A Seed of Catholicism in Tibetan Soil—Part 2
 Later on, in 1865, in the name of protecting Tibetan Buddhism, the four major monasteries of the Yellow Hat sect of Tibetan Buddhism, Drepung Monastery, Sera Monastery, Ganden Monastery and Tashlhunpo Monastery, put out the call, “Pledge on your life not to make contact with foreigners. Do not allow the invasion of foreign powers.” This call not only set into action the banishment of missionaries, but also the destruction of churches.
Moreover, it developed into the consensus opinion of Lamaism in the opposition of Western ReligAt the end of the same year, the lamas of Mang-kang led about three hundred armed followers to attack the mission in Bonga valley. The Catholic missionaries fled with their followers to the Lan-cang River valley. Throughout their journey, the Tibetan Catholics felt utterly dejected, as no other Tibetans along the way dared to get close to them. They continued to flee south along the Lan-cang River until they reached the border of the Badong Lord of the Naxi. The Badong Lord took pity upon them and gave them the land at Ci-gu. This is the origin of the church in Ci-gu. (See Photo 1)
Photo 1 The recently restored church in Ci-gu.
Later, the lamas once again came to destroy the Catholics, and burnt down the church in Ci-gu. The French Priest, with a Chinese name, Father Pu, fled with seven nuns and the rest of the followers, but the priest was caught. The lamas held him on the west bank of the Lan-cang River and finally decapitated him. The seven nuns were drowned in the river while still clutching their religious objects.
 Afterward, some of the treaties signed by the Qing Dynasty and Western nations following the opium wars were extremely protective of missionaries. The murder of a priest or the destruction of a church became a very big deal. Therefore, the Qing Government ordered the lama monasteries to compensate the churches. The church members chose the piece of land in Ci-zhong. In 1905, they built the splendid and magnificent church we can still see today.  Photo 3 The view of the Lan-cang River Valley from Priest Pu’s grave. Even after death, it still seems he cares for the Catholic
Tibetan living nearby.
It is said that before being decapitated, Priest Pu said to the church members that if there was anything they needed, he would pass the message on to God. No one can be sure if the priest really said these words before dying, but a half century later,
Photo 2 The place where church members pray for rain—Priest Pu’s grave.
village face a drought or if the orchards are short of water, church members gather before the priest’s grave to pray for rain (see Photo 2).
Later when Priest Joseph took the position in Ci-gu, the church members were extremely excited. With the arrival of Priest Joseph, not only could they chant the rosary and pray for rain, they could also attend Mass in front of Priest Pu's grave.
The church members all claim that praying for rain through Priest Pu is very effective. I can believe them. Otherwise, how could the rainmaking ceremonies persist for half a century? (Written by Gene Quinton, to be continued) A Seed of Catholicism in Tibetan Soil—Part I
In the summer of 2007, I was traveling in China, heading north along the Lan-cang River in a small rental car. The source of the river is in Tibet and it passes through Yunnan. Where it finally flows into the southeast peninsula it is called the Saerwen River. What surprised me is that so many of the minority nationalities living on the banks of this river are Christian. Even more fascinating is the fact that when I passed through a small village called Xiao-wei-xi, I discovered a Catholic church which was built in 1878 (or 1881). The congregation of the church is made up of the Han, Lisu, Naxi and Tibetan nationalities. It is true. It is not a typo. There are really Tibetan members of the congregation; they are Catholic Tibetans.
In the spring of 2009, I once again returned to China, and went back to this little village called Ci-zhong. My purpose was to fulfill the dream of getting a chance to take a better look at the church. When I arrived it was already dusk. I was amazed to discover that the church, which I had been waiting so long to visit, is built of stone, with grand architectural style reminiscent of a French castle. It is difficult to imagine that in 1905 the Missions Etrangeres de Paris was able to build such a splendid and magnificent church in this remote mountain region.
Priest Joseph, the head priest of the church in Ci-zhong, arrived over a year ago. He was sent by the Catholic Diocese of Beijing. Joseph comes from Inner Mongolia and he is passionate man of the cloth. Finding food and accommodation in Ci-zhong is not very convenient. Though there are a few privately run guest houses, I still preferred to stay in a guest room at the church. The priest is quite the cook. He whipped up a delicious meal for me in a heartbeat. After that, he went right to work attending to my room.
 The arrival of Priest Joseph in Ci-zhong was a huge event for members of the church. Since the last French priest left in 1951, this church has been without a priest for more than half a century. So, the local people were extremely excited to welcome their new priest.
In the few days I spent in Ci-zhong, I had the opportunity to attend the local Mass. Since all the inhabitants of Ci-zhong are Tibetan, the primary language is Tibetan. I was surprised to find out that Mass is conducted in Mandarin Chinese. However, all bible verses, including Our Father and the Hail Mary, are all read in Tibetan. I was truly amazed by the deep and pious faith, hope and love placed in God, Jesus, Mother Mary and the religion as a whole. Of course, it should be mentioned, some of the families have been Catholic for five generations.
Catholicism already has a hundred years of history in Ci-zhong. In this village, we can observe many examples of the syncretism of Catholic culture and traditional Tibetan culture. The most obvious example of this is the statue of Jesus located on the wall directly above the ciborium over the altar. In the Catholic Church in Ci-zhong, the Jesus statue placed in this location is seated in the lotus position as derived from traditional Tibetan religion. Another interesting example is the rainmaking ceremony. (Written by Gene Quinton, to be continued) |
Continuing north along the Lan-cang River, after four hours or so of driving, my Tibetan driver informed me that there is a place called Ci-zhong. According to the driver, the people living in Ci-zhong are Tibetan and most of them are Catholic. I was very curious to visit this long, narrow village situated next to the river. Upon entering the village, what did I see but a church bearing a cross right in the middle of the villagers’ homes. Since there was no priest in the church, and no one in charge of the facilities, the church was only open on Sundays. I regrettably had to leave without having the chance to visit this old, traditional looking church.
