Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
Tai Pei (Agenzia Fides) – For some time now, Catholics in Taiwan have been working to provide pastoral assistance to the most vulnerable in society, especially the sick. According to the Catholic Church Directory Taiwan 2004, published by the Secretariat of the Regional Bishops' Conference of Taiwan and updated by Agenzia Fides, the Catholic community of Taiwan currently runs 12 hospitals, 15 clinics, 4 orphanages, 13 rest homes for the elderly and 9 homes for medical assistance, 27 centers for the mentally and physically disabled, with 2,130 patients.
In this, the 150th anniversary of its evangelization, the Church in Taiwan has recently emphasized the importance of treating the sick, especially sick children, in accord with the theme chosen by the Holy Father Benedict XVI in his Message for World Day of the Sick, promoting numerous celebrations and events to create awareness among the Catholic community and society at large. In the parish of Saint John in Ban Qiao, there were celebrations on February 11 for the World Day of the Sick. In addition, the Carmelites in Taiwan and the Catholic association “Friends of the Sick” have organized a Mass and blessing of the sick for Sunday, February 15.
The following are a list of statistics on the Regional Church in Taiwan: Catholics: 298,028; Bishops: 14; Priests: 726 (264 diocesan, 462 religious); religious brothers: 89 (53 Chinese, 36 foreigners); religious sisters: 1,067 (736 Chinese, 331 foreigners); major seminaries: 2 (with 47 seminarians); minor seminaries: 2 (with 40 minor seminarians); Catechists: 296; Parishes: 394; Missionary stations: 349; semi-public Churches: 408; universities and schools: 4 (with 39,277 students); Catechetical Institute: 1 (with 16 students); language school: 1 (with 7 members); technical training schools: 5 (with 5,973 students); middle schools and high schools: 29 (with 65,352 students); formation centers: 3 (with 1,174 students); elementary schools: 10 (with 8,162 students); kindergartens: 195 (with 18,651 students); Student residencies: 42 (with 6,846 guests); Editorials: 9; Weekly journals: 3; Monthly journals: 16; audio/audio-visual producers: 4; radio stations: 2. (NZ) (Agenzia Fides 13/02/2009)
