by 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.

Milan (AsiaNews) – The People's Court in Yiwu City, Zhejiang province, yesterday morning finally heard the case involving Fr Ma Xianshi, former "patriotic" head in the Catholic Diocese of Wenzhou, and layman Zhuang Qiantuan, who stand accused of illegally selling a church hymn book.

The hearing, held in Courtroom 1 until 2:30 pm, did not produce an immediate ruling, which would be made public at a date to be determined.

In their exchange, both prosecution and defence focused on the legal definition and the determination of punishment for the "illegal" sale of the Tianlu Miaoyin (Heavenly Melodies) songbook published by the Catholic Diocese of Wenzhou.

The publication has a printing license issued by the Zhejiang Religious Department and does not fall under the category of illegal publications; however, it was offered for sale to the public in the Yiwu small goods market through a shop run by layman Zhuang Qiantuan.

According to the prosecution, this sale violated the rule that religious publications can only be distributed within the religious community and was therefore classified as an illegal business.

The central issue of the dispute is whether Fr Ma Xianshi was responsible for the offence as an individual or as the representative of an organised group.

The songbook is said to have sold over 50,000 copies, generating a turnover of approximately 1.5 million yuan (about US$ 210,000), placed in a private bank account in the name of Father Ma Xianshi.

The penalty for "illegal trade" depends on the size of the turnover and on who the offender is (individual or collective).

Defence lawyers argued that historical circumstances have led many parishes in the Diocese of Wenzhou to use bank accounts in the names of their respective pastors. They presented bank statements, expense records, and even Father Ma's personal will to show that the funds were intended exclusively for Church activities, without any personal gain.

The defence stressed that the publication had been authorised by Zhejiang's religious bodies and that, despite irregularities in the sale, there was no negative impact on society.

For this reason, they requested an exemption from the sentence. If proceedings were to proceed, they added, the Department of Religion would also have to be held liable for failing to adequately fulfil its supervisory duties.

Father Ma personally presented his defence in court. He stated that his actions were those of a priest working on behalf of the Church, devoid of any personal gain, and, for this reason, he did not acknowledge any personal guilt.

The shop owner Zhuang Qiantuan, however, admitted the facts and requested a reduced sentence, wishing to be soon reunited with his family.

The hearing was initially scheduled for 1 July. More than three hundred people had registered to attend, and many had already arrived in Yiwu, but the hearing was cancelled the night before.

Before the 13 November hearing, priests, nuns, and Catholics from the Diocese of Wenzhou who had registered to attend as members of the public were subjected to pressure and threats from the local religious department. Ultimately, only two priests from Wenzhou were able to attend, accompanied for the entire duration by government officials.

Most of those present were faithful who had not registered in advance. They reported that the hall was not large enough and that many seats were occupied by religious officials from various cities in Wenzhou province.

For this reason, the Yiwu court opened adjacent courtrooms equipped with video feed, allowing the faithful to follow the hearing and support their pastors in their ordeal.

The faithful present said that Father Ma appeared to be in good spiritual condition. They were comforted to see that, upon entering the courtroom twice, he made the sign of the cross as soon as the door opened and that before leaving, he did not fail to impart a blessing, still living his priestly ministry to the full.

Furthermore, both he and Zhuang, held in the detention centre for a year, actively helped the other inmates; during this period, they were appointed cell leaders, bearing witness to their faith despite the hardships.

An elderly believer, unable to attend, said that Father Ma is a worthy, respected, and good-natured person, much loved by the community.

After the death of Bishop Zhu Weifang, his successor, Bishop Shao Zhumin, has been working in the "underground" community, while the official community had always been led by Father Ma. This "unmotivated misfortune," they say, seems to signal his complete abandonment by the government.

Another believer, informed of the situation, said that the charge of "illegal sale of religious publications" is the least serious.

Previously, rumours had spread that he had been accused of "treason" for a pilgrimage in Rome, during which his movements were “untracked” for two hours; alternatively, he is thought to have opposed the appointment of a bishop "imposed" from above, displeasing the religious authorities.

Whatever the case, the cited believer said that, among the offences with which he could have been charged, this one was the least serious.

A Catholic man from Wenzhou expressed dissatisfaction that even before the court had convened, some bishops had already "condemned" Father Ma, claiming that he had crossed a "red line," even going so far as to await his conviction before removing him from the priestly ministry. None of them showed up for the hearing.

“We pray urgently," the man said, "that Father Ma's priestly vocation may be strengthened."

Someone else said in a bitter comment: “Internal enemies are the most difficult to prevent."

Still, Catholics in Wenzhou are united and fervent, but there are great economic disparities between parishes according to their location, and the tensions between the "official" and "underground" communities exacerbate the divisions.

Some priests, little involved in evangelisation, manage to obtain favours by compliantly following the government's instructions.

A believer from Wenzhou but living in Shanghai summed up the situation this way: A virtuous priest, beloved by the faithful, is not necessarily acceptable to the government. Officials prefer those who “toe the line”.

This also happens in the Diocese of Shanghai. If one is not obedient, someone who is will be found.

The official standards for religious representatives – “politically reliable, theologically knowledgeable, morally respectable, and capable of acting when necessary" – are becoming the primary criteria for the "sinicisation" of Catholicism in China.

Every bishop must demonstrate his "political reliability" by showing obedience to the authorities’ orders.

• china
• wenzhou
• trial
• priests
• sales
• hymnbook
• illegal sale