Andrew Law

In prison for a year along with a local shop owner, the former "official" head of a diocese in Zhejiang province has denied corruption charges, maintaining that he acted as a priest. Pressure has ben put on Catholics who wanted to be in court to support him. Some argue that his real 'fault' lies in a pilgrimage to Rome or the failure to support the nomination of a bishop imposed by the Communist Party.

Chinese musician and influencer Wang Bo has turned a Taipei politician's quip into a track that has become popular on both sides of the Taiwan Strait in recent weeks. Mainland China has tried to coopt it as a tool against the rebel island's government, but the real message is self-deprecation in the face of widespread dissatisfaction, even in the self-proclaimed “second world power”.

The diocese has sent official notice for Fr Wu Jianlin’s ordination ceremony, calling on all priests and nuns to be present without exception. Ordinary Bishop Shen Bin reportedly supported the choice, stressing that Wu is a member of the Party Conference, and must be a bishop. In the case of the other auxiliary bishop, Mgr Ma Daqin, he has been unable to exercise his ministry since 2012 after he refused to be part of the Patriotic Association.

Chinese social media continues to buzz with calls for the removal of the monk, who is accused of scandals. But the temple's accounts remain covered by ‘state secrecy’. The unauthorised meeting with Pope Francis was only the ‘red line’ that was crossed in a clash that had been going on for twenty years over the economic activities of the Shaolin monks. With private vices that emerge only when political support is lost.

In the Catholic Church of Zhejiang Province, where Bishop Shao is a victim of repression, the priest who administered the “official” diocese is also targeted. Missing since November, he set to go on trial for publishing a book of sacred hymns without permission in another province, while rumours are circulating about his bank accounts. According to some sources, his real crime is insufficient loyalty to the Party.

In the Chinese province of Zhejiang, the authorities have recently detained priests, nuns and ordinary Catholics who made a trip abroad last year; their goal is to induce underground Bishop Shao Zhumin to join a government-controlled Church body. Places of worship and the relatives of underground priests have also been targeted. One priest says, “we want to follow our conscience” without having to submit to the political whims of the Party.

The incident took place on 23 March in the Diocese of Lüliang, but the authorities tried to hush it up. The intervention of special forces attracted other Catholics from the nearby village of Xinli, home to an old Catholic community. An officer was also wounded in the incident. The parish priest and some parishioners were arrested. The community was forced to engage in "self-criticism", but the increasingly inflexible rules on religions are the real problem.