China Arrests Catholic Bishop
Wednesday, August 27, 2008
Just hours before the closing ceremonies of the Summer Olympic Games in Beijing, a detail of six security agents arrested Bishop Julius Jia Zhigou at his cathedral in Zhengding and his whereabouts remain unknown. Bishop Jia, age 73 and in frail health, endured 15 years in prison under Mao, and has been arrested at least a dozen times since, all for the crime of his faith and loyalty to Rome on matters of religion. He has been living under house arrest since 1989.
Jia's diocese in Hebei, 100 miles south of Beijing, is home to 100,000 Catholics. In the weeks leading up to the start of the Olympic games in Beijing, Jia had been ordered not to celebrate mass or to meet with any foreigners. A guardhouse was erected on the grounds of Jia's church to maintain around-the-clock security on the bishop. Jia was last arrested in 2007, and it is unknown what precipitated this most recent arrest.
There are an estimated 40 underground bishop in China, who are either in prison, under house arrest, under surveillance, or in hiding. The rulers of China boast that their constitution guarantees the right to religious belief, but the manner in which that belief is exercised is greatly impacted by the state.
Labels: bishop Jia, China, persecution
posted by Tom Grace at
6:49 PM
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