ASIA/CHINA - “Qingming": Traditional Remembrance of the Dead is an opportunity for Catholics to bear witness

Beijing (Agenzia Fides) – The day of Qingming, which commemorates the dead according to Chinese tradition, falls on April 5th, as it does every year. Catholic communities of mainland China have undertaken pastoral initiatives in anticipation of the Remembrance of the Dead, celebrating this day in light of the salvation promised by Jesus and as an opportunity to bear witness to the Gospel.

Catholic cemeteries are just as crowded on April 5th as they are on November 2nd, the day on which the Remembrance of the Dead falls according to the liturgical calendar of the Catholic Church. On April 5th, the Remembrance of the Dead is celebrated according to Catholic tradition in harmony with the practices of Chinese cultural tradition.

According to a report by the Church information portal "xinde.org," a visit to the Catholic cemetery in the municipality of Jiujiang, Jiangxi Province, took place on March 24th. After the liturgical celebration and prayers, the tombs of bishops, priests, nuns, and all the deceased who dedicated their lives to the service of the community were cleaned. In his homily, Father Pang Rui emphasized that the Qingming "is not only a time to remember the dead and ancestors, but also an opportunity to cultivate and bear witness to faith in Jesus. The first missionaries embodied the power of faith in their own lives. Their dedication illuminates our journey of faith. We will continue the legacy of our fathers and mothers in faith so that the Gospel of God can be spread ever further."
In the days preceding Qingming, the Catholic communities therefore also remembered all those who gave their lives, even to the point of martyrdom, for the proclamation of the Gospel.
As in previous years, Catholics from Guangdong Province made a pilgrimage to Shangchuan Island, where traces of the mission of St. Francis Xavier have been preserved, and also commemorated St. John Paul II on the 20th anniversary of his death.

For more than 2,500 years, Chinese people have remembered their ancestors and deceased loved ones on April 5, Qingming Day. According to ancient custom, flowers and incense are placed at the tombs of deceased loved ones. Given that even these moments have become an occasion for consumption, many Chinese Catholics are also committed to preserving these traditional customs from the effects of secularization by remembering their loved ones through participation in Holy Mass, prayer, and spiritual reflection, according to the penitential spirit of Lent. It is also an opportunity to explain Catholic teachings on death and eternal life to their fellow citizens. Chinese Catholics walk their journey of faith within the context of traditional Chinese culture and are willing to recognize and appreciate the similarities with it, including the great respect for the dead and their own ancestors.
(NZ) (Agenzia Fides, 5/4/2025)

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