The Arrest of Bishop Jia Zhiguo

From today's Asia News

The occasion on which the above photograph of Bishop Jia Zhiguo was taken is not known to this blogger.

Update on Dong Lu, Hebei, and the Persecuted Chinese Church

Today from Asia News: Persecution in China as Vatican Meeting on China Opens

Our Lady of China and the Shrine at Dong Lu

Although there are several images referred to as "Our Lady of China", according to the Cardinal Kung Foundation the painting above is the official depiction.

The story of the image is that in April, 1900, during the turmoil of the Boxer Rebellion when anti-foreign and anti-Christian sentiment was high, a force of many thousand rioters attacked the village of Dong Lu in Hebei province (near Beijing), where about seven hundred Christians dwelt.

The attackers started shooting skyward. Suddenly, however, they became frightened, turned tail, and fled. It was said that a woman in white appeared in the sky and an unknown horseman chased away the assailants. The priest, Father Wu, explained that he had appealed to Our Lady for help. This event was then commemorated with the painting of Our Lady clad in imperial robes.

In 1928, Pope Pius XI promulgated the image as Our Lady of China. This followed a request from the first national conference of the bishops of China in 1924. The apostolic nuncio to China, Archbishop Celso Costantini (later a Cardinal), along with the bishops of China, dedicated the Chinese people to Our Lady of China.

Pilgrims began coming to the shrine at Dong Lu in 1924. The first official pilgrimage took place in 1929. And, in 1932, Pope Pius XI approved Dong Lu as a official Marian shrine.

The church at Dong Lu that was home to the image was destroyed. Sources differ as to whether the destruction was by Japanese artillery fire in 1941 during World War II or by the Chinese Communists. According to Zsolt Aradi, writing in 1954, the picture was saved because the original was hidden in a wall, and it was by then in the possession of priests of the underground church.

In 1992, the shrine was rebuilt as a very large church with a statue of Our Lady and the Infant Jesus wearing imperial clothing, as in the painting.

Because of the papal approval of Dong Lu, Chinese Catholics view a pilgrimage there as an expression of fidelity to Rome. The shrine was a popular destination for thousands of faithful and hundreds of priests from all over China, especially during the month of May.

In May, 1995, many thousand pilgrims converged on Dong Lu for the Feast of Our Lady, Help of Christians. On the vigil of that feast on May 23, 1995, several unusual events occurred in the sky in the presence of 30,000 pilgrims. The next day the government intervened, forcing the pilgrims' departure on buses and trains. The local bishop subsequently certified the events as an apparition.

In 1996, the government forbade pilgrimages to Dong Lu, and in May, 1996, utilized some 5,000 troops to enforce the prohibition. It is said that at that time the government confiscated the statue.

In 2004, Asia News reported that the prohibition on pilgrimages had been in force ever since. That year, police had warned the inhabitants of Dong Lu not to conduct formal ceremonies and banned them from offering hospitality to pilgrims. An underground bishop related that just a few pilgrims had managed to get past the security controls and they had only been able to pray privately and not at the site. According to the underground bishop, the police stopped outsiders from entering the village at any time, but the security controls were even tighter during Mary's month.

May we never forget our persecuted brothers and sisters in China!

Sources:
The Cardinal Kung Foundation - Online newsletters for Christmas 2002; July 2004; and "Did You Know?"
Asia News online - Article on May 27, 2004 and another on the same date.
Aradi, Shrines of Our Lady Around the World; Farrar, Strauss, and Young (1954), pp. 139-140, via Catholic Culture online library.

Silence, Annunciation, Incarnation

Today is the feast of the Annunciation in the traditional calendar, commemorating the event where the Angel "declared unto Mary" and she "conceived by the Holy Spirit".

As recited in Latin in the Angelus:

V. Angelus Domini nuntiavit Mariae.
R. Et concepit de Spiritu Sancto.

It was nine months before the Nativity, at the moment of Mary's response to the Angel's Annunciation -- "Be it done to me according to thy word" -- that the Word was made flesh and dwelt among us:

V. Ecce ancilla Domini.
R. Fiat mihi secundum verbum tuum.

V. Et Verbum caro factum est.
R. Et habitavit in nobis.

The poet Rainer Maria Rilke (1875-1926), although better known for other works, wrote a cycle of poems on the life of the Virgin Mary, one of which was about the Annunciation. The poem suggests an intense silence at the first moment of the encounter between the Archangel and Mary, before Gabriel greeted Mary and revealed his purpose.

While Rilke's theology is often unorthodox, his description of this silence before the Annunciation is compelling. Both the Archangel and Mary are entirely present to one another and, at that moment, in a state of holy fear. Perhaps Mary is in awe because she instantly recognizes Gabriel as a messenger of God, and perhaps Gabriel is in awe because he instantly recognizes Mary's profound purity.

The last lines of the poem, in rough translation, are as follows:

"She and he,
seeing and seen,
nowhere other than where they were.
Such sight frightens, and both were scared . . .
Then the angel sang his song."

When composing the poem, Rilke might well have meditated on the above image of The Annunciation (1333) by Simone Martini (ca. 1284 to ca. 1344). There, Gabriel and Mary gaze upon one another, their eyes meeting.

Although many paintings of the Annunciation show the Archangel giving Our Lady a lily, in Martini's portrayal, the lilies -- symbol of Mary's purity -- are in a vase. Gabriel instead presents Mary with an olive branch, symbol of peace. Gabriel also wears a crown of olive, which is the crown of the Holy Ghost.

The Ave Maria Prayer

Ave, Maria, gratia plena, Dominus tecum;
benedicta tu in mulieribus,
et benedictus fructus ventris tui, Iesus.

Sancta Maria, Mater Dei,
ora pro nobis peccatoribus,
nunc et en hora mortis nostrae.
Amen.

(Hail, Mary, full of grace,
the Lord is with thee;
blessed art thou among women,
and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus.

Holy Mary, Mother of God,
pray for us sinners,
now and at the hour of our death.
Amen.)

The Archangel Gabriel and The Lily

In the traditional Roman Catholic calendar, today is the feast day of the Archangel Gabriel, the angel of the Annunciation. Gabriel is often depicted as presenting a lily to the Virgin Mary on that occasion. For this reason, the Lilium Candidum is called the Annunciation Lily. It is also known by other names related to Mary, such as the Madonna Lily.

Solomon's Canticle of Canticles, 2:2, "As the lily among thorns, so is my love among the daughters," can be understood as referring to the Virgin Mary as well as to the Church.

The image above is The Annunciation (ca. 1489) by Pietro Perugino.
Scripture from the Douay-Rheims version.   For another lovely image of Archangel Gabriel and the Blessed Virgin at the Annunciation, see the post Silence, Annunciation, Incarnation.

The Litany of St. Joseph

Lord, have mercy. Lord, have mercy.
Christ, have mercy. Christ have mercy.
Holy Trinity, one God. Have mercy on us.

Holy Mary, pray for us.
Saint Joseph, pray for us.
Noble son of the House of David, pray for us.
Light of patriarchs, pray for us.
Husband of the Mother of God, pray for us.
Guardian of the Virgin, pray for us.
Foster father of the Son of God, pray for us.
Faithful guardian of Christ, pray for us.
Head of the holy family, pray for us.
Joseph, chaste and just, pray for us.
Joseph, prudent and brave, pray for us.
Joseph, obedient and loyal, pray for us.
Pattern of patience, pray for us.
Lover of poverty, pray for us.
Model of workers, pray for us.
Example to parents, pray for us.
Guardian of virgins, pray for us.
Pillar of family life, pray for us.
Comfort of the troubled, pray for us.
Hope of the sick, pray for us.
Patron of the dying, pray for us.
Terror of evil spirits, pray for us.
Protector of the Church, pray for us.

Lamb of God, you take away
the sins of the world.
Have mercy on us.
Lamb of God, you take away
the sins of the world.
Have mercy on us.
Lamb of God, you take away
the sins of the world.
Have mercy on us.

V. God made him master of his household.
R. And put him in charge of all that he owned.

Let us pray.
Almighty God,
in your infinite wisdom and love
you chose Joseph to be the husband of Mary,
the mother of your Son.
As we enjoy his protection on earth,
may we have the help of his prayers in heaven.
We ask this through Christ our Lord.
R. Amen.

Today is the feast day of St. Joseph, patron of the universal Church.
The image above is the painting "Joseph with the Infant Christ" by Murillo (1666)

The Women's Lament

"And there followed him a great multitude of people, and of women, who bewailed and lamented him. But Jesus turning to them, said: Daughters of Jerusalem, weep not over me; but weep for yourselves, and for your children. For behold, the days shall come, wherein they will say: Blessed are the barren, and the wombs that have not borne, and the paps that have not given suck. Then shall they begin to say to the mountains: Fall upon us; and to the hills: Cover us. For if in the green wood they do these things, what shall be done in the dry?"
(Luke 23:27-31 Douay-Rheims; see Matt. 24:3-30.)

It is this event that we commemorate in the Eighth Station of the Cross.

V. We adore you, O Christ, and we bless you.
R. Because, by your Holy Cross, you have redeemed the world.

Chevilliard's "The Priest's Birthday"

St. Francis de Sales and His Bearing

Addressing the topic of a man's bearing, Dr. Marian Horvat writes, "The bearing comprises the whole of the various postures that the body assumes when we walk, sit, or stand, alone or in company. . . All the qualities of bearing are summarized in the dignity of the posture. We should guard and conserve this dignity because of respect for: First, the presence of God, whose eye is always on us; Second, the company of Our Guardian Angel and other Angels who follow our actions; Third, our own dignity as Catholics saved by the Precious Blood of Our Lord Jesus Christ . . .St. Francis de Sales always maintained a calm and decorous dignity. . . .Msgr. De Camius, Bishop of Belei (France), a very close friend of the Saint, had many occasions to observe him secretly. Always he found him with an irreprehensible posture. Such was the respect of the Saint for the presence of God that he would not make the least imperfection in private."

Horvat, Catholic Manual of Civility (2008), Tradition in Action, Inc., pp. 11, 13.

When a Greeting Card is Not Enough

The following comment regarding illustrated cards from a 1965 Catholic manners book gives one pause:

"Such cards may properly be sent at Christmas, Easter, Valentine's Day and birthdays. For any other occasion, and under any other circumstances, a card is not correct. A personal note is always to be preferred. This distinction applies even to 'Get-well' messages. . . . The use of a 'thank-you' card of any kind is never proper. . . If you have any occasion to say 'thank you,' say it yourself, in your own handwriting, on your own writing paper."

Fenner, American Catholic Etiquette (1965), The Newman Press, pp. 141-142.

The Rareness of Loyalty

According to Dr. Marian Horvat, "To be loyal is to be true to oneself and to one's neighbor. To be true to oneself, one should align his actions and words to his sentiments, and his sentiments to the laws of Morals and the common good. One is true to one's neighbor when he opportunely expresses what he feels and knows to be true, honest, and good, and not just what the other wants to hear.

"Loyal persons, enemies of dissimulation, disguise, and pretense, are most rare. . . . To be loyal is to respect one's given word, not to conceal a second intention, not to sacrifice the higher cause for the secondary. An honorable man has only one word, be it explicitly stated or manifested in another way."

Horvat, Catholic Manual of Civility (2008), Tradition in Action, Inc., p. 72.

Simon of Cyrene and The Unexpected Cross

Through the instrumentality of the Romans, Simon of Cyrene was given the honor of assisting Jesus in carrying His Cross to Calvary. (Matt.27:32; Mark 15:21-22; Luke 23:26.) We commemorate this event in the Fifth Station of the Cross.

May we accept our unanticipated crosses with serenity and trust, even joy.

V. We adore you, O Christ, and we bless you.
R. Because, by your Holy Cross, you have redeemed the world.

Image:
Titian's "Christ Carrying the Cross" (with Simon of Cyrene), from the Anthenaeum. In the public domain.

Little Jack Horner

“Little Jack Horner sat in the corner, Eating a Christmas pie, He put in his thumb and pulled out a plum, And said, 'What a good boy am I.'”

Some say this nursery rhyme is based on an extraordinary bit of intrigue involving the last Abbot of Glastonbury and his steward during the final days of the dissolution of the monasteries by Henry VIII of England.

Image:
Anderson's "Little Jack Horner"