CULTURAL SHOW INSICHUAN

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Performance to enhance solidarity among the dioceses and promote evangelization.

Five dioceses in Sichuan province have jointly held a cultural performance at Sichuan Catholic seminary to promote evangelization as well as to celebrate the 90th anniversary of the establishment of the Communist Party of China.

Father Wang Jianzhong of Nanchong said he viewed the June 16 event as a chance for Catholics to demonstrate their talents and “a platform for making exchange and learning to improve our work in the future.”

The cultural show demonstrated to non-Catholic audiences that the Catholic Church has a big pool of talented people, said Father John Liu Conghua of Chengdu, the only priest who sang in the program. His Chinese song “For Who” earned big applause from the audience.

Other performances included choral singing as well as cultural dancing by the Yi ethnic women of Xichang diocese.

The two and a half hour show drew some 500 people of whom about half were non-Catholics. “It was the first time I watched a Catholic program. It makes me feel the Church is a big family. I think it achieved its purpose,” one of them said.

This was the first joint cultural variety show held by Chengdu, Leshan, Nanchong, Yibin, and Xichang, according to Father Paul Lei Shiyin, vice-chairman of the Chinese Catholic Patriotic Association and a Catholic deputy of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference, top advisory body of the Beijing government.

It was aimed at enhancing solidarity among the dioceses in the southwestern province as well as promoting evangelization and social harmony. It was also an early celebration of the 90th anniversary of the Communist Party of China’s establishment on July 1, said Father Lei, bishop candidate of Leshan diocese who so far has not received a papal mandate.

His ordination was rumored to be scheduled in early June but has not taken place so far.

A Church observer outside China remarked that the Catholic Church should not celebrate a political party and that social harmony must not inflict new wounds on ecclesial communion.

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