Macau. On Saturday, July 27, 2024, the Claretians in the East Asia Delegation celebrated the 175th Foundation Day of the Congregation in Macau. The liturgy was led by Bishop Stephen Lee of the Diocese of Macau, with Bishop Josep Abella, CMF, and more than twenty priests concelebrating the Mass at St. Lawrence Church. The Eucharistic Celebration was attended by over 400 religious, friends, and well-wishers of the Claretians. This event also commemorated the 70th anniversary of the Claretian Presence in East Asia and the 25th anniversary of the Pastoral Bible Foundation (PBF), the biblical apostolate of the Claretians in East Asia.
Historical Notes:
Claretian Missionaries have served in the Diocese of Macau since 2006 and Hong Kong since 2011. It is 95 years since the first Claretians to China arrived in 1929 and began their work in Anhui province. Between 1930 and 1952, approximately 30 missionaries from five different countries dedicated their service to the Apostolic Prefecture of Tunxi until they were forced to close the mission in 1952. Following the closure, some of these missionaries relocated to Hong Kong to further their language studies with the intention of returning to the mission. Still, eventually, they departed for Japan and the Philippines.
A Barbastro martyr for China Mission
In the 1930s, young seminarians in Spain prepared for the mission in China. Unfortunately, during the Spanish Civil War in 1936, 51 seminarians and their formators from the Claretian Seminary in Barbastro were killed by revolutionaries. Raphael Briega, who was studying Chinese to join the China Mission, was among these martyrs. Pope St. John Paul II beatified these 51 martyrs, including Raphael Briega, in 1992. As a token of gratitude, the missionaries contemplated sending missionaries to Chinese-speaking regions again and established a mission center in Taiwan in 1994. Over the last thirty years, missionaries have been providing service to indigenous communities and parishes under the Diocese of Taipei. Additionally, there’s a training program for young Claretians from the Chinese region in Taiwan.
Pastoral Bible Foundation (PBF)
A decade later, Father Alberto Rossa, who was then the director of Claretian Publications in Manila, arrived in Macau to continue the publishing ministry for the Chinese audience. Since its founding in Macau in 2006, Claretian Publications and Pastoral Bible Foundation have focused on providing affordable access to the Bible and biblical literature for Chinese readers.
“Rooted in the Word, audacious in the proclamation” is the motto of the Pastoral Bible Foundation and Claretian Publications in China, Macau, and Hong Kong. PBF was an initiative of Father Rossa, established in 1999 in Manila, the Philippines. The PBF’s primary focus is translating and publishing Bibles, and it has already published Bibles in 12 languages. Currently, the PBF oversees a group of biblical scholars and language experts who translate the pastoral Bible into modern Chinese.
New translation of the Chinese Bible
A new translation of the New Testament in Chinese with commentaries and Lectio Divina for every chapter was published in 2014. The translation of the Old Testament books into traditional and simplified Chinese is nearing completion. A guide for Lectio Divina for each chapter or paragraph of the Bible makes this Bible unique in the world. Once completed, the Bible Translation project would be the most significant contribution of the Claretians to the Catholic Chinese-speaking world.
PBF Online
The missionaries in Macau and Hong Kong offer commentaries and Lectio Divina for each chapter of every book of the Bible on their online platforms. In-depth commentaries on the three readings of the Sunday liturgy, daily reflections on the Gospel of the day, and liturgy aids are available in text, audio, or video formats on the PBF web page, www.bibleclaret.org.
These materials are available in English, Chinese, Spanish, Italian, and others. A group of committed volunteers contributes to translating biblical texts into various languages. Daily updates are done on social media channels like YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, and Spotify.
