars have recently pointed out, the government is now “running” the Catholic Church.

2nd Chinese Bishop Excommunicated, Vatican Announces. 'This is War.'

 From Catholic World News

The Vatican has officially announced the excommunication of the Chinese bishop ordained on July 14 in defiance of the Holy See.

This was the 2nd public announcement of excommunication of a Chinese bishop within the past month, as the escalating conflict between Rome and Beijing prompted one prominent prelate to say: “This is war.”

Chinese Police Seize Catholic Bishops as Illicit Ordination Approaches

From Catholic World News

Four Chinese Catholic bishops have been seized by police and are being held incommunicado, apparently so that they can be forced to participate in the ordination of a new bishop arranged by the Catholic Patriotic Association.

Bishops Liang Jiansen of Jiangmen, Liao Hongqing of Meizhou, and Joseph Gan Junqiu of Guangzhou—all of them recognized by the Vatican—are being held by authorities. Chinese Catholics loyal to the Holy See expect that the bishops will be brought by police to the scheduled ordination of a new bishop in Shantou on July 14.

Officials of the Patriotic Association have announced that they will proceed with episcopal ordinations, such as the one in Shantou, without Vatican approval. The Vatican has countered with a reminder that anyone who participates in an episcopal ordination without approval from the Holy See is subject to the penalty of excommunication. While noting that his penalty would not apply to those who participate under compulsion, the Vatican has urged Chinese Catholics to resist pressure, emphasizing the the illicit ordinations harm the unity of the Church.

In the Liaoning diocese, priests have surrounded Bishop Paul Pei Junmin to protect him from being seized by authorities. With police ringing the cathedral, the priests have announced that they will remain there to protect the bishop.

Source(s): these links will take you to other sites, in a new window.

• Officials kidnap bishops of Guangdong to force them to take part in illicit Shantou ordination (AsiaNews)

China: Episcopal Ordination Postponed, Bishop-Elect Arrested

From Catholic World News

Father Joseph Sun Jigen

For the 2nd time this month, Chinese officials have abruptly abandoned plans for the ordination of a bishop—after the priest who was to have been consecrated as a bishop obtained the approval of the Holy See.

Father Joseph Sun Jigen, who was to have been ordained on June 29 as Bishop of Handan, was taken into custody by police on June 27 after he finished a spiritual retreat. 

Chinese officials have insisted that they will precede with episcopal ordinations without seeking Vatican approval. But Father Sun apparently sought and received the Vatican’s approval on his own. 

Earlier this month, plans for the unauthorized ordination of another bishop in Hankou were shelved, reportedly because of resistance from the Catholic faithful—including the priest who was to have been ordained.

Source(s): these links will take you to other sites, in a new window.

• Hebei: ordination of Handan bishop cancelled, it had Holy See approval (AsiaNews)
• China postpones illicit ordination of new bishop (CWN, 6/7)

Chinese Christian Discusses Police Repression, 1-child policy

From Catholic World News

In an interview with Aid to the Church in Need, Bob Fu, a student leader at Tiananmen Square who subsequently became a Protestant pastor and fled China, discusses the realities of police repression and forced abortion in the People’s Republic of China. Fu is the founder and president of the China Aid Association. 

“When you want to have your first child after marriage,” he recalls, “you are required to get a pregnancy permission card-- a yellow card before your wife can legally get pregnant-- otherwise you are arrested and are forced to have an abortion.” 

Source(s): these links will take you to other sites, in a new window.

• Persecution of Christians in China Today - An interview with Mr. Bob Fu, Director, China Aid (Aid to the Church in Need)
• China Aid Association