Taken from the Catholic News Agency:

“On July 9 the Church celebrates the feast of the 120 Martyrs of China. Religious persecution has a long history in China, especially persecution of Christians, thousands of whom have died for their faith in the last millennium.

On October 1, 2000, Pope John Paul II canonized 120 men, women, and children who gave their lives for the faith in China between the years 1648 and 1930. The martyrs include 87 native Chinese and 33 foreign missionaries. The majority were killed during the Boxer Rebellion of 1900.”

St. John Paul II, during the canonization homily, spoke of two amazing witnesses,

Young Ann Wang, a 14-year-old, withstood the threats of the torturers who invited her to apostatize [deny her faith]. Ready for her beheading, she declared with a radiant face: “The door of heaven is open to all”, three times murmuring: “Jesus”. And 18-year-old Chi Zhuzi, cried out fearlessly to those who had just cut off his right arm and were preparing to flay him alive: “Every piece of my flesh, every drop of my blood will tell you that I am Christian.”

A few years ago, I had the grace to go visit the shrine of Our Lady of Wu Fung Chi, in I-Lan county, Taiwan. A shrine was built there to honour the miraculous saving of five non-Catholics by Mary. Here’s a short recounting of the story:

In November 1980, Our Lady showed herself to five non-Catholic mountain climbers, after protecting them throughout a dangerous walk downhill in darkness. These five climbers were part of a group of eleven climbers who were climbing the 880 meter high Wu Fung Chi Mountain. It was late afternoon when they reached the summit. As it was late, some of them decided to stay for the night. However, five of them had to return to work in Taipei the next day. As they were descending, it started to get dark. By the time they got back to the Villa of Our Lady, it was quite dark and there were still another three hours to go. Although they were not Catholic, they prayed to Our Lady to protect them on their remaining journey. They finally reached the foot of the mountain and rejoiced that they were all safe. As they turned their heads they saw a shape of a lady clothed in a white gown, standing about fifty-feet up in the air, with her arms stretched out just like the statue they prayed to earlier. The figure faded away quickly. Three days later, one of them returned to the spot with his wife where they saw the image. It was on top of a tree, and nothing like such an object that could be up in the air. As the news of this unusual happening spread around, many people came to honor Our Lady and ask for special grace. Wu Fung Chi Mountain became a pilgrimage site.

Let’s pray today for China, for the religious freedom of Christians there, and for the conversion of all Chinese to Jesus and the Church. May Mary, our mother, continue to work more miracles!