The yin and yang of China's contradictions: prosperity is only a part of the big picture, and a relatively small part at that

National Catholic Reporter, April 11, 2003 by Robert J. McClory

Like all else, such heady, yin tributes must be taken with a stiff pinch of yang. The government still brutally represses the Falun Gong, a meditation-based religious movement. It is also exercising strong-arm tactics against the Uighers, a Muslim ethnic group in western China, on grounds that it may be plotting terrorism. Protestant churches, particularly evangelical ones, have been frequent targets for prosecution, as have new groups like the Eastern Lightning sect.

Of all the religious groups, Catholicism perhaps best illustrates the ambiguous dynamics of church and state in China. Bishops, priests, sisters and laity warmly welcomed us when our tour group visited Catholic institutions in eight sizable cities. On one occasion in Hebei province we were guests at a banquet featuring delicacies like chicken feet, smoked duck and whole crab, as well as alcoholic beverages. Two bishops, a priest and several ranking local Communist officials exchanged loud, good-natured toasts to one another throughout the meal. One might think prematurely that politics and religion had resolved their differences.

We visited the local Catholic headquarters, which houses a busy social service center, a publishing arm that produces catechetical materials, a national Catholic paper, Faith Fortnightly, with a circulation of 50,000, and the regional seminary. All these projects are sanctioned by the state as long as there is no overt effort to spread the faith outside church property. According to the most reliable figures, there are 12 million Catholics in China (about 1 percent of the population), 138 dioceses, 128 bishops, 2,200 priests, 3,600 sisters, 1,700 seminarians, 2,500 seminarians and about 50,000 adult converts a year.

At Sunday Mass in several cities we encountered overflow crowds, including young families and college students, whose energetic participation in the liturgy would put most American parishes to shame.

In Fushun we lunched with 70 sisters whose Sacred Heart order was founded by an American Maryknoll sister in the 1940s. Most of the sisters, attired in crisp black habits with white trim, appeared to be in their late 20s or early 30s; the order's mother superior is 45. It was a scene reminiscent of U.S. convent life half a century ago. The sisters run a clinic in the city and outreach into poor, rural areas. Several are Chinese-trained doctors, eye specialists and dentists.

The government's approval is evidenced by its donation of a large plot of land in compensation for church property confiscated 30 years ago during the Cultural Revolution. Here a new, massive motherhouse and novitiate are now under construction. The sisters' present location will be turned into a home for the elderly.

The Communist government is also assisting in clergy education. The city of Beijing, we were told, has contributed $2.5 million toward the construction of a regional seminary, while the central government has put up $4.9 million for the building of a national Catholic seminary.