Pope Francis’ special envoy arrived in Taiwan yesterday to attend the National Eucharistic Congress, a decision which shows that the Vatican deeply cherishes Catholics in Taiwan, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement.
Cardinal Fernando Filoni, prefect of the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples, is to attend the concluding celebration of the Fourth National Eucharistic Congress in Yunlin County today, the statement said.
At a meeting with Filoni at the Presidential Office Building yesterday, President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) said that Catholics have been a major force for good in Taiwan, where different religions have coexisted and interacted peacefully.
Photo: CNA
“The Vatican and Taiwan have held several religious meetings. We hope that Filoni’s visit will help further promote mutual understanding and exchanges between the two sides,” Tsai said.
Filoni’s visit is to last until Sunday. He also met with Vice President Chen Chien-jen (陳建仁) yesterday and is due to attend a series of Catholic events, the ministry said.
The congress is a gathering of clergy and lay people to bear witness to the real presence of Jesus in the Eucharist, an important Roman Catholic doctrine, it said.
Since 2011, Taiwan’s seven Catholic dioceses have taken turns hosting the event every two to three years. This year’s congress is being hosted by the Diocese of Chiayi, but is to be staged at Yunlin County Stadium.
The pope in 2016 sent Cardinal Giuseppe Versaldi, prefect of the Congregation for Catholic Education, to attend the Third National Eucharistic Congress, the ministry said.
The visit comes after a group of Taiwanese bishops in May last year held their first ad limina meeting with the pope in 10 years to report on the state of their dioceses.
The bishops invited the pope to visit Taiwan, but he decided to send Filoni instead.
In his National Day Rally speech on Sunday, Singaporean Prime Minister Lawrence Wong (黃循財) quoted the Taiwanese song One Small Umbrella (一支小雨傘) to describe his nation’s situation. Wong’s use of such a song shows Singapore’s familiarity with Taiwan’s culture and is a perfect reflection of exchanges between the two nations, Representative to Singapore Tung Chen-yuan (童振源) said yesterday in a post on Facebook. Wong quoted the song, saying: “As the rain gets heavier, I will take care of you, and you,” in Mandarin, using it as a metaphor for Singaporeans coming together to face challenges. Other Singaporean politicians have also used Taiwanese songs
NORTHERN STRIKE: Taiwanese military personnel have been training ‘in strategic and tactical battle operations’ in Michigan, a former US diplomat said More than 500 Taiwanese troops participated in this year’s Northern Strike military exercise held at Lake Michigan by the US, a Pentagon-run news outlet reported yesterday. The Michigan National Guard-sponsored drill involved 7,500 military personnel from 36 nations and territories around the world, the Stars and Stripes said. This year’s edition of Northern Strike, which concluded on Sunday, simulated a war in the Indo-Pacific region in a departure from its traditional European focus, it said. The change indicated a greater shift in the US armed forces’ attention to a potential conflict in Asia, it added. Citing a briefing by a Michigan National Guard senior
CHIPMAKING INVESTMENT: J.W. Kuo told legislators that Department of Investment Review approval would be needed were Washington to seek a TSMC board seat Minister of Economic Affairs J.W. Kuo (郭智輝) yesterday said he received information about a possible US government investment in Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) and an assessment of the possible effect on the firm requires further discussion. If the US were to invest in TSMC, the plan would need to be reviewed by the Department of Investment Review, Kuo told reporters ahead of a hearing of the legislature’s Economics Committee. Kuo’s remarks came after US Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick on Tuesday said that the US government is looking into the federal government taking equity stakes in computer chip manufacturers that
CLAMPING DOWN: At the preliminary stage on Jan. 1 next year, only core personnel of the military, the civil service and public schools would be subject to inspections Regular checks are to be conducted from next year to clamp down on military personnel, civil servants and public-school teachers with Chinese citizenship or Chinese household registration, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said yesterday. Article 9-1 of the Act Governing Relations Between the People of the Taiwan Area and the Mainland Area (臺灣地區與大陸地區人民關係條例) stipulates that Taiwanese who obtain Chinese household registration or a Chinese passport would be deprived of their Taiwanese citizenship and lose their right to work in the military, public service or public schools, it said. To identify and prevent the illegal employment of holders of Chinese ID cards or
RSS