China and Vietnam see boom in converts this Easter

Beijing, China, Apr 2, 2008 / 16:08 pm

The local Catholic churches in China and Vietnam have jointly welcomed over 2,800 new converts into the faith during the first week of the Easter Season, which concluded on Divine Mercy Sunday.

According to the Fides news agency, after a three year period of formation known as the catechumenate, the new Christians received the sacraments of initiation in ceremonies held throughout the first week of Easter.

The Diocese of Hong Kong is where the greatest number of converts was received into the Church, numbering 2,800.  Nine people came into the Church on Divine Mercy Sunday in Tie Ling in the province of Liao Ning, and eleven came into the Church throughout the week.

The Diocese of Hong Kong’s weekly bulleting in Chinese, “Kong Ko Bao”, said “entire families” were among those received into the Church, including the four Wu sisters from Holy Redeemer Parish.

“Our Catholic friends have been the seeds of evangelization for us, they have encouraged us to seek out the faith.  Now we are trying to convince our parents to attend catechesis,” the oldest Wu sister said.

Likewise, in the small Vietnamese town of Svay Pak, known for its problems of violence, drug use, prostitution and AIDS, 23 Vietnamese and Cambodian adults were baptized during the Easter Vigil.  There are only 70 Catholic families in town.