New Chinese Official Promises Increased Persecutions of Catholics in Hebei

Edit: Did someone say that Communism is dead?

(The portrait of Chairman Mao Zedong hangs behind red flags, raised during the sitting of parliament, and the Chinese national flag (R) in Beijing's Tiananmen Square March 3, 2008/David Gray)

The hardline Chinese official removed last week as Communist Party chief of restive Tibet has been made head of the province in the centre of contention over China’s Catholics, giving him an influential role in another sensitive religious issue. Zhang Qingli, who gained a reputation as an unyielding Communist Party secretary of heavily Buddhist Tibet, has been appointed party secretary of Hebei, the province surrounding Beijing, the Xinhua news agency reported late on Sunday.

Hebei, with a population of 70 million, is home to roughly a quarter of China’s 8-12 million Roman Catholics.

Zhang, 60, was known for his tough stance against Tibet’s exiled Buddhist leader the Dalai Lama, a man reviled by China as a separatist. The Nobel Peace Prize-winning monk denies advocating either violence or Tibetan independence. Zhang was in charge of Tibet in 2008 when protests in the regional capital Lhasa gave way to deadly riots that rippled across other ethnic Tibetan areas. After the protests, he rained insults on the Dalai Lama, calling him a “jackal in Buddhist monk’s robes.”

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In Orissa, India, Catholics Still Live in Fear

Edit: while small but highly influential groups of decadent, aging dissidents fight to destroy the remnants of the Catholic Patrimony in the West, Catholics in the East are being slaughtered by Hindu Militants.

St. Francis Xavier, pray for us.


Bhubaneshwar (AsiaNews) - Three years ago in the district of Kandhamal, Orissa, Christians were victims of unprecedented violence by Hindu radicals. The situation is far from being normal, as explained by Msgr. Raphael Cheenath, then archbishop of Cuttack-Bhubaneshwar. And as you can see as much from the episode in a villiage in Betticola, from which Christians were forced to flee. The Betticola parish and the Catholic church were destroyed. The Christians, after being moved to five refugee camps received permission from the radical Hindu Sangh Parivar to return to Betticola, but as Hindus, that is converted. And the state administration, which should have rebuilt the church and parish, claims to have given the refugees everything they asked for.

"Religious freedom is still lacking in Kandhamal, the reign of terror, although limited, continues", says the Archbishop Emeritus of Cuttack-Bhubaneshwar, Orissa Rapahel Cheenath, three years after the bloody pogroms against Christians unjustly accused of the murder of a radical Hindu leader. On August 23, 2008 about 30 armed men entered the Ashram Jalespta, in Kandhamal, and shot dead swami Laxamanananda Saraswati and four of his followers. The funeral procession of Swami Laksamandanda took place in two days, over 250 miles, stopping at churches and Christian homes. The Hindu violence led to the destruction of 300 churches, the burning of more than 5600 homes and the flight of over 56 thousand Christians. A nun and two other women were raped and many molested. This despite the fact that the perpetrators of the crime were not Christians, but the Maoists. "(11/05/2011 24:51 Orissa pogroms: police clear Christians from the death of Hindu religious leader).

Raphael Cheenath is no longer the archbishop of Cuttack-Bhubaneshwar, but the situation in his eyes is still very serious. "Religious freedom is still lacking in Kandhamal, the reign of terror continues, even if limited, refunds are greatly inadequate, or negligible, and our people do not have justice. There are numerous attempts to criminalize the victims and unfortunately there are fears of a return to violence. Our people have experienced the inability of the Administration to protect those under threat of destruction. Fear and intimidation continue, and justice is still a distant reality. "

Link to Asianews...

Patriarch Kiril: 10 million Christian Websites Destroyed by FTC

Editor:   Islamism has long shared a certain affinity to Socialism, resembling it in its early stages and finally, becoming a tool by which it can continue to serve toward the destruction of the West.

“The Obama administration is set to begin formal contacts with the Muslim Brotherhood, a group dedicated in its own words to “eliminating and destroying Western civilization from within, and sabotaging its miserable house.”

A shocking report authored by the office of Russia’s top religious leader Patriarch Kirill I states that this past week the United States ordered over 10 million Christian websites destroyed that they claimed were a “threat” to their National Security and that the American Internet giant Google quickly responded by making them all disappear.

According to this report, Google first came under assault from the US government in June when the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced that they had launched an investigation into the company, a move defended against by top Google executive Amit Singhal who aside from claiming the attacks against them were baseless said, “At Google, we’ve always focused on putting the user first.”

After weeks of unrelenting pressure upon them, however, this past week Google, which had refused to answer the baseless charges against them, caved to the US government and announced that their Chairman, Eric Schmidt, who had previously said the charges against them were nonsense, agreed to testify before a US Senate Committee under threat of subpoena.

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Vatican Excommunicates Patriotic Chinese Bishops

(Vatikan/Peking) At the request of numerous Chinese Faithful, and above all the Catholic underground Church, the Holy See has published a clarification that the unauthorized newly consecrated, regime-friendly Bishops of the People's Republic of China, as well as the Bishops who consecrated them, are excommunicated with all of the consequences that follow from that.

The explanation comes from the Papal Adviser for Legislative Texts.
The Holy See is pleading with the stricken Bishops:

-to make a public gesture of penitence

-that they do not celebrate Holy Mass or receive Holy Communion

-that they neither receive nor distribute the Sacraments

-that they give up the direction of their Dicoese.

These requirements are the "necessary medicine for healing", to make possible the resettling of the Catholic Church. After the receiving many uncustomary outcries, the Holy See has taken steps with this warning to clarify the confusing situation in the People's Republic of China. The Papal Adviser for Legislative Texts explained the reason for the proceedings as the illegal consecration by the Communist regime's Bishops without a Papal Mandate. Even though the punishment is affecting the relevant parties, there is still the possibility for the ecclesiastical punishments to be withdrawn and return to reconciliation with the Church.

The unauthorized consecrations occurred on 20. November 2010 in Chengde. The explanation was also urgent because of an announcement by the Communist Regime's willingness to conduct more unauthorized Episcopal Consecrations. The complete wording of the explanation was published in Osservatore Romano on the 11th of June 2011 some days before, after which the Chinese Secretary of the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples, Msgr Xaver Hon had taken an adverse position to the Holy See and Peking intermixing authority in the Episcopal Consecrations. He encouraged Chinese Bishops to have no fear, that the government proposals will receive a firm rebuttal.

The Papal Adviser clearly explained that the unauthorized Consecration of Bishops, that is to say without the approval of the Pope, represents a profound violation of the Church's Law. It is a "punishable act against Catholic teaching". The Adviser cited as well the Second Vatican Council as well as other Documents, in which he recalled that also concern the question of the Eastern Churches.

The Declaration is in any case very clear that the punishable act will be directed against the consecrated Bishops as well as those who offered the consecration. All those named are fall under the condemnation latae sententiae. This doesn't impose an expressed condemnation at the end of a canonical procedure. The excommunication itself will have happened automatically according to itself.

It is expressly mentioned in the declaration that Church Law (Canon 1324, Paragraph 3) "ameliorates" the circumstances if known (excepting for compulsion, ignorance …). Should such be given, the excommunication will not be automatic. This part of the declaration falls above all upon the Bishops standing in unity with Rome, who have participated in the unauthorized consecrations. Accordingly there were reports surrounding the event, that at least some of them were ordered by the State Police or abducted to force their participation. For that reason the Holy See is allowing some room to allow those participating to make the "necessary penance" and take steps, to deport this outrage from the world.

Each, who falls under Excommunication, "must" refrain from the following things:

1) celebrating Holy Mass or concelebrating or participating in any other liturgical event;

2) giving or receiving the Sacraments and Sacramentals;

3) participating in various functions and tasks of Church direction.

In other words: the bishop who received the unauthorized consecration and the Bishops, who participated in the unauthorized consecration or were present, may neither celebrate Holy Mass, nor dispense Sacraments or receive the same. Additionally the Bishops concerned may not participate in the direction or administration Episcopal office in any way.

Should they do any of the following things, they commit a Sacrilege.

The declaration does not hesitate to make clear that the strictures and punishments are "medicine", part of a healing process of sorrow, penance and return and with that to encourage healing and reconciliation.

Translation from Katholisches...

Link to Asia News...

Pope Erects Eparchy for Catholics in Exile From Iraq

Editor: this community is growing because the one in Iraq is being brutally destroyed.

Pope erects Chaldean eparchy in Toronto; Archbishop Zora to lead it

VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Pope Benedict XVI has erected a new Chaldean Catholic eparchy in Toronto and named Archbishop Hanna Zora, who has worked with Catholics in Toronto for nearly 20 years, as its head. The new eparchy, or diocese, will be known as the Eparchy of Mar Addai. In making the announcement, the Vatican said there are 38,000 Chaldean Catholics in Canada. Archbishop Zora, 74, and four priests have been involved in the pastoral care of Toronto-area Catholics, the largest community. On May 28, Chaldean Catholic officials consecrated Good Shepherd Chaldean Church in Toronto. Led by Archbishop Zora, the growing Toronto Chaldean community rented out churches and parish halls to celebrate Mass before the construction of the church in 2001. Masses were held in the parish hall, however, until 2009, when the church was partially consecrated, meaning that Mass could be celebrated in the parish but that an official consecration was still required. Archbishop Zora was born in Batnaia, Iraq, March 15, 1939. He was ordained in 1962 and worked in various Iraqi parishes before being transferred to Iran in 1969.

Link to CNS.