Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
Beijing (Agenzia Fides) – As is the case every year, the various Catholic communities on mainland China are now carrying out their Summer pastoral activities for Catholic and non-Catholic youth, offering Christian, human, and academic formation.
According to information sent to Agenzia Fides, the priests, religious, and seminarians are the protagonists, as always, of these activities, however the laity is also very active not only in the area of logistics and organizing the food, etc., but also in direct pastoral labor.
Among the initiatives, we report that in the parish of Yu She, in the Diocese of Jin Zhong, Province of Shan Xi, over 200 young people, the majority non-Christians, participated in the parish's first Summer Camp, organized by the Pastor, along with 5 lay university students, July 1-9. The youth participated in a brief course on catechism and saw various films on the faith and reality of the Catholic Church, learned sacred music, heard the faith testimonies of other Catholic youth, played sports, and even did schoolwork, with the assistance of the university students and priests present. According to their parents, “our children learned above all the meaning of solidarity, discipline, respect, and reciprocal love.”
From July 5-12, 44 young people in the parish of Zhi Jiang of the Province of Hu Nan participated in the Summer Camp organized by local priests and religious. The Sacred Scripture was the central theme. In addition to the knowledge of the liturgy and the sacraments, the Catholic youth also grew in their love for the faith and the Church, as well as for the Bible. The parish of Cheng An, in the Diocese of Han Dan has taken special interest in catering to the needs of the university students and middle and high school age youth. The religious of the Congregation of the Holy Spirit, Counselor and the laity are available throughout the time of vacations and the church is always open to them. The parish has also organized catechesis and prayer encounters, with new people. The parish pastor offered the youth books on religious topics and a cross, wishing them a fervent beginning of their “spiritual” summer that will aid in their integral development.
75 youth from the parish of Yi Cheng of Wu An, Province of He Bei, participated in the opening of the “Summer Catechism 2009,” which will last the entire Summer. The youth will study the faith, science, do 'homework,' and of course, have some wholesome good fun with the help of the lay catechists. “Jesus is the Aim of Our Life; Looking at the World with Jesus' Gaze” is the theme of reflection for the youth. The parish pastor even gave them special homework for the Summer: memorize the catechism flyers (4) and carefully read chapters 13-28 of the Acts of the Apostles.
The parish of De Zhou, with the help of the three seminarians sent from the diocese, organized a Summer Catechism Camp for the children of the parish and the neighborhood. As they were mostly small children, they prepared brief lessons adapted to their level, on the sacraments, the liturgy, and the history of the Bible, with a small exam at the end of the Summer. (NZ) (Agenzia Fides 15/7/2009)
