09 July AGOSTINO ZHAO RONGPriest and martyr (+ 1815)and Companions Martyrs in China A period of persecution in regard to the Christian religion occurred in the nineteenth century. While Catholicism had been authorised by some Emperors in the preceding centuries, Emperor Kia-Kin (1796-1821) published, instead, numerous and severe decrees against it. The first was issued in 1805. Two edicts of 1811 were directed against those among the Chinese who were studying to receive sacred orders, and against priests who were propagating the Christian religion. A decree of 1813 exonerated voluntary apostates from every chastisement, that is, Christians who spontaneously declared that they would abandon their faith, but all others were to be dealt with harshly. In 1815 there came two other decrees, with which approval was given to the conduct of the Viceroy of Sichuan who had beheaded Monsignor Dufresse, of the Paris Foreign Missions Society (M.E.P), and some Chinese Christians. As a result, there was a worsening of the persecution. St. John Gabriel Taurin Dufresse, M.E.P, Bishop, was arrested on the 18th of May 1815, taken to Chengdu, condemned and executed on the 14th of September 1815. Saint Augustine Zhao Rong was a Chinese diocesan priest. Having first been one of the soldiers who had escorted Monsignor Dufresse from Chengdu to Beijing, he was moved by his patience and had then asked to be numbered among the neophytes. Once baptised, he was sent to the seminary and then ordained a priest. Arrested, he had to suffer the most cruel tortures and then died in 1815. - Copyright © Libreria Editrice Vaticana Saint Augustine Zhao Rong and his Companions, MartyrsAugustine Zhao Rong was one of the Chinese soldiers who escorted Bishop John Gabriel Taurin Dufresse to his execution. Moved by his patience, he asked to be baptized, and in due course was sent to the seminary and ordained a priest. He was arrested and savagely tortured. He died in 1815. With him are celebrated 119 of his companions in martyrdom in China between 1648 and 1930 (including Bishop Dufresse). Official persecution of Christians by the Emperors ceased in 1842, but violent anti-religious sentiments persisted, and in the Boxer Rebellion of 1900, Christians were particularly attacked and many thousands were killed. See the official Vatican web site. Other saints: The Martyrs of Gorcum (-1572) On 1 April 1572 a group called the Watergeuzen or Gueux de mer (water-/sea-beggars, i.e. rebels) rebelled against the Spanish Habsburg crown which ruled the Low Countries, and conquered Brielle and later Vlissingen and other places. The town of Gorcum (also Gorkum or Gorinchem) fell into their hands in June, and they captured nine Franciscan friars and two lay brothers, as well as the parish priest, his assistant, and two others. These fifteen endured much abuse and suffering in prison and were then transported to Brielle, being exhibited for money to curious crowds on the way. At Brielle they were joined by four others. At the command of William de la Marck, Lord of Lumey, commander of the Gueux de mer, they were each interrogated and ordered to renounce their belief in the Blessed Sacrament and in papal supremacy. They all remained firm in their faith – even those who had been less than perfect Christians before their arrest. The prince of Orange, William the Silent, ordered those in authority to leave priests and religious unmolested, but Lumey ignored this command and had them all hanged, in a turf-shed on the night of 9 July. To see these texts in a readable format and with the verse and rubrics correctly formatted, please use the Catholic Calendar app from Universalis. A choice of views: either scrolling like a web page or page-turning like an e-book. Readings at Mass. The Mass Today page, containing the exact liturgy for today including prayers, antiphons and readings. A perpetual liturgical calendar covering all years. Local liturgical calendars for over 20 countries and dioceses. The Catholic Calendar app is free. In addition to all this, the full Universalis app gives you: The official Grail translation of the Psalms in the Liturgy of the Hours. Mass texts in both the Jerusalem Bible/Grail and the NAB translations. Access to all texts for all dates, past, present and future. Complete independence from the Internet. Everything is stored within the application itself. The full Universalis app costs £9.99 / $13.99 / €12.99 from the App Store. Alternatively you can pay nothing to start with and then subscribe for £0.69 / $0.99 / €0.89 per month. To do this, get the free Catholic Calendar app and press the "Try or buy" button in the calendar. #MinisterDerrick #Archbishop #CatholicLife #ProLife #AntiLGBT
Posted on: Tue, 09 Jul 2013 13:34:18 +0000
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