The martyrs of China

The martyr saints of China, St Augustine Zhao Rong and companions, included 120 people who were killed in China between 1648 and 1930, under different emperors and during the Boxer rebellion. Today’s readings are appropriate. The first reading from Hosea 8 are the words of a prophet who was not afraid to speak out against idolatry. The gospel reading from Matthew 9:32-37 tells the story of how Jesus healed a man who was possessed by the devil. Some were amazed while others accused Jesus of relying on the power of Satan to cast out devils. No wonder he saw the people throughout the countryside as being like sheep without shepherds. So he urged his disciples to pray for labourers who would be willing to reap the harvest. China was a country that witnessed the courage of prophets who spoke the truth and Christian labourers who preached the gospel. Among the martyrs of China was Augustine Zhao Rong who, as a soldier escorted the foreign missionary Bishop Dufresse to his execution. The bishop’s patience and faith so impressed Zhao Rong that he became a catechumen, was baptized under the name of Augustine, and then entered the seminary. He was ordained a priest. In 1815 he was arrested and tortured and died. His is only one of many remarkable stories of faith. So, today we pray for the church in China, a church that was founded on the blood of martyrs.