LETTER TO CHINESE BISHOPS ABSENT FROM THE SYNOD

VATICAN CITY, OCT 23, 2005 (VIS) - Made public this afternoon was a letter signed by the presidents delegate and by the secretary general of the Synod of Bishops - respectively Cardinals Francis Arinze, Juan Sandoval Iniguez and Telesphore Placidus Toppo, and Archbishop Nikola Eterovic - addressed to the four Chinese prelates absent from the synodal assembly: Bishops Antonio Li Duan, Xi'an; Luca Li Jingfeng, Fengxiang; Aloysius Jin Luxian S.J., Shanghai; and Giuseppe Wei Jingyi, Qiqihar:

  "Vatican City, October 22nd 2005.

  "Dearest Brothers in the Episcopacy,

  "We, the Synod Fathers, participating in the Eleventh Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops, joined with Pope Benedict XVI, wish to give you our fraternal and cordial greetings.

  "Your absence during the synodal work caused great unhappiness in our soul. We would have liked to meet with you and hear of your demanding and fruitful ecclesial experience. All this was not possible, but we would like to assure you and the whole Church that is in China that you are present in a particular way in our hearts and in our prayers.

  "As you know, the Eucharistic Mystery is the center of our reflections. Regarding this, we would like to underline that it is in the Eucharist itself, source and summit of the life and mission of the Church, that we are all in communion with Christ and with the Universal Church. For this reason we give praise, with you, to the Eternal Father, the Giver of all good: from His heart comes the love that is poured to us through the Spirit of the Risen Lord, which makes us 'of one heart and soul.'

  "In the Lord Jesus, we hope that all the ecclesial communities in China may flourish in listening to the Word, in celebrating the Paschal Mystery and in generous service to their brethren. Our prayers include the ardent hope that paths may soon be found to make full communion more visible. We entrust these wishes to Most Holy Mary, Mother of the Church, accompanied by a fervent prayer from the whole Church."
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