Q.- What significance does China have within the Province of St. Nicholas of Tolentino?
A.- Continental China has formed part of our history and organization chart for more than a century. In the organization chart of the Province of St. Nicholas of Tolentino, Continental China always formed part of the Vicariate of the Philippines and China (until 1995) and later, together with Taiwan, of the Province of China and Taiwan. And has been functioning as such during the last years.
When the community of Taiwan was suppressed on September 4, 2011, the Provincial Council decided to establish the Delegation of Continental China. This was approved by the Provincial Chapter on May of the year 2012. In my recent trip to China the Delegation was organized and appointments needed for its normal operation were made. The Delegation is part of a Province which is entrusted to a Religious for its administration according to the norms and faculties received from the Prior Provincial.
Q.- What does your recent visit to China consist in? What new developments were you able to observe?
A.- Last month of May, accompanied by the Provincial Secretary, I have made a fraternal visit to the Brothers of Continental China. We left Madrid on the 29th of April and we stayed with them until the 11th of May. It is the 5th visit that I have done to China.
The great novelty, with relation to the past, is that, for the first time, we have stayed and settled in the house of the religious in Shangqiu (the old mission of Kweiteh. Before we had to stay in a hotel in the city. Now we have felt “at home”, never better said.
On Thursday, 2nd of May, we had the first meeting with all the religious in order to review and consolidate what we had proposed during the visit of renewal two years ago: to finish the construction of the house and to form a community in Shangqiu; to formulate a program of on-going formation for the religious and the initial formation for the aspirants; to study the possibility of widening our presence in other places of China, with new formative, pastoral and vocational possibilities.
During those ten days, I conducted a person to person dialogue with each religious, with some of them for three hours, with the valuable help as translators of the two Chinese religious who know Spanish. We also visited the parishes where some of our friars live and work. On Thursday, the 9th of May, we had the final meeting with all the religious, in order to confirm the organization of the Delegation, to talk to them about the process of revitalization and restructuration that the Order and the Province are living, and at the end thank them for their warm welcome and collaboration.
In front of the convent, some of the religious pose with Father Provincial (fourth from the right) Q.- You also planned to visit the City of Shanghai and the old properties of the Order, were you able to do it?
A.- This was also an important new development. For the first time, accompanied by the Administrator of the Diocese of Shangqiu and the Provincial Delegate, we visited our old properties in Shanghai, which now belong to the Diocese of Shangqiu. It was an emotional experience, of reencounter with our roots: we had the opportunity of visiting, of treading on and taking pictures of the house in Molière 6 Street, which housed the General Procuration since 1907. We wanted to be informed about the real situation of these properties, to know about their possibilities and try to get a professional advice that may orient and help get the most of them for the Diocese of Shangqiu.
Q.- How many are the Augustinian Recollects in China?
A.- As of now there are 12 Augustinian Recollects religious in China: eleven of them are priests and solemn -professed; one is a priest and simple-professed. Eight work in the Diocese of Shangqiu; two in that of Keifeng and another in that of Hezé. There is also one in the Diocese of Zhumadián.
In addition, there are three priests who are undergoing formation to become Augustinian Recollects. They have already been preparing themselves for two years and they are taking the necessary steps to become religious of the Order one day.
And there are six seminarians: four of them study in the seminary of Xian; one is studying first year theology in the seminary of Beijing; and another is finishing his theological studies in Wuhan.
Apart from the Augustinian Recollects, there is also a big and young community of the Missionaries of the Augustinian Recollect Sisters (MARS). There are about 30 religious sisters of whom seven live in the Central House in Shangqiu and others are spread out helping our friars in the parishes and in the kindergarten school.
There is also a sizeable group of Secular Fraternity. It was a very big group, consisting of almost 100 persons, which today has been divided and remains in half, 50 members approximately.
Q.- How many are the communities?
A.- I would say that this is the main new development. At this moment I can say with satisfaction that in China, finally, a community of Augustinian Recollects exists. Three of our religious live in community in Shangqiu. With them, in that same house, an aspirant priest lives. In it seminarians live and are being formed during vacation time. All the religious come periodically to this house of community and meet for on-going formation. This was unthinkable several years ago, and it fills us not only with satisfaction, but, above all, with hope.
A meeting with Father Provincial Q.- What can you tell us about the formation of all of them?
A.- The great progress that we have observed during these last years has reference to formation. When all were scattered, each taking care of his parish, it was like an impossible dream. There was a strong insistence on the need and importance of these encounters, of coming together several times a year to be formed and to live together as Augustinian Recollects. A program, with encounters once every two months. And they carry it out to the letter.
For the first time, during the month of April, all the religious have gathered together in order to experience together a week of spiritual exercises in the house. It has been a very positive, very overwhelming and very enriching experience for all of them. They periodically meet to deal with topics of formation (the Rule, the Constitutions, topics on religious life, the new evangelization…) and to live in community as Augustinian Recollects. All gather together to celebrate the feast of St. Augustine. They also have several meetings and days of fellowship and they organize community excursion to a place of interest.
We are fortunate to be able to help them in this formation. The return to China of the two religious who have been studying and forming themselves for several years in Spain has been providential and very positive. And we likewise can count on the cooperation of a Spanish religious who spoke Chinese and occasionally makes his presence and takes part in the formation of the male religious, the females religious, the formands and the laity.
Q.- Outside the country, are there also Chinese religious? How many are they and to what do they dedicate themselves?
A.- Outside of China, at this moment there are seven Chinese religious in Spain: two are already advanced in years, they live in the community of Monteagudo, after spending their entire life working above all in Taiwan; another religious takes care of Chinese chaplaincy entrusted to us by the Archdiocese; the two first candidates who have undergone the entire process of formation in Spain are about to finish their theological studies; another two are at the last stage of their formation; in addition, there is a postulant in the house of formation in Las Rozas.
On the other hand, the door remains open so that any of our religious of China might come to be formed and take special course in Europe in the future, which will redound to a great advantage for the Order in China.
A meeting with Father Provincial Q.- How do you see the prospects of the Church and the Order in China?
A.- I am accustomed to always say that “China is in the hands of God”. That is, it is in good hands, in the best of hands. It has passed through very difficult and compromising situations in its recent history, it has surpassed so many dangers, persecutions and oppositions which, with only human powers, the subsistence and the actual vitality of the Gospel, of the Church and the Order are beyond understanding.
Looking at the future, the perspectives are becoming more and more encouraging and promising. It is not that the horizon is all clear, peaceful and without clouds. But skylights are appearing, an increasing climate of freedom, of respect and of opportunity for the Gospel to catch fire in the hearts and inflame that immense country where more than 1,300 million people live (only in the province of Henan, where we are situated, more than 100 million live). God grant that we would be able to actively participate in the evangelization of China!