Hong Kong Catholics held an all-night prayer vigil to protest a proposed deal between the Vatican and Beijing. More than 200 people gathered to voice their concerns over a deal they say will “sell out” faithful Chinese Catholics. “It’s a precarious situation. There’s a real danger of division,” a priest said. Those attending the vigil Read more
A Chinese Catholic bishop, Guo Xijin, says he will step down in favour of Communist-approved bishops. Guo is one of the “underground” bishops — recognized by the Church but not by Chinese authorities — who have been asked by the Vatican to step down. He will be replaced by a Communist-approved bishop. Guo currently lives Read more
Chinese Catholics who belong to the country’s underground churches are worried. They think the Vatican and Chinese government’s plan to sign an agreement about appointing bishops will mean legitimate bishops will have to step down in favour of state-appointed ones. The agreement, which is only “a few months” away, would allow the Vatican to help Read more
Chinese President Xi Jinping’s portrait is replacing crucifixes and other religious images in parts of China. A priest says removing the Christian images involved officials giving money to poor households in return for hanging Xi’s portrait. Officials from China’s Yugan County in eastern Jiangxi province say Christians have “recognised their mistakes and decided not to Read more
China’s President Xi Jinping says he wants to make the country’s many religions more Chinese-oriented by instilling socialist core values. Speaking at the country’s five-yearly Communist Party conference, Xi said religion poses threats to national security. He told the conference that separatism promoted under the guise of religion would not be tolerated. Although China officially Read more
Children have been banned from attending church in China, even with their parents. The decision to ban them was made by four regional governments. Unapproved Catholic and Protestant churches in China are also being investigated at present. Read more
BEIJING, China — As soon as the first sisters moved onto the church grounds in a rural region outside of Beijing, the babies started showing up on the doorstep. They were babies with severe disabilities, abandoned at a few months old, with no trace of the family who left them behind. China’s one-child policy was not Read more
The Chinese government has ignored “grave concern” over the abduction of Bishop Peter Shao Zhumin of Wenzhou. In response to the Vatican’s concerns for the bishop, Lu Kang, a spokesman for the Chinese foreign ministry, said: “China opposes any country interfering in China’s internal affairs.” Shao Zhumin was forced from his diocese on 18 May Read more
“We cannot command our final perseverance, but must ask it of God.” — St. Thomas Aquinas “St. Peter is the leader of the choir, the mouth of the apostles and the head of that tribe, the leader of the world, the foundation of the Church, and the ardent lover of Christ.” — St. John Chrysostom Few issues Read more
A church was destroyed in China’s Henan province on 5 May. Parishioners who tried to stop the demolition were beaten and 40 were detained, China Aid has discovered. Of those arrested, ChinaAid says eight remain in custody. China Aid is an international non-profit dedicated to promoting religious freedom and human rights for Christians in China. Read more