Posted on 03/23/2014 3:43:27 PM PDT by nickcarraway
Thousands of mourners packed a Shanghai square Saturday to bid farewell to "underground" Catholic Bishop Joseph Fan Zhongliang, whose faith led him to endure decades of suffering at the hands of China's ruling Communist Party, they said.
Fan, who was imprisoned for much of the last two decades and spent his final years under house arrest, died last Sunday at the age of 97 after several days of high fever, according to the US-based Cardinal Kung Foundation, a Roman Catholic organisation.
China has a state-controlled Catholic Church, which rejects the Vatican's authority, as well as an "underground" church. Experts estimate that there are as many as 12 million Catholics in China, split roughly evenly between the two churches.
(Excerpt) Read more at thestar.com.my ...
Ping
May he finally rest in peace.
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Prayers for Bishop Joseph Fan Zhongliang!
Yes, certainly. He was same age as my mother.
Did the wookie attend services?
Nah.. she was busy on a tobagon ride at the great wall...
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