Welcome to the Macau-China Bulletin, April 2012

The Lord is Risen! Alleluiah...!!
Missionaries in China wish you all the joys and blessings of Easter!

Holy Week & Easter Celebrations

Fr. Ezakias leads the Palm Sunday processions in Christ the Worker Parish, Hong Kong

Fr. Arturo conducts the Washing of the Feet on
Holy Thursday in Assumption Parish, Taipei, Taiwan

Frs. Arturo and Joshy at the Good Friday Liturgy in
Assumption Parish
The Lord is Risen! Alleluiah!! Easter Vigil Services begin
at Assumption Parish, Taiwan. Frs. Liju, Bobin and Joshy concelebrate

Baptism at Assumption Parish: Fr. Arturo officiates the Liturgy

Claretians in China

In 1929, when the Claretian first put foot in China, this was a country very different from today, 18 years earlier, in 1911, the Qing dynasty fell after the Wuchang uprising and a struggling young Republic disintegrate between fighting warlords and colonial desire of Western powers. The first Claretian adventure in Kaifeng (Henan) was an unsuccessful one. Later Fr. Fogued, obtained in 1933 the Vicariate of Tunxi (Anhui) as the first mission centre of Claretians China.

Tunxi (Huangshan) is a very old city with lots of history.
This is a prefecture established 2200 years ago.

Tunxi (Huangshan) was the first Claretian mission in China

In total 27 Claretians have lived in China in the past: 25 Spanish, a Brazilian and an Italian. Two of them died while serving in the mission. In 1949 the Chinese Communist Party came to power ​​and the last Claretians were expelled out of China in November 1952. They left behind 22 years of hard work and countless dreams. Many wanted to go to that mission, including Rafael Briega, one of the Martyrs of Barbastro.

The Claretian expelled or returned to their countries joined other Claretian missions in Asia: the Philippines and Japan. Rafel Briega , one of the young martyrs of Barbastro, studied Chinese and wrote a message to the missionaries in China in 1936: "I can not be a missionary in China as I would have liked.... offer my blood for the China mission, and when I get to heaven I will not forget to pray for this mission to China."
On the occasion of the beatification of the martyrs of Barbastro in 1992 Claretians undertook the initiatives to resume our Missionary endeavours in China and in 1994 opened a mission in Taiwan. The Mission in Macao was opened in January 2006. The South Korean Claretians have made their presence in Harbin, in the North of China. Since then, missionaries begin to have a continuous presence in mainland China. Today, after 6 years, the Claretian work in China is beginning to demand new approaches, moving from 'the landing and first contact' to design strategies that lay the groundwork for the future. Today there are 14 Claretians working in China-Taiwan region. Against the "Hispanic" in those years, the presence today is as varied as the same as the congregation: Argentina (1), Chile (1), China (1), Spain (1), India (6), Italy (1), Macao (1), Taiwan (1) and Poland (1).

The Claretian who work in China (Fr. Paco , who sends us this note, is the first from left).

The missionary work we do is basically to support the local Church wherever we are. In Taiwan and Macau-Hong Kong we have direct presence in parishes, seminaries, publications ...

Fr. Paco (second from right) with a group of Chinese priests

We have traced the former Claretian mission of Huangshan in 1995 and since then we have helped to build a simple church and start organizing Christian communities in our first ever mission in the mainland.

The new church building is under construction in Huangshan,
the first Claretian mission in China

With the support of Proclade and other institutions, we collaborate in the promotion of the Bible in China and in the formation of priests, religious and lay pastoral workers. Many who read Solidarity and Mission sure you have also brought your two cents. Thanks and welcome, provided, this fascinating and promising land. -Fan Kailing

Some of the upcoming projects:

A language school... This is a brand new project in preparation. A quality service we can offer in China is a school of languages, especially for the study of English. Millions of young Chinese study foreign languages such as English. Fr Alberto leads the feasibility study of the new project... It was just before the beginning of spring:Fr. Alberto in Beijing

Spanish Mass at the cathedral in Beijing on Sunday

March 18. Fr. Matthew , Vicar of the diocese of Beijing,

invited Alberto to concelebrate at Sunday Mass
at the Cathedral of Beijing.

Young Catholics bear witness to their faith through voluntary work

In the parish of Nan Tang (Xi'an), in the Province of Shaan Xi , a group of 60 young people renewed their missionary commitment for 2012.

Province of Shaan Xi

They included journalists, academics, staff and even people with disability. In the meeting the youth shared their experiences of recent years: helping earthquake victims, teaching in remote locations, providing financial support to families in need, elderly and disabled. Through these outreach services "have borne witness to our faith ..."

The Cathedral Church in Xi'an, in the name of St. Francis

Volunteers do not just 'give' but also 'receive' a profound spiritual experience.

The modern face of the city of Xi'an.

Xi'an is the ancient capital of China and a city if historical and global significance

China inaugurates the highest suspension bridge in the world

It is a structure of just over a mile to about 350 feet above a deep canyon.

The construction of the bridge began in 2007 . On 31 March 2012 the highest and longest suspension bridge to date in the whole world was inaugurated in Hunan Province of China. The structure is just over a mile and is suspended about 350 feet above a deep canyon. The bridge is designed for four lanes of vehicular traffic. 


Province of Hunan, China

The Human Province has abundant coal mines. The extraction of this mineral is one of the main economic resources of the area.

Hong Kong Flower show 2012

The Hong Kong Flower Show 2012 organised by the Leisure and Cultural Services Department was held between 16 and 25 March at Victoria Park. The show attracted 560 000 visitors.

This year the theme flower was “Hyacinth” and the theme was “Floral Delights”. Over 200 organisations from 21 countries showcased exotic flowers, landscape and floral art displays. The participating countries were Mainland China, Australia, Canada, Estonia, France, Germany, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Pakistan, the Philippines, Singapore, South Africa, Spain, Belgium, the United Kingdom and the United States.