Sunday, December 01, 2013

Our Biblical Apostolate

New Chinese translation of the Bible
One of the major projects that has been running for a couple of years now is the new Chinese translation of the Bible. In the third week of November, there was a gathering of these Chinese Bible scholars who are involved in this project. They are a number of priests and nuns who had completed their biblical studies in Jerusalem, Rome, Chicago and Washington. With their help, we have formed the team for the new translation of the Bible into modern Chinese.
With the biblical team

As we come to the end of the 2013, the translation of the New Testament is completed with introductions, comments and Lectio Divina for each chapter.  The text is presented for a final reading and in early 2014, the new translation of the Chinese Bible will be available in print!

We have also made ​​arrangements for the publication of the Old Testament. This is a new Pastoral Bible - for ordinary Chinese Catholic can understand well. This project was based on a four-fold criteria:
  • Translation from the original biblical languages
  • Into modern Chinese -  language used by ordinary people
  • With notes and comments for better understanding of the text
  • At an affordable price
The investment of time, energy and man-power gone into this project is immense - that after 6 years of hard work, the project is coming to light!
 Fr. Alberto with Fr. Huang, Fr. Li and Sr. Lina
after the meeting with biblical scholars.

With Teresa (2nd from left)- the coordinator of Bible project in China
Teresa works full time with us in Zhuhai (across the border from Macau).

Seminary in Shijiazhuang

Fr. Alberto writes about his visit to the Semianry in Shijiazhuang where he encounters a few surprises: 
It's 5:30 in the morning. Get up. The temperature is 3 degrees below zero. 
The Mass begins at 6 am. I enter the seminary chapel: 
There are 130 major seminarians and a group of 35 Religious. 
They are doing their four years of theological studies in preparation for ministry. 
I am shocked: 130 seminarians! 
There are several such seminaries in different parts of China.
The seminary in Shijiazhuang.  It's a photo of March 2009.
Surprise - another conference - in a rural area
Fr. Huang Yu Tao is a friend of Claretians and we worked together for over seven years.
Fr. Huang Yu Tao

Fr. Huang  is the Rector of a 'minor' seminary. There are 34 young people between 16 and 22 years. The seminary is in a very poor village, about 100 kms. from Shijiazhuang. Fr. Alberto spent a couple of days with the Seminarians, sharing their lives.
The future of the Church in China is in good hands! What a joy and commitment are seen among these young people! They are poor and their life is hard. But, behind each of those vocations, there is a beautiful story ... Excited for the gospel and for the sake of Jesus and His Kingdom ...
Conference with the seminarians.
This is celebration time! With Fr. Joseph Zhang.
Fr. Joseph is a Ph.D. in Bible and the administrator of the diocese. He  invites me to dinner ...
and of course with some top quality wine - from Argentina!

Parish Libraries
Fr. Huang has been from the beginning the project manager of "Parish Libraries - Sister Parishes". 
Throughout these years, we have sent thousands of books to many rural parishes. Fr. Alberto traveled with him on a tour of several of these parishes where we have set up parish libraries.

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