I only realize what a poor excuse for a Catholic I truly am, when I read about giants of the Faith like Bishop Cosmas Shi Enxiang:
A 94-year-old Chinese bishop who had been imprisoned since Good Friday 2001 has reportedly died, triggering renewed criticism of the Communist Party’s draconian curtailment of religious freedoms.
Relations of Cosmas Shi Enxiang, the underground bishop of Yixian in northeast China, were informed last Friday that he had passed away, according to UCA News, a news agency covering Catholic issues in Asia. No cause was given. He had not been seen in public since he was detained 14 years ago.
“My parents and the bishop’s other siblings are particularly sad,” Shi Chunyan, the bishop’s great niece, told the agency.
“They had been unsuccessfully trying to discover his whereabouts for many years. Now the answer to their questions is that he is dead.”
Bishop Shi, who was originally from Hebei province, was arrested in April 2001 at the Beijing home of his niece and had been held ever since in a “secret location”, according to the report.
The bishop spent around half of his long life in prison or labour camps, the Catholic news agency added.
Go here to read the rest. Ponder the last quoted sentence for a moment. The Bishop spent almost 50 years in Chinese prison camps for the Faith. He would have been 28 when the Communists took power in China in 1949. How easy it would have been for him to turn his back on Christ in the face of a totalitarian regime that would slay tens of millions of domestic opponents. Instead, he labored all his long life to bring the Gospels to his fellow countrymen. Pray for us Bishop, as we the spiritually weak seek to follow your heroic example.
I wish I had this man’s heroism. I am a coward compared to such a giant.
Heroes often turn cowards into heroes Paul.
Here are some more names we all ought to know:
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Bishops James Su Zhimin, and Joseph Xing Wenzhi are still missing. Bishop Thaddeus Ma Daqin is still under house arrest, although in a known location.
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Fr. Cui Tai, Fr. Joseph Lu Genjun, Fr. Ma Wuyong, and Fr. Zhang Jianlin are all still missing.
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Among our missing Protestant brethren are Dong Chunhua, Hu Shigen, Wang Xuebai, and Christian civil rights attorney Zhang Kai.
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Christians in prison include Alimujiang Yimiti, Chen Shangkun, Cheng Hongpeng, kindergarten teacher and young mother of two Cheng Jie, Gong Shengliang, Guo Quan, Han Hai, Hu Gong, Hu Linpo, Hu Yong, kindergarten operator Huang Quirui, Li Dan, kindergarten teacher Li Jiatao, Liu Aiying, Liu Xianbin, U.S. citizen Peter Hahn (trial pending), Ren Lacheng, Wang En, Xu Fuming, Yang Lianbing, Pastor Yang Rongli, Zhang Lin, Zhang Mian, Pastor Zhang Shaojie, Zhao Weiling, and Zhu Yufu
The boxing trainer Cus D ‘Mato, who trained great fighters like Floyd Patterson and Mike Tyson (Tyson was a great fighter before he went freak show) , used to ask his fighters, “What’s the difference between a hero and a coward?” D’Mato would answer his own question by saying, “There’s no difference. Both are just as afraid of getting hit. Both are just as afraid of getting hurt. But it is what the hero does that makes him a hero and what the coward doesn’t do that makes him a coward.”
No doubt …. a Saint in the making.
I would like to see the phonetic pronunciation of the names of these saints, to be able to honor them properly.
And Notre Dame still wants to partner/open an ND extension Univ in China?
Can they even have Mass? A chapel?
Thank you Mr. McClarey, i was not aware of this.
Rest in peace. You are likely in Heaven now where you don’t have to put up with b.s. anymore.