Thousands of Catholics joined a parade to honor a 130-year-old statue of the Virgin Mary from Pingtung County’s Wanchin (萬金) Basilica that arrived in Taipei yesterday on a tour around the country to celebrate the 150th anniversary of the second coming of Catholicism.
After saying prayers and shooting firecrackers, the thousands of Catholics escorting the sedan carrying the statue of the Virgin Mary from the basilica started their parade in the afternoon while singing hymns and holding roses and banners.
The Wanchin Basilica, built in the 19th century by Spanish Dominican clergy, is one of the oldest churches in the country and is considered the most sacred church by Taiwanese Catholics.
PHOTO: LU CHUN-WEI, TAIPEI TIMES
“We’re holding the tour to celebrate the 150th anniversary of the [second] coming of Catholicism in Taiwan,” said Augustine Hsu (許德訓), secretary-general of the Office of the Archbishop of Taipei.
The Dominican Order first established churches in Taiwan when the Spanish occupied part of northern Taiwan in the 17th century. However, the Spanish left the island after less than 20 years following their defeat by the Dutch.
It wasn’t until 1859 that the Catholic Church reached Taiwan again.
“The tour of the Immaculate Conception started [in September last year] from Wanchin Village, the place from which Catholicism spread throughout the country,” Hsu said. “After the Immaculate Conception’s arrival today, she will stay in the Taipei Archdiocese for two months before moving on to Hualien and Taitung and then returning to Pingtung.”
Everyone in the parade was excited about the event.
“We’re very happy to be here today,” said Tang Ning (唐寧), a sophomore at National Tsing Hua University who grew up in a Catholic family. “We want to speak out loud about our love for our faith.”
A few of them brought guitars, drums and electric keyboards to play music on a small truck in the parade, while dozens of other young people sang and danced along.
A young Italian priest, Paolo Costa, got on the truck and sang a popular Mandarin love song — I’m Willing (我願意) — but rather than singing about love for a person, he was singing about his love for God.
While most people in the parade were from Taipei, the eight-member team that escorted the statue from Wanchin had participated in the entire tour.
Escort team captain, Pan Chen-hung (潘振宏), shared some interesting stories from along the tour.
“In Tainan, we invited local temples to join our parade, so we actually had a procession of two religions at the same time — it was quite a sight,” Pan said, smiling.
He also mentioned that in Lunbei Township (崙背), Yunlin County, locals set up tables along the way and burned incense to pay respect to the Virgin Mary.
“Some village chiefs announced our arrival when we passed through their villages and without knowing exactly what was going on, the villagers decided to pay respect to the Virgin Mary in their own way,” Pan said. “They set up tables with sacrifices and burned incense as we marched past.”
The procession finished at the Sacred Heart Girl’s High School next to the Cathedral of Taipei and a ceremony was performed to pray for the well-being of Taiwan and all Taiwanese.
‘DENIAL DEFENSE’: The US would increase its military presence with uncrewed ships, and submarines, while boosting defense in the Indo-Pacific, a Pete Hegseth memo said The US is reorienting its military strategy to focus primarily on deterring a potential Chinese invasion of Taiwan, a memo signed by US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth showed. The memo also called on Taiwan to increase its defense spending. The document, known as the “Interim National Defense Strategic Guidance,” was distributed this month and detailed the national defense plans of US President Donald Trump’s administration, an article in the Washington Post said on Saturday. It outlines how the US can prepare for a potential war with China and defend itself from threats in the “near abroad,” including Greenland and the Panama
A magnitude 4.9 earthquake struck off Tainan at 11:47am today, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. The hypocenter was 32.3km northeast of Tainan City Hall at a depth of 7.3km, CWA data showed. The intensity of the quake, which gauges the actual effect of a seismic event, measured 4 in Tainan and Chiayi County on Taiwan's seven-tier intensity scale, the data showed. The quake had an intensity of 3 in Chiayi City and County, and Yunlin County, while it was measured as 2 in Kaohsiung, Nantou County, Changhua County, Taitung County and offshore Penghu County, the data showed. There were no immediate reports of
The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) is maintaining close ties with Beijing, the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) said yesterday, hours after a new round of Chinese military drills in the Taiwan Strait began. Political parties in a democracy have a responsibility to be loyal to the nation and defend its sovereignty, DPP spokesman Justin Wu (吳崢) told a news conference in Taipei. His comments came hours after Beijing announced via Chinese state media that the Chinese People’s Liberation Army’s Eastern Theater Command was holding large-scale drills simulating a multi-pronged attack on Taiwan. Contrary to the KMT’s claims that it is staunchly anti-communist, KMT Deputy
RESPONSE: The government would investigate incidents of Taiwanese entertainers in China promoting CCP propaganda online in contravention of the law, the source said Taiwanese entertainers living in China who are found to have contravened cross-strait regulations or collaborated with the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) could be subject to fines, a source said on Sunday. Several Taiwanese entertainers have posted on the social media platform Sina Weibo saying that Taiwan “must be returned” to China, and sharing news articles from Chinese state media. In response, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) has asked the Ministry of Culture to investigate whether the entertainers had contravened any laws, and asked for them to be questioned upon their return to Taiwan, an official familiar with the matter said. To curb repeated