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RHEHAAA/NSC WASHINGTON DC
RUEHGH/AMCONSUL SHANGHAI 8610

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 05 SHANGHAI 000231 
 
SIPDIS 
 
NSC FOR KUCHTA-HELBLING, LOI, SHRIER 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PHUM KIRF SOCI PGOV OVIP PELOSI NANCY CH
SUBJECT: CODEL PELOSI'S MEETING WITH SHANGHAI CATHOLIC BISHOP JIN, 
MAY 24, 2009 
 
¶1.  (U)  Summary.  Shanghai Catholic Bishop Jin welcomed Speaker 
Pelosi and her delegation in their first meeting following 
arrival in China on May 24, and proclaimed himself to be 
satisfied with the degree of religious freedom now existing in 
China.  He praised President Obama's May commencement speech at 
Notre Dame for its open-mindedness and asked that his best 
wishes and a book about the Diocese of Shanghai be presented to 
the President.  Despite technological advances hastening 
transportation and communication, prejudice, misunderstanding 
and media manipulation can keep people distant from each other, 
the Bishop cautioned.  The Diocese of Shanghai operates a 
publishing house and social welfare center, and has built 
primary schools in rural areas and contributed to Sichuan 
earthquake reconstruction areas.  Two seminaries in the diocese 
have formed more than 400 young priests.  The Pope's 2007 letter 
to the Catholic Church in China had been widely embraced, though 
not by all in the underground Catholic Church in China.  Faith 
sustained the Bishop through 27 years of imprisonment.  The 
Bishop expressed great admiration for the American people and 
for the Catholic Church in the United States which has so 
generously assisted the Diocese of Shanghai.  End summary. 
 
 
 
¶2.  (U)  93-year-old Bishop Aloysius Jin welcomed Speaker Pelosi 
and delegation at an hour-long meeting in his quarters near St. 
Ignatius Cathedral.  He good-naturedly deflected a last-moment 
attempt by the Shanghai Religious Affairs Bureau to reverse 
earlier plans and conduct the meeting in Mandarin, noting that 
as a native of Shanghai's Pudong, his `Putonghua' (national 
Mandarin dialect) was actually a `Pudong hua' that would be very 
difficult to understand and interpret.  Recalling that his first 
trip to Europe in his youth took 33 days by ship one-way, he 
noted that modern technological advances had lessened the time 
required to travel great lengths to mere hours, as the Speaker 
and her delegation had just demonstrated in their travel from 
Washington to Shanghai.  He cautioned, however, that the 
distances of separation between persons that arise from 
misunderstanding, prejudice or even manipulation of mass media 
still remain quite long.  He encouraged the Speaker and 
delegation to look at China firsthand. 
 
 
 
¶3.  (U)  The Bishop noted that he was born in 1916 and entered 
the Jesuits in 1938.  Ordained in 1945, he went to Europe for 
further study in 1946, eventually receiving a doctorate degree 
in theology from the Gregorian University in Rome.  He returned 
to China in 1951.  Omitting reference to his long imprisonment, 
the Bishop explained that he was ordained Bishop of Shanghai in 
1984 without the concurrence of the Pope.  (Note:  The Patriotic 
Catholic Association established under Communist rule to 
self-govern Catholics in China has selected bishops, a power 
reserved to the Pope in the Roman Catholic Church.  End note.) 
However, when visiting Boston in 1994 and staying at Cardinal 
Law's residence, Pope John Paul II sent a prefect from Rome who 
spoke with the Bishop at Cardinal Law's residence for two days, 
after which the Pope granted his recognition of Bishop Jin as 
the Roman Catholic Bishop of Shanghai.  Pope John Paul II also 
sent a Cardinal to meet with Bishop Jin in Munich during his 
1996 visit there to discuss selection of Bishop Jin's successor. 
 Presenting a bilingual book, `Catholic Shanghai Diocese,' to 
the Speaker and delegation, Bishop Jin pointed out that the 
first photo in the front of the book is one of Pope Benedict, 
another sign that the Diocese of Shanghai is in full communion 
with the Holy See.  Cardinal Wetter from Munich had relayed 
greetings from Pope Benedict when visiting Shanghai in 2008. 
 
 
 
¶4.  (U)  Bishop Jin expressed great admiration for the United 
States and American people, recalling fondly his eight visits to 
the United States.  Teachers from the California Province of the 
Jesuits had played important roles in his religious education, 
and he had read widely about the history of the Catholic Church 
in the United States.  In his several trips to the United 
States, he had had opportunity to visit many Catholic 
universities, and recited a long list of specifically Jesuit 
stateside universities he had visited, including Loyola in 
Chicago, Fordham, Boston College, Georgetown, Gonzaga and the 
 
SHANGHAI 00000231  002 OF 005 
 
 
University of San Francisco.  He expressed admiration for former 
Baltimore Archbishop Gibbons and noted that he had visited 
Cardinal Keeler in Baltimore. 
 
President Obama at Notre Dame. 
 
 
 
¶5.  (U)  Bishop Jin added that because of heart disease, he is 
unable to travel anymore.  Indeed, he said, as a 93-year-old, 
his remaining time in this life is very short.  His successor 
has already been identified:  Auxiliary Bishop Joseph Xing (Xing 
Wenzhi), appointed by the Pope in 2005.  Bishop Jin repeated his 
welcome to the Speaker and delegation and urged them to visit 
China again.  He concluded his opening remarks by saying he had 
followed President Obama's speech at Notre Dame's commencement 
one week earlier with considerable interest and approval. 
President Obama's speech was wonderful and the President a very 
open-minded man.  He asked that the Speaker relay his warm 
regards and admiration, and a copy of `Catholic Shanghai 
Diocese,' to the President.  The Bishop added that he counted 
former Notre Dame president Father Hesburgh among his friends, 
having met him in 1986 and having translated his book, `God, 
Country and Notre Dame,' into Chinese. 
 
 
 
¶6.  (U)  Speaker Pelosi expressed her thanks for the Bishop's 
welcome, said she would pass the book to President Obama and 
introduced her delegation.  The delegation was excited to visit 
China and thanked National People's Congress Foreign Affairs 
Committee Chairman (and former Ambassador to the United States 
and former Minister of Foreign Affairs) Li Zhaoxing for inviting 
the group to visit China.  She welcomed Ambassador Li's presence 
at the meeting and that of current Chinese Ambassador to the 
United States Zhou Wenzhong.  She congratulated Bishop Xing on 
his elevation and selection to succeed Bishop Jin and welcomed 
participation in the meeting by Shanghai Diocese Vicar General 
Father Ai Zuzhang and the presence of .  Noting she was a native 
of Baltimore, she recalled that Archbishop Gibbons had been 
regarded as a hero by her family, and said she would relay 
Bishop Jin's warm words about Cardinal Keeler to the Cardinal. 
She relayed Cardinal McCarrick's good wishes to Bishop Jin. 
Bishop Jin said he had and Cardinal McCarrick had exchanged 
visits, beginning when the latter was Bishop of Newark.  Speaker 
Pelosi noted Bishop Jin's path from ordination to elevation to 
Bishop to recognition by Rome had encountered many obstacles and 
invited his comments on that aspect of his life.  The Bishop 
demurred, saying the Speaker and Members in her delegation were 
all very important people, it would be better to answer specific 
questions rather than letting an old man tell his story.  He 
underscored that the delegation's call on him was a great honor 
for the Diocese of  Shanghai. 
 
 
 
¶7.  (U)  The Speaker noted current press reports that Pope 
Benedict plans a second letter to the Catholic Church in China, 
following up on his letter of 2007.  She also noted that May 24 
-- the very day of this meeting with Bishop Jin -- had been 
declared by the Pope as a day for all Catholics to pray for the 
Catholic Church in China.  Bishop Jin called this a happy 
coincidence.  The Pope's letter of two years ago was a wonderful 
letter, clarifying that there is only one Catholic Church, the 
Roman Catholic Church, in China, not two.  That division had 
arisen between the `official' Chinese Church and the underground 
Catholic Church is a pity, the Bishop said.  The Pope's 2007 
letter encouraged reconciliation and mutual pardon by the two 
Catholic factions.  The Diocese of Shanghai received the Pope's 
letter with enthusiasm and is adhering to the letter's 
objectives.  The Bishop expressed regret that some in the 
underground Catholic Church had not given immediate support to 
the Pope's letter.  He suggested that some overseas persons 
might not support reconciliation of the two factions.  Even so, 
today (May 24) the whole Catholic world is praying for the 
Catholic Church in China.  He noted that a nun in the diocese 
has taken a group of visiting German Bishops to say Mass for a 
large gathering at Sheshan (site of one of the diocese's 
seminaries and home to a mountaintop cathedral; Sheshan is a 
pilgrimage destination for Chinese Catholics in May). 
 
SHANGHAI 00000231  003 OF 005 
 
 
 
 
 
¶8.  (U)  Rep. James Sensenbrenner asked Bishop Jin's views on 
religious freedom in China.  The United States has always been 
an advocate for religious freedom.  Considering developments 
over the last five years, did the Bishop find that he and the 
Church are able to accomplish the Church's mission with fewer 
restrictions than in the past?  Bishop Jin replied that he is 
very satisfied about the extent of religious freedom in China 
today.  His views are further explicated in the book passed to 
delegation members, and the ability to publish such a book in 
China, and to establish and operate two seminaries, are 
excellent examples of the degree of free speech and freedom of 
religion that the Catholic Church in China now holds.  Over the 
last 25 years, the Shanghai Diocese's two seminaries have formed 
more than 400 young priests.  He had been able to send his Vicar 
General to Rome four years ago, where he met the Pope.  The 
diocese did not have sufficient financial ability to send 
seminarians to Rome, though they would surely be thrilled if 
they had opportunity to go there. 
 
 
 
¶9.  (U)  Having heard the Bishop outline when he entered the 
Jesuits in China and when he studied in Rome, Rep. Markey asked 
whether Bishop Jin had ever met the Jesuit priest and scientist 
Father Teilhard de Chardin.  Bishop Jin replied yes, they had 
met three times: in 1942, in Beijing; later in Shanghai, where 
de Chardin gave a scientific lecture that Jin did not well 
understand; and later again, in Paris.  De Chardin had told Jin 
that Jin was at least five years behind in his scientific 
thinking, Jin said, but had treated him kindly, warmly, 
encouragingly.  Rome also did not understand de Chardin, Bishop 
Jin continued, and sadly he was `exiled' to New York.  There he 
died on an Easter Sunday, and only ten persons went to graveside 
for his interment. 
 
 
 
¶10.  (U)  Rep. Markey followed up, asking the Bishop to outline 
his dream for Catholicism in China.  In the long run, Bishop Jin 
replied, I am very optimistic, but in the short-term, I must be 
realistic.  The numbers of Catholic believers in Shanghai and in 
China are growing very slowly.  Prior to 1949, more than 3 
million persons in China were Catholics.  Today there are very 
few, a small minority in Shanghai despite Catholicism's arrival 
here just over four hundred years ago.  Only God knows the 
number of Catholics in China today, with the Chinese Government 
putting the number at six million, Hong Kong experts estimating 
the number at 10 million, and some in the United States 
estimating the number as high as 14 million.  In contrast, 
Protestants, who numbered about 700,000 when the Communists came 
to power in 1949, now number about 30 million (Chinese 
Government estimate).  Catholicism is much behind the 
Protestants.  But the atmosphere for gaining religious adherents 
in China now is very favorable.  Young people very much wish to 
learn about the West, including about religion and especially 
about Christianity.  Protestants and Catholics are brothers and 
sisters, the Bishop emphasized.  He expressed approval for the 
ecumenical movement, and wondered whether bishops might be 
responsible for the low number of Chinese Catholics today. 
 
 
 
¶11.  (U)  Rep. Blumenauer asked about Shanghai Diocese projects, 
such as renovation of St. Ignatius Cathedral.  Bishop Jin 
replied that the diocese has 146 churches and two seminaries 
now.  A diocesan publishing house has published more than 400 
titles already, while a Catholic Social Work Center has been 
established to implement charitable activities for Caritas, the 
Catholic relief, development and social service organization. 
The diocese has built about ten primary schools in rural areas, 
and has contributed to relief work in Sichuan Province following 
the devastating May 12, 2008 earthquake there.  The publishing 
house, with the donation of paper arranged by the Protestant 
United Bible Society, had printed one million copies of the New 
Testament in modern Chinese (a translation prepared by the 
Bishop himself, he said) and distributed these to poorer 
dioceses.  Coming back to his ecumenical theme, he noted that 
 
SHANGHAI 00000231  004 OF 005 
 
 
the Presbyterian Church had provided scholarships for Chinese 
Catholic nuns to study in England and Scotland, showing that all 
Christians are brothers and sisters.  The Bishop also gratefully 
acknowledged assistance received from Jesuits in the United 
States. 
 
 
 
¶12.  (U)  Rep. Jackie Speier recalled from reading about Bishop 
Jin that he had been described as having entered prison as a 
young man and having emerged as an old man.  What kept him going 
through his long years of imprisonment?  Bishop Jin explained 
that he had been arrested in 1955, and through the years moved 
through a series of prisons, in Shanghai, Beijing, Hebei 
Province, and Henan Province.  All told, he was confined for 27 
years, 18 in prison and 9 in labor camps.  He very thankfully 
credited the reforms launched by Deng Xiaoping in the late 1970s 
as having led to his release from prison (in 1982), otherwise he 
would still be in prison - or already in heaven.  While in jail, 
he had no physical freedom, but his mind was free.  He could 
frequently pray in silence to God, recite the entire Mass 
silently, and say the Rosary.  Because of his faith, he was not 
unhappy in prison.  Now outside of prison, he finds himself very 
busy.  Despite his age, he is still serving as Bishop.  He has 
less time to pray to God now, a cause for regret.  He described 
himself as one not born for administrative work, that his true 
calling was more likely to teach theology. 
 
 
 
¶13.  (U)  In closing, Speaker Pelosi said Bishop Jin inspired 
her delegation and honored them by meeting with them.  She 
reiterated that she would convey the Bishop's good wishes and 
book to the President, as well as conveying his greetings to 
Cardinals McCarrick and Keeler.  On behalf of her delegation, 
she presented U.S. Capitol bookends to the Bishop, which he 
accepted with thanks.  Bishop Jin reiterated his praise for the 
American people and for the Catholic Church in America, 
admiringly noting how the numbers of American Catholics had 
grown from such a small number at the founding of the United 
States to about 70 million at present.  Catholics remain a small 
minority in Shanghai more than 400 years after Catholicism 
reached the city.  The Catholic Church in the United States - 
Jesuits, Maryknolls and others, have been very generous to the 
Diocese of Shanghai.  A new era, one of hope for all, has dawned 
for the United States and the whole world, the Bishop concluded. 
 
 
 
¶14.  (U)  U.S. Participants 
 
 
 
Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Mr. Paul Pelosi 
 
Rep. Edward Markey and Dr. Susan Blumenthal 
 
Rep. James Sensenbrenner and Mrs. Cheryl Sensenbrenner 
 
Rep. Earl Blumenauer and son Jon Blumenauer 
 
Rep. Jackie Speier 
 
Acting United States Consul General in Shanghai Simon Schuchat 
 
Professional Staff Members to the Speaker and Representatives 
 
Christopher Beede, Consulate Political and Economic Section 
Chief (note taker) 
 
Fu Helei, Consulate Senior Political Assistant 
 
Fei Yuying, Consulate Interpreter 
 
 
 
¶15.  (U)  Chinese Participants 
 
 
 
 
SHANGHAI 00000231  005 OF 005 
 
 
The Most Reverend Aloysius JIN Luxian, Bishop of Shanghai 
 
Ambassador LI Zhaoxing, Chairman of National People's Congress 
Foreign Affairs Committee 
 
Ambassador ZHOU Wenzhong, Chinese Ambassador to the United 
States 
 
HU Wei, Vice Chairman of Shanghai MPC Standing Committee 
 
The Most Reverend Joseph XING Wenzhi, Auxiliary Bishop of 
Shanghai 
 
The Most Reverend AI Zuzhang, Vicar General of the Diocese of 
Shanghai 
 
Mr. PENG Fang, Foreign Affairs Office, National People's 
Congress 
 
Other officials from the Diocese of Shanghai, Shanghai Municipal 
People's Congress, National People's Congress and the Shanghai 
Religious Affairs Bureau 
 
 
 
¶16.  (U)  Speaker Pelosi's staff have cleared this report. 
SCHUCHAT