A "quiet" episcopal ordination took place today in Xichang, in the
far south of Sichuan.
It was the consecration of Bishop Lei Jiapei as
bishop of the diocese, the first after 17 years.
The last Bishop was
Msgr. Xie Chaogang, who died in 1999. Since then, Fr. Lei Jiapei was the
diocesan administrator.
The ceremony was very similar to that which took place two days ago in Chengdu (Sichuan),
with almost the same bishops.
Msgr. Fang Xingyao of Linyi (Shandong)
presided, the presence of six other bishops among whom there was the
newly ordained Bishop Tang Yuange of Chengdu, Msgr. Luo Xuegang in
Yibin, Msgr. He Zeqing Wanzhou, Msgr. Chen Gongao Nanchong; Msgr. Xiao
Zejiang Guizhou, and the illegitimate bishop Msgr. Lei Shiyin of Leshan.
Unlike what happened two days ago in Chengdu - where the faithful
objected to his presence, and even attempted to bar his entry into the
Church holding banners that recalled his excommunication and asked him
not to participate in the liturgy - today everything was "quiet".
It is
also true that information emerging from Xichang is very patchy and the
presence of policemen in plain clothes and in uniform was evident.
The Chengdu ordination attracted many comments
on the web. So far none of the Xichang faithful have not made any
remarks.
On the other hand, Fr. Peter (Duo Bo Shen Fu), blogger priest,
has posted a commentary on today’s liturgy: "The Chinese bishops today
are no longer a symbol of holiness, but they are like the side elements,
the animals without a backbone. This is the tragedy of the Chinese
Catholic Church. "
The latest available statistics show that the diocese of Xichang
includes about 35 thousand Catholics, 11 churches and six chapels.
The
population is served by 10 priests and 25 nuns.
There are also religious
who run a leper colony near Panzhihua, near the border with Yunnan.