A Roman Catholic Mass for Hu Jia

Blessed are they that have been persecuted for righteousness’ sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.  Blessed are ye when men shall reproach you, and persecute you, and say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake. Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets that were before you.  (Matt 5:10-12)  

As far as Catherine and I know, the heroic Chinese writer Hu Jia, who was sentenced today to over three years in prison is not a Roman Catholic.

But I am one.  And so, as a gesture not only of criticism, but  of scorn and contempt for the Chinese Communist Party who sent Hu Jia to prison AGAINST BASIC INTERNATIONAL LAW, as a gesture of scorn and contempt for the Chinese Communist Party who HAVE OUTLAWED TIBETAN BUDDHISM, AND ISLAM, AND THE ROMAN CATHOLIC CHURCH in China, tomorrow I am going to my local Roman Catholic Church to  have a Mass (to any non-Catholic readers, I will tell you this is the highest ritual of the Catholic Church) in which the name of Hu Jia will be said, and prayed for.

Hu Jia: Three and a Half Years in Jail for Speaking the Truth

Hu Jia’s sentence

Hu Jia was sentenced to three and a half years in prison and would be deprived of political rights for one year.  He was convicted for writing five articles and giving two interviews.

Chinese official news source said Hu Jia was guilty for criticising the Chinese political system, and accepting interviews from foreign journalists.  “Hu Jia spread malicious rumours, libel and instigation in an attempt to subvert the state’s political and socialist systems,” the Xinhua report said.  The Xinhua article also described the sentence as “lenient” and claimed that Hu Jia had confessed to his crimes.