DATE=9/11/2000 TYPE=BACKGROUND REPORT TITLE=CHINA-CATHOLICS NUMBER=5-46994 BYLINE=LETA HONG FINCHER DATELINE=NINGXIA PROVINCE, CHINA CONTENT= VOICED AT: INTRO: China has been expanding its crackdown on underground Christians in the past month, with more arrests of worshippers and priests not registered with the government. But despite the harsh suppression, Chinese are turning to Christianity - officially or unofficially - in record numbers. Beijing Correspondent Leta Hong Fincher recently visited a Catholic church in China's northwestern province, Ningxia, and tells us how Chinese Christian faith survives against the difficult odds. TEXT: ///SOUND OF ORGAN AND SINGING, EST. THEN FADE/// The walls of the only official Catholic church in Ningxia's capital, Yinchuan, are made of unpainted concrete. /// OPT /// Naked light bulbs hang from low wires strung above the pews. And cheap plastic flowers decorate a watercolor painting of Jesus Christ at the altar. /// END OPT /// No fancy stained glass windows either, just dusty, unadorned glass. But the Mass attracts a loyal following of about one thousand on Sundays, in a city with 2500 Christians. /// SERMON IN CHINESE, EST. THEN FADE /// The sermon this morning is about how difficult it is in today's society to admit that one is Christian. The priest says even he is sometimes afraid of being open about his faith. But he urges church members to share their faith with others, to go out and spread the gospel. As the parishioners pray, their 87-year-old bishop, Liu Jingshan, also known as John Baptist Liu, watches from the back row with satisfaction. Bishop Liu hardly ever preaches these days, now that he has passed the torch to a younger generation. /// LIU ACT IN CHINESE, EST. THEN FADE /// He says he came from a line of Catholics dating back to his great-grandfather. Generations of Catholics have known tension with the Chinese government, but in 1950, the Chinese Communist Party created a new Chinese Catholic Patriotic Association to replace the Vatican's role in China. The Vatican switched its recognition to Taiwan, and many priests and nuns fled the country. Bishop Liu remained behind, but was sentenced to 15 years in a labor camp. /// 2ND LIU ACT IN CHINESE, EST. THEN FADE/// He says he was formally released in 1966, but the Cultural Revolution had just begun. Religion was banned, and churches, mosques and temples were destroyed. So Bishop Liu says he continued to do hard labor alongside other criminals. It wasn't until 1979, with China's policy of opening up to the outside, that he was finally allowed to preach again. /// BEGIN OPT /// /// 3rd LIU ACT IN CHINESE, EST THEN FADE/// Bishop Liu says at that time, all their churches had been torn down, their bibles had been burned, and their robes were gone. But he says he still remembered how to hold mass, so he began by preaching at people's homes, and slowly, the Catholic community grew. /// END OPT /// /// SOUND OF CHANTING AND PRAYERS, THEN FADE /// Before 1949, there were about three million Catholics in China. Now, academics say the number has increased to at least 10 million. Richard Madsen, an expert on Chinese Christians at the University of California at San Diego, calls the increase spectacular, given the persecution and suppression of Christians during previous decades. /// MADSEN ACT /// Many of these communities really show a remarkable kind of energy, much more energy, much more devotion than you typically see in many Catholic and Protestant churches here in the United States, partly because people have had to suffer so much to maintain the faith. /// END ACT /// Mr. Madsen says in many ways, the situation for Christians in China has improved over the last 20 years. But the government requires all Christians to register, and over recent months, it has been cracking down on unregistered worshippers. /// OPT /// Rights groups say that in August, at least 180 Christians were arrested in central China. And at least 20 Catholic priests and nuns were arrested in the southeastern province, Fujian, for leading Mass in unregistered homes. /// END OPT /// But despite government restrictions, Mr. Madsen says the boundaries between the official and unofficial church, especially among Chinese Catholics, are very fluid. He says some bishops even move between registered and unregistered churches, and are approved of by the Pope. /// 2ND MADSEN ACT /// This approval is done in a quiet sort of way, because the Vatican doesn't have any formal relationship with the Chinese government. But it's known in certain areas that the person who's the bishop has been approved of by the Vatican. This person is also approved of by the so-called Catholic Patriotic Association, which is the officially approved government association, and when that happens, everybody in the area is happy. /// END ACT /// /// SOUND OF BELL AT MASS, THEN FADE /// Here in the remote northwestern province of Ningxia, Bishop Liu has been able to carve out more breathing room for his church than would be possible somewhere closer to China's political center. /// 4th LIU ACT IN CHINESE, THEN FADE /// Bishop Liu won't admit if the Pope has recognized him, saying he doesn't like to discuss politics. But he says he has faith the day will come when the Vatican establishes relations with China again. (signed) NEB/HK/LHF/JO 11-Sep-2000 05:03 AM LOC (11-Sep-2000 0903 UTC) NNNN Source: Voice of America .