There is no such thing as a state-sanctioned Catholic Church ("Vatican excommunicates Beijing's two new bishops," May 5, page 1). The only Catholic Church is the universal Catholic Church headed by the Pope. And only the Pope has the power to ordain Catholic bishops.
China's communist government falsely presents itself as the authentic spokesman for the aspirations of its people, and claims to be able -- by recourse to violent means -- to bring about the radical changes which will put an end to the oppression and misery of its people.
Marxist Communism is characterized by the "class struggle," which implies that society is founded on violence. Within this perspective, any reference to ethical requirements calling for courageous and radical institutional and structural reforms makes no sense. In this system, every affirmation of faith or of theology is subordinated to a political criterion, which in turn depends on the class struggle, the driving force of history.
Participation in the class struggle is presented as a requirement. The desire to love everyone, despite their class, and to meet them with non- violent means of dialogue and persuasion, is denounced as counterproductive and opposed to love.
Communism proposes a novel interpretation of both the content of faith and of Christian existence, which seriously departs from the faith of the Church and, in fact, actually constitutes a practical negation.
In contrast to communist belief, no state may impose religion, yet it must guarantee religious freedom and harmony among the followers of different religions. China's government, therefore, must not interfere in the religious affairs of the Catholic Church.
Those who choose to follow Beijing's newly ordained bishop of Kunming, Ma Yingling (馬英林), are following the atheistic and violent government of China and not the Catholic Church -- which is a beacon of truth and real love.
Paul Kokoski
Ontario, Canada
In the past month, two important developments are poised to equip Taiwan with expanded capabilities to play foreign policy offense in an age where Taiwan’s diplomatic space is seriously constricted by a hegemonic Beijing. Taiwan Foreign Minister Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) led a delegation of Taiwan and US companies to the Philippines to promote trilateral economic cooperation between the three countries. Additionally, in the past two weeks, Taiwan has placed chip export controls on South Africa in an escalating standoff over the placing of its diplomatic mission in Pretoria, causing the South Africans to pause and ask for consultations to resolve
An altercation involving a 73-year-old woman and a younger person broke out on a Taipei MRT train last week, with videos of the incident going viral online, sparking wide discussions about the controversial priority seats and social norms. In the video, the elderly woman, surnamed Tseng (曾), approached a passenger in a priority seat and demanded that she get up, and after she refused, she swung her bag, hitting her on the knees and calves several times. In return, the commuter asked a nearby passenger to hold her bag, stood up and kicked Tseng, causing her to fall backward and
In December 1937, Japanese troops captured Nanjing and unleashed one of the darkest chapters of the 20th century. Over six weeks, hundreds of thousands were slaughtered and women were raped on a scale that still defies comprehension. Across Asia, the Japanese occupation left deep scars. Singapore, Malaya, the Philippines and much of China endured terror, forced labor and massacres. My own grandfather was tortured by the Japanese in Singapore. His wife, traumatized beyond recovery, lived the rest of her life in silence and breakdown. These stories are real, not abstract history. Here is the irony: Mao Zedong (毛澤東) himself once told visiting
When I reminded my 83-year-old mother on Wednesday that it was the 76th anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic of China, she replied: “Yes, it was the day when my family was broken.” That answer captures the paradox of modern China. To most Chinese in mainland China, Oct. 1 is a day of pride — a celebration of national strength, prosperity and global stature. However, on a deeper level, it is also a reminder to many of the families shattered, the freedoms extinguished and the lives sacrificed on the road here. Seventy-six years ago, Chinese Communist leader Mao Zedong (毛澤東)
RSS