Agenzia Fides

Hai Men (Agenzia Fides) - 766 members of the parish of Hui Long dedicated to Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal, which is the most populous of the Diocese of Hai Men, to receive the Sacrament of Confirmation by their Bishop, His Excellency Mons . Shen Bin, on Sunday, November 18. As reported to Fides Agency by Faith of He Bei, it was an extraordinary event for the parish and for the diocese, since it has been vacant since the 80s of last century, since then no administered Confirmations had taken place since the appointment of the present Bishop, consecrated in 2011. Thousands of faithful took part in the celebration, prepared with great care by priests and religious who carry out their pastoral care in the community. In his homily Mgr. Shen urged the faithful to "respond to the Pope’s appeal for the Year of Faith in communion with the universal Church, so that all the brothers and sisters in China and around the world can enjoy the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ. With Confirmation faith is strenghtened, especially in the Year of Faith, and the value of exercising faith in the mission of the Christian life is rediscovered." "For this reason - said Mgr. Shen - I will continue to administer the Sacrament of Confirmation in our diocese in the coming days."
The Diocese of Hai Men has over 400 years of history of evangelization, it is one of the six dioceses in China, whose Bishop, of Chinese origin, was consecrated by Pope Pius XI in 1926 in St. Peter's. In its long journey of faith, the Catholic community has contributed substantially to the religious, cultural, educational, health and charitable development of local society. Today the diocese has more than 30,000 faithful, 10 priests, about twenty nuns of the Congregation of St. Therese, 22 parishes. (NZ) (Agenzia Fides 26/11/2012)