Last month the Pope had this prayer intention that he asked us all to pray.
We should still be praying for that. A few days ago there is a vivid reminder that Catholics are being persecuted for what we take for granted. That is the freedom to talk freely about the gospel. Tip of the hat to Saint Mary Magdalen, Brighton, UK that brought this to my attention.
After almost eight years of imprisonment, Bishop Han Dingxiang, a bishop of the underground Church in China, died Sunday.According to a U.S.-based watchdog group, the Cardinal Kung Foundation, Bishop Han, 71, of the Diocese of Yong Nian in Hebei province, died at 11 p.m. Government authorities summoned a few close relatives to his bedside before his death. No priests or other faithful were aware of a grave illness or any other cause leading to his death, the foundation reported. The government ordered the bishop's body to be cremated early Monday morning; his ashes were buried in a public cemetery within six hours of his death.With the exception of a few relatives, the body of Bishop Han was not viewed by anyone. No priests or other faithful were present during his burial.Joseph Kung, the president of the Cardinal Kung Foundation, said: "What was the Chinese government afraid of to cremate Bishop Han only six hours after his death and at such an early hour -- at 5 o'clock in the morning?"
That is pretty breathtaking when you think about it. That is a Successor of the Apostles that is being treated this way. I hope this sinks into people what this article is telling us. His crime was being a Bishop loyal to the Church. This should be remembered as to start to here all wonderful and forward thinking the "new China" is as we get nearer the Olympics.
On a political note it should be known that the President Bush, that some Catholics find so lacking, seems to get it. Novak in his column a few months back said:
The suggestion that Zen conclude his three-week visit to 14 North American cities with a meeting in the White House came from presidential speechwriter Bill McGurn.
One of the most conservative White House aides, McGurn as editorial page editor of the Hong-Kong based Far Eastern Economic Review had become acquainted with and impressed by Zen.
McGurn's advice did not please the State Department, which contacted the politically well-connected Cardinal Theodore McCarrick (the former archbishop of Washington, D.C.). According to Hong Kong sources, McCarrick advised it might be better if the U.S. government worked through the regular Vatican diplomatic corps.
Clark T. Randt Jr., the U.S. ambassador in Beijing, also weighed in against a Bush-Zen meeting. An old China hand who has spent 30 years in Asia as a lawyer-businessmen and is fluent in Mandarin, he is referred to as "Ambassador Squish" by pro-democracy activists in Hong Kong. Sandy Randt is also a good friend of the president dating back to their days at Yale.
But more important to Bush than advice from a college chum is what he truly believes, as the difficult days of what has been an unpopular presidency dwindle down. He met in Washington last year with dissident "House Christians" from China. Speaking in Prague, a week after his talk with Zen, Bush affirmed his position on the side of religious dissidents everywhere: "Freedom is the design of our Maker, and the longing of every soul.".
One of the most conservative White House aides, McGurn as editorial page editor of the Hong-Kong based Far Eastern Economic Review had become acquainted with and impressed by Zen.
McGurn's advice did not please the State Department, which contacted the politically well-connected Cardinal Theodore McCarrick (the former archbishop of Washington, D.C.). According to Hong Kong sources, McCarrick advised it might be better if the U.S. government worked through the regular Vatican diplomatic corps.
Clark T. Randt Jr., the U.S. ambassador in Beijing, also weighed in against a Bush-Zen meeting. An old China hand who has spent 30 years in Asia as a lawyer-businessmen and is fluent in Mandarin, he is referred to as "Ambassador Squish" by pro-democracy activists in Hong Kong. Sandy Randt is also a good friend of the president dating back to their days at Yale.
But more important to Bush than advice from a college chum is what he truly believes, as the difficult days of what has been an unpopular presidency dwindle down. He met in Washington last year with dissident "House Christians" from China. Speaking in Prague, a week after his talk with Zen, Bush affirmed his position on the side of religious dissidents everywhere: "Freedom is the design of our Maker, and the longing of every soul.".
Besides prayer which is the most powerful tool, Catholics in free countries must press their elected officiawl to keep the Catholics and other Christians of China a top major concern.
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