In another few days, Sister Yu Shuqin will go to the Catholic church in the Olympic Village, where she and 16 other church members will serve as clergy. She is a staff member of the Chinese Patriotic Catholic Association Beijing Division Foreign Affairs Office. She is also a sister at the Beijing South Cathedral.
It is an international practice to set up a religious service center in the Olympic Village. The five major religions of the world – Christianity (including Protestantism and Catholicism), Islam, Buddhism, Judaism, and Hinduism – each have worship rooms in the center.
Yu Shuqin says the Chinese Catholic church has sent 17 clergy members, including 6 priests, 6 brothers, and 5 sisters. They will conduct Mass, confession, and other religious services in the chapel in the Olympic Village.
Secretary-General Xu Xiaohong of the National Committee of the Three-Self Patriotic Movement of the Protestant Churches in China says that for the Olympics, the Chinese Protestant church has also sent a group of 16 clergy members, including pastors and students from theological seminaries to serve in the Olympic Village religious service center. They will hold regular services, guide foreign believers to Beijing Protestant churches, and provide simple translation services.
The Chinese Protestant church has prepared 10,000 New International Version (NIV) Chinese-English Bibles for the Olympic Village. Xu Xiaohong says that in order to meet the high demand, the Chinese Protestant church will print 50,000 Chinese-English New Testaments bearing the Beijing Olympics logo. The 50,000 that have already been printed have been delivered to Beijing and other cities that are holding Olympics events. These Bibles will be given to Olympic athletes and visitors in churches in the Olympic Village and local areas.
By People's Daily Online
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