Chinese youth call for religious
freedom
By NCR STAFF
As young Catholics from more than 150 nations gathered for World
Youth Day in Rome, those from mainland China, prevented by their government
from attending, had to find another outlet for their faith.
For some, it took the form of a strongly worded letter to Pope
John Paul II, accusing the Chinese government of trying to divide them from the
church. The letter, published by the Vatican press agency Fides, said the young
people hoped for religious freedom and a visit to their homeland from the
pope.
Unfortunately, once again we young people on Mainland China
will not be able to share this event with the young Catholics of the rest of
the world, the letter said. This makes us very sad and
disappointed.
With courage, we want to overcome the evils of the past
and live our Christian life in the light of our faith.
The young people said they were praying that all leaders of the
Chinese Catholic church -- bishops, priests and members of religious
congregations -- would guide the faithful in communion with the
pope.
In China, government-certified Catholics must renounce allegiance
to the pope.
All other Catholics are forced to worship underground, risking
imprisonment. Nuns and priests in China have described prison as our
seminary. As an example, in May, an underground priest distributing
unauthorized Bibles was sentenced to six years in prison. Nevertheless,
resistance to government policies is growing, according to news reports.
On Aug. 16, with a government crackdown on unofficial religious
activity underway, the head of the official Catholic Church in China said the
church would not consider official ties with the Vatican unless the Vatican
first severed diplomatic relations with Chinas rival Taiwan.
More than 400 young Taiwanese Catholics were in Rome for World
Youth Day. Another 500 young Chinese Catholics attended from Hong Kong and
Macao.
Relations between the Vatican and the official Catholic church in
China are strained, in part because of the churchs practice of ordaining
bishops without Vatican approval. The Vatican has said the practice is an
obstacle to formal ties.
Since the late 1970s, the official Catholic church in China has
ordained 1,000 priests. Fu, a defender of the Chinese governments claim
that religious freedom exists, says that some 50,000 people are converting to
Catholicism annually. Fu told a reporter from Xianhua news service recently
that an underground church in China is unnecessary because Chinese
Catholic churches are open to everyone. Fu said there are 5 million Catholics
in China. The official church has 50 bishops, none recognized by the
Vatican.
In their letter to the pope, the young Chinese Catholics wrote,
We all pray to God the Father to continue to take care of the Chinese
Catholic church, making it grow in ever deeper communion with the Roman
Catholic church.
We cannot accept that there can be any other Catholic
church in China.
A different church would be the sign of our infidelity,
betrayal and lack of loyalty.
For a long time we have hoped that diplomatic relations
between China and the Holy See will be reestablished, the young Catholics
told the pope. We want to welcome the pope to our land to see him with
our eyes, to listen with our hearts to his teaching.
We also want the
Chinese government, keeping up with the 21st century, to respect human rights
and guarantee full religious freedom to all Chinese Christians.
The letter included a message to participants in World Youth Day.
Dear Young Friends, the letter said. We wish to strengthen
our faith.
It is time to proclaim the gospel to the people of China and
to all the peoples on the earth.
This article contains information from Catholic News
Service.
National Catholic Reporter, August 25,
2000
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