Chinese Underground Bishop Dies in
Secret Prison
Margaret C. Galitzin
Francis made a bid to open new dialogue with Beijing and said he is ready to go to China “tomorrow.”
The Chinese government responded with a warning not to interfere and
an announcement it will continue to ordain bishops without the Vatican blessing.
In the meantime, the Communist Patriot Church encourages China’s
underground Catholics to “unite” with them, following the directive of
Pope Benedict XVI’s
Letter to Chinese Catholics.
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| Bishop Cosmas Shi Enxiange of Yixian |
Amid this charade of unity and the continued persecution of the faithful
Catholics in China, a faithful Bishop died at the hands of the
Communists and the Vatican is silent.
Bishop Cosmas Shi Enxiang of Yixian, an underground bishop who has not
been seen since his arrest by the Communists 14 years ago, has died at
age 94.
His great-niece Shi Chunyuan told the press
that the family was informed by Baoding city government officials of
the death, but they did not tell them exactly when he died or the cause
of his death. Nor did they offer to return the body to Shizhuang, the
family’s hometown.
“My parents and the Bishop’s other siblings are particularly sad,” his
great niece said. “They had been unsuccessfully trying to discover his
whereabouts for many years. Now the answer to their questions is that he
is dead.”
Bishop Zu had been held in secret detention by the communists since his
arrest in October 1997. The faithful Underground Catholic Church is
mourning his death, many noting in postings on the social media that
they were proud to have another “martyr in the Church.”
A history of imprisonments & hard labor
Bishop Shi was born in 1921 and ordained a priest in 1947 in the
Underground Catholic Church. Until the Council the Vatican had always
supported the underground Catholics who opposed Communism and were
faithful to Rome, and granted special concessions for the secret
ordinations of their Bishops and priests.
Fr. Shi was first arrested in 1954 and went on to suffer long periods of
imprisonment between 1957 and 1980. Much of that time was spent doing
hard labor, first at a work camp in Heilongjiang province, then in coal
mines in Shanxi province.
After returning to Hebei, he was arrested and imprisoned briefly again
in 1981 for practicing his ministry in the Underground Catholic Church.
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| Another captive Bishop, Han DingXiang, was arrested in 1999 & died in 2007 in a Communist prison |
He was secretly ordained Auxiliary Bishop of Yixian in 1982 and became
the ordinary in 1995 after his predecessor Bishop Liu Guandong retired.
These secret consecrations of Bishops have provided the means for the
Underground Church to survive. The above-ground Patriot Church is the
so-called ‘Church’ officially sanctioned by the communist government and
is strictly under its control. Under the provisions of Benedict XVI’s Letter to China’s Catholics,
however, the Underground Church was told to cease and desist the long
time practice of ordaining bishops and priests, which is effectively a
call for its demise.
In 1989, Bishop Shi was arrested again and later released in 1993 as a result of international pressure.
He was arrested for the final time on Good Friday, 2001, and now, 14
years later, the first news the communist government released of him in
all that time is the notice of his death.
Uncomfortable questions
Francis has followed the policy of his predecessors John Paul II and
Benedict regarding China: Constantly urging fraternal dialogue with the
communist Chinese government; supporting and patronizing the bogus
Catholic Patriotic Association (CPA) and ignoring the courageous and
faithful Underground Catholics who refuse to compromise with Communism.
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| Today's Secretary of State Card. Parolin negotiated Vatican acceptance of the CPA's illegitimate bishops |
For example, the Vatican consistently said nothing regarding the
detainment of underground bishops like Bishop She or the continued
persecution of Catholics. The year 2014 saw increased demolitions of
churches in the Zhejiang province, Shanghai's rich hinterland, and many
crosses deemed too obtrusive were forcibly taken down.
One can only wonder why the Vatican takes this position of silence in
face of the continued communist persecution of Chinese Catholics when it
is vocal defending the rights of every other supposed persecuted group,
including Muslims, Buddhists and homosexuals?
We have seen the Vatican push forward the beatifications and canonizations of progressivists (
Chiara Lubich,
Mother Teresa,
John Paul II,
Paul VI, to name a few) and known communist sympathizers (such as
Dorothy Day,
Giorgio La Pira
and Archbishop Oscar Romero). Why is there is no action to beatify or
honor in any way the many Chinese Catholics who suffered martyrdom and
persecution under the Chinese Communist Regime established in 1949?
De facto acceptance of the CPA
Francis has repeatedly expressed his interest in visiting China, even
though the communist government consistently ignores his wish with
unbridled arrogance. In September 2014 Francis even sent a formal letter
to President Xi Jinping inviting him to the Vatican to discuss world
peace, or vice versa, he would go to Beijing “tomorrow” for the same
purpose. Xi
Jinping did not deign to send a personal reply to the Pope. This is the way Communist China treats a fawning Vatican.
But if the Pope were to go to China, what Church would he see?
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| An arrogant Xi ignores Francis' pleas to visit China |
Eric so appreciated the post on Humility. I am a big fan of Cardinal Merry del Val and he and St. Pius X were close in the Faith and were great supports for each other. HIs litiany of HUmility is certainly needed for our time as everyone is 'as proud as peacocks'.
ReplyDeleteThank you also for the post on the Bishop who recently died in China and I just watched the video at the end of the post. We prayed for this Bishop and all the Catholic faithful of the underground church in China in our Rosary this evening and we will continue to do so...they have suffered greatly.
With a grateful heart,
Sylvia Faye