HONG KONG (UCAN): A delegation from the Congregation of the Immaculate Heart of Mary (Missionhurst or CICM) wrapped up its June 2 to 8 pilgrimage to China last week. The visit aimed to cement ties with Chinese bishops and dioceses in honour of the 150th death anniversary of the congregation’s Belgian founder, Theofiel Verbist.
 

HONG KONG (UCAN): The Way of the Cross at the well-known Our Lady of Mount Carmel sanctuary, the popular pilgrimage site in China’s Henan province was demolished by authorities at 8.00pm on June 5 in the latest clampdown on religious freedom.
 
Local government officials removed images of Jesus at the site in the village of Tianjiajing in the diocese of Anyang.
 

HONG KONG (UCAN): A circular from the State Administration for Religious Affairs requiring organisers of religious activities at temporary venues to seek guidance from government-recognised Church organisations has raised concerns in China for fear it means greater control will be exercised over unofficial Catholic communities and Protestant house churches. 
 

HONG KONG (UCAN): In the run-up to the 29th anniversary of the Tiannamen Square Massacre on June 4, several Chinese bloggers went missing, or were compelled to take a government arranged holiday.
 
According to a June 4 press release from Reporters Without Borders, Chinese authorities arranged for certain bloggers to take vacations under police escort before this year’s anniversary.
 

Hong Kong (UCAN): An 800 square metre plot of disputed land next to the Immaculate Conception Church in Hangzhou in Zhejiang province, China, was sold at auction for commercial use by government authorities on May 28, following clashes between Catholics and security officials.
 
The day before the auction, dozens of security guards, police and public security officers clashed with Catholics on the site, a source reported. 
 

HONG KONG (UCAN): The illicitly ordained Bishop Joseph Guo Jincai of Chengde, has taken charge of what is claimed to be the biggest cathedral in northern China, which is part of a 70 million yuan (86.2 million) complex that also includes a convent and a residence.
 
Construction of the 15,000-square-metre complex was mostly paid for by the Hebei Provincial Chinese Catholic Patriotic Association and the Hebei Catholic Administration Commission. Less than half of the amount was collected by Bishop Guo, an unnamed source said 
 

HONG KONG (UCAN): A statue St. John Wu Wenyin, a martyr, was removed from a Catholic church in Hebei province as Chinese authorities continued their clampdown on religious freedom.
 
The statue of St. John Wu Wenyin was unveiled at Dongertou Catholic Church, Yongnian parish, Handan Diocese, on May 3, but a source said that authorities asked the church to remove it after the ceremony “stirring up a commotion on the internet.”