Nov 12, 2007 / 08:26 am
Cardinal Keith Michael Patrick O'Brien, archbishop of Saint Andrews and Edinburgh, recently reflected on his trip to China in two essays.
The cardinal's trip lasted between October 19 and October 29. In that time met with bishops, priests, nuns, seminarians, lay Catholics and government officials in Xi'an, Beijing, and Shanghai. He prayed with local clergy and religious, leading Catholics in prayer at Shanghai's Sheshan Marian Shrine, dedicated to Our Lady Help of Christians.
He also visited the grave of Father Matteo Ricci, a Jesuit missionary to China who died in 1610.
While voicing his belief that spirituality has been part of the nature of the Chinese people, the cardinal also worried China's increasing secularization and prosperity had hampered its spiritual progress.