Catholics are urged to “listen to the word of the Party, feel the grace of the Party, and follow the Party”. Celebrations took place on 29 June, Solemnity of Sts Peter and Paul, two days before the Party’s official “birthday.”
Newsroom (04/07/2022 3:00 PM Gaudium Press)The anniversary of the founding of the Communist Party of China (CPC) was celebrated last Wednesday (29 June), the Solemnity of Sts Peter and Paul, in the Cathedral of the Sacred Heart of Jesus in Leshan (Sichuan). Bishop Paul Lei Shiyin and some priests and nuns attended the ceremony.
Officially, 1 July 1921 is the day when the Party was founded under Mao Zedong’s leadership, followed by its first congress 22 days later.
For this occasion, the Catholic community was invited to “listen to the word of the Party, feel the grace of the Party, and follow the Party.”
A Catholic source told AsiaNews that in China “it is no longer a question of listening to the Lord, of feeling his grace and following him. This is the root of the disease of the Chinese Church today, it is difficult to get away from the influence of ideology. Politics has entered the Church.”
Bishop Lei, ordained in 2011 without the papal mandate, is a much-discussed character. He is rumoured to have a mistress and children.
Pope Francis lifted his ex-communication after the Vatican and China signed an agreement on episcopal appointments.
Renewed in October 2020, the agreement has not stopped the persecution of members of the Catholic Church, especially those who belong to the underground Church and who do not want to submit to religious bodies controlled by the Party.
With Xi Jinping cracking down on the activities of all religious groups, the room for the manoeuvre of Chinese Catholics has been substantially reduced.
On 1 June, new measures for the financial management of religious sites came into effect. Administrative measures for online religious information came into effect on 1 March.
In February, the State Administration for Religious Affairs, a government entity under the control of the CPC’s United Front, released the administrative measures for religious personnel designed to manage the clergy and people religious: monks, priests, bishops, etc.
In February 2018, the CPC adopted new regulations on religious activities, according to which men and women religious can perform their functions only if they join “official” bodies and submit to the CPC.
(Via Asianews)
Compiled by Raju Hasmukh
