Chinese Bishop Xie of Mingdong Dies

BEIJING, AUG. 28, 2005 (Zenit.org).- Bishop Xie Shiguang of China’s underground Church has died of cancer. He was 88.

Share this Entry

The bishop of Mingdong, in the southeast province of Fujian, had spent a total of 28 years in prison for his loyalty to the Pope.

The Chinese prelate ended his four-month battle with acute blood cancer on Thursday, reported the Connecticut-based Cardinal Kung Foundation.

Xie Shiguang was ordained a priest on May 3, 1949, and ordained a bishop on Jan. 25, 1984.

He was first arrested and imprisoned by Chinese authorities in 1955. He was released about a year later.

His second imprisonment was the longest, 22 years, from 1958-1980. He was also imprisoned from 1984-1987, and from 1990-1992.

The Cardinal Kung Foundation reported that Bishop Xie was «secretly imprisoned» a fifth time in 1999, but released less than six months later.

There are about 75,000 underground Catholics in the Diocese of Mingdong.

The underground Church in China, which professes loyalty to Rome, does not have Beijing’s approval.

Share this Entry

ZENIT Staff

Support ZENIT

If you liked this article, support ZENIT now with a donation