Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
Beijing (Agenzia Fides) – Chinese Catholics have also been celebrating World Mission Sunday (October 18), in communion with the Universal Church and according to the Message of Pope Benedict XVI: “The nations will walk in its light” (Rev. 21:24). According to information gathered by Agenzia Fides, Chinese Catholics on the mainland, in Hong Kong, and elsewhere in the world made great efforts to celebrate the event. The following is a report on some of the initiatives that took place.
In addition to the liturgical celebration, the Cathedral of the Diocese of Tai Yuan transformed its esplanade into a site of evangelization, distributing thousands of flyers and other material on faith-related topics and the missions. Priests, religious, catechists, and faithful all took part in the initiative, responding with great patience to the questions posed by passers-by. As winter is on its way, they also distributed winter clothing to immigrant workers and the poor, inviting them to stop in the Church as well, because “God's House is open to all.” The Cathedral of the Diocese of Bao Ding, of the Province of He Bei, distributed over 2,000 copies of material on missionary animation in only one day. After participating in the Mass, the faithful went out into the streets to spread Christ's message to the people and bring the Gospel to everyone, with the theme “Charity is the soul of the mission of evangelization.”
The mission of charity and social service was the main motive for the celebration of the Sisters of the Congregation of Saint Therese of the Diocese of An Guo, in the Province of He Bei, which celebrated its 80th anniversary. According to the Superior, there were three objectives for the day: witness to the love and dedication of Christ with Christian charity; continue the celebration of the 80th anniversary; celebrate the 20th anniversary of St. Therese Clinic. The sisters, called “the Angels in white,” were in front of the Clinic offering medical attention and medicines to citizens and at half-price for the poor.
According to the Kong Ko Bao (the Chinese version of the diocesan bulletin), all the parishes of the Diocese of Hong Kong held various initiatives for Mission Sunday. The “evangelization stand” set up in the park attracted droves of people who stopped to listen to the faithful who told of their faith experiences, as well as the Catholic show artists. Bishop John Tong of Hong Kong gave his blessing at the end of the day, encouraging all to “enliven their faith through mutual exchange.” There was also a procession with the theme of the Beatitudes, that was attended by over 1,200 people. Fr. Pietro Paolo Dossi, organizer of the event, asked the faithful to “bring God's beauty to all people. Today, through our testimony and what we share, tomorrow and in the future, with our entire existence.” Another rally was held on evangelization and was attended by over 1,000 people, lasting an hour and a half. Likewise, hundreds of elderly Catholics were in the churches praying for the missionary intentions of the Universal Church. In addition, for Mission Sunday, various parishes in Hong Kong held missionary prayer vigils and Marian procession. (NZ) (Agenzia Fides 20/10/2009)
