Slowly, but clearly and logically, 80-year-old Cardinal Paul S.J. Shan (單國璽) talked about his life and work. Described as an "ordinary great man" by those close to him, he was patient and humble as ever.
"Working in a church is about service and sacrifice. Just as one has to ring the bell every day as long as one is a monk, I will serve people as much as possible," Shan said.
Shan was ordained a cardinal in 1998 at the age of 75. He had actually planned to retire at that age because it is customary for a Catholic priest to start his retirement at 75, but Pope John Paul II refused to let him go.
PHOTO: CHANG CHUNG-YI, TAIPEI TIMES
"The Pope said that I still had black hair and could still work, so he could not let me go yet," Shan said. He still enjoys good health at the age of 80.
Shan once again offered to retire when he met the Pope this September in Rome, but his retirement plan was rejected again.
Cardinals are the most powerful men in the Catholic Church after the Pope, and in fact they elect the Pope. Shan is the only living cardinal who is ethnically Chinese.
Shan's status as a cardinal gives him a close relationship with the Vatican and the Pope, and Shan's ordination was seen as a strengthening of the relationship between Taiwan and the Vatican, and as evidence of the Holy See's approval of religious freedom in Taiwan. The Vatican is the only European country with which Taiwan shares an official diplomatic tie.
There have been rumors about possible changes in the relationship between the Vatican and Taiwan and in the Vatican's attitude toward China, but Shan says that the Vatican's relationship with Taiwan remains "unchanged."
"The Vatican is different from other countries," Shan said. "Its main concern is religion, and it is not ambitious about politics, economics or military matters. When it comes to diplomacy, the Vatican is concerned with equality, the Church, religious freedom and human rights."
Shan also said that the Pope is very concerned about Taiwan. Every time he visits the Pope, Shan says, the Pope tells him that he prays for Taiwan and China every day, hoping that matters between the two sides can be solved peacefully.
Shan is also concerned with peace in the region and the welfare of Catholics in China. Partly as a result of Shan's efforts, the Vatican agreed to canonize as saints 120 Catholic martyrs from China, the first Chinese saints.
Raymond Tai, Taiwanese ambassador to the Vatican (
Born in China's Hepei Province in 1923, Shan joined the Society of Jesus in 1946 at the age of 23. In 1941 he went to the Philippines to get his theological education, and became a priest in 1955.
He then studied for a doctorate in theology in Rome from 1959 to 1961, and he served in Vietnam for two years after he completed his doctorate.
He came to Taiwan in 1963 at age 40, and became a bishop for the Hualien diocese in 1980. He transferred to the Kaohsiung diocese in 1991. He has also served as President of the Chinese Regional Bishops' Conference since 1981.
Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Chiang Chi-wen(
"I serve as a legislator with a Christian spirit," Chiang said. She also said that when she was asked by the KMT to run for the legislature for the first time, she had little time and money for her campaign, but Shan told her to "let nature take its course" because if the Lord wanted her to serve people, she would win the election. And she did.
"The cardinal is very concerned with politics, but he never interferes with anything," Chiang said.
Shan's philosophy of trying one's best and leaving the rest to God is also reflected in his attitude toward promoting Catholicism in Taiwan.
"The contemporary world offers too many temptations and it is very difficult for one to be a good Christian because being a Christian means sacrifice," Shan said.
"The strength of one man is not sufficient for preaching Catholicism. Making the Gospel enter people's hearts still requires the strength of the Lord," he said.
Shan's emphasis on sacrifice produced one of his mottoes: "sacrifice enjoyment, and enjoy sacrifice" (犧牲享受, 享受犧牲). The motto was later borrowed by former president Chiang Ching-kuo (蔣經國) and became widely known.
"He is a practical person," said Yang Tze-kaing (
Yang said that when he was studying at St. Ignatius, the school put great stress on manners and on students' character, instead of on lessons alone. Shan encouraged students to work on leadership qualities, and therefore many students from the school turned out to be very successful.
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