ASIA/CHINA – The Lenten journey of Chinese Catholic communities: visits to the sick, spiritual retreats, formation courses

Beijing – Spiritual retreats, visits to the sick, formation courses, and participation in the Stations of the Cross during Lent are shaping the daily life of Chinese Catholic parishes during this season.
A total of 43 priests from the Diocese of Wenzhou participated in a retreat from March 7 to 14, themed “The God in whom I believe.” The meditations focused on the foundations of a personal relationship with God and were intended to help the priests—who are sometimes overwhelmed with their numerous pastoral commitments—return to the sources of their vocation.
In the Diocese of Ningbo, priests and lay people visited the sick in the hospital and offered comfort to Catholics through the sacraments. Others brought an image of the Holy Family to the families of the parish. In the parish of Jiujiang in the Diocese of Nanchang , parishioners experienced three days of intensive retreat from March 12 to 15, led by Father Pang Rui and Father Cui Fenglei, deputy head of the Diocesan Commission for Evangelization. The focus was on “The relationship between liturgy and prayer,” encouraging the faithful to experience the liturgy as a time of participation in the mystery of salvation proclaimed in the Gospel.
In Beijing, the Word of God was the focus of a faith course held on March 12 at the House of St. Therese. This course was part of the diocesan Year of Sacred Scripture. During Lent, the cathedral community invites everyone “to keep the Word of God deep in their hearts and to live it in their daily lives, so as to become true witnesses to the Gospel of Christ.” In addition, the diocese has organized a Lenten course for lay people every Saturday and Sunday during Lent. This includes a weekly program with catechesis, meditation, the Rosary, the Sacrament of Confession, and the Anointing of the Sick for the elderly and sick. The Diocese of Shanghai also offers Lenten retreats every weekend for the faithful to accompany the entire community on their journey toward the celebration of Easter.

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