Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
Beijing (Agenzia Fides) – The small island of Shang Chuan, in the Province of Guang Dong, on the coast of southern China, where St. Francis Xavier died on December 3, 1552, is a favorite destination for pilgrimage among many individual communities, parishes, and organizations that bear his name. Many pilgrims come from all parts of the mainland, Hong Kong, Macao, and Taiwan, especially in recent days for the Feast of the Patron Saint of the Missions. In this place, the now a popular site visited by Chinese Catholics who are very devoted to St. Francis Xavier, it is with great faith and enthusiasm that the hymn dedicated to the saint is sung: "Great priest, sent by the Pope, Apostle of the East, who came to save us. He tirelessly proclaimed Jesus without rest... ".
In addition to the pilgrimage to Shang Chuan, novenas, prayer meetings, and moments of reflection have all been held to mark the intense preparation of the Catholic communities of the continent for the Feast of the Patron Saint of the Missions. This is what Agenzia Fides has recently learned from information received. For Chinese priests, who are studying and reflecting on the Letter from the Secretary of State, Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone for the Year for Priests, the festival takes on further missionary and vocational importance. The last retreat for priests of the Diocese of Tai Yuan, at the end of the liturgical year, in preparation for Advent and the Feast of St. Francis Xavier, was centered on the theme of evangelization in the footsteps of Francis Xavier.
In the Cathedral of Xi Kai, the Diocese of Tian Jin, the guidelines given to the Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion, on the Solemnity of Christ the King, stressed the meaning of Advent and the Feast of the Patron of the Missions. The feast of St. Francis Xavier, who has many devotees in China, is celebrated with a solemn Mass in his honor in nearly all parish communities, especially those that bear his name. Together with his brother in the Order, Fr. Matteo Ricci, the great missionary in China, St. Francis Xavier is also considered by Chinese Catholics "as one of them." Both receive a great devotion and respect. Even non-Catholics see them as precursors and excellent examples of cultural exchange between East and West. (NZ) (Agenzia Fides 02/12/2009)
