Immaculate Conception Cathedral, Chengdu Explained

Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception, Chengdu
Other Name:Ping'anqiao Catholic Church
Location:25 Xihuamen Street, Qingyang District, Chengdu, Sichuan
Country:China
Denomination:Roman Catholic
Founded Date:1897
Founder:Jacques-Victor-Marius Rouchouse
Dedication:Immaculate Conception
Past Bishop:Jacques-Victor-Marius Rouchouse
Henri-Marie-Ernest-Désiré Pinault
Status:Cathedral
Functional Status:Active
Style:Byzantine Revival

Renaissance Revival

  • traditional Sichuanese style
  • Groundbreaking:1897
    Completed Date:1904
    Archdiocese:Chongqing
    Diocese:Chengdu
    Bishop:Joseph Tang Yuange

    The Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception, commonly referred to as Ping'anqiao Catholic Church, is the Roman Catholic cathedral of the Diocese of Chengdu, situated on Xihuamen Street, Qingyang District, in Sichuan's capital city of Chengdu.[1] It has been subjected to the control of the state-sanctioned Chinese Catholic Patriotic Association since 1957.

    Description

    The construction of the cathedral started in 1897, under the supervision of Jacques-Victor-Marius Rouchouse, a French missionary of the Paris Foreign Missions Society and the first bishop of the Diocese of Chengdu, who was appointed to supervise the work by Bishop Marie-Julien Dunand. It was not completed until 1904.[2] [3] The English political economist Audrey Donnithorne was baptized at this cathedral after converting from Anglicanism to Roman Catholicism in 1943.[4]

    The buildings, including the cathedral, the Bishop's Office, and the Episcopal Residence, cover an area of 16,566.3 square meters and have a usable area of 8,508.5 square meters. Built in a cruciform design with a façade of neo-Byzantine style, the cathedral and its surrounding buildings constitute the Chinese character "Chinese: " meaning "fear", representing "The beginning of wisdom is fear of the Lord" (Proverbs 9:10). The right part of the character means "rule", which represents the function of this building as a cathedral, as Jesus said in the Gospel: "Amen, I say to you, whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven" (Matthew 18:18).[5] [6]

    Mass times

    English Mass is celebrated on Saturdays at 4:00pm. Service in the local language is held on Sundays, starting at the same hour.

    See also

    Notes and References

    1. Web site: Ping'anqiao Catholic Church . . . chengdu-expat.com . November 20, 2022 . November 20, 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20221120024101/https://chengdu-expat.com/places/pinganqiao-catholic-church/ . live .
    2. Web site: 中西合璧的代表性建筑——天主教成都教区主教公署 . A representative building of the combination of Chinese and Western architectural styles: the Episcopal See of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Chengdu . Wang . Anming . October 18, 2020 . . zh-hans . November 20, 2022 . November 20, 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20221120024102/https://www.thepaper.cn/newsDetail_forward_9612236 . live .
    3. Web site: Diocese of Chengdu . . . . November 20, 2022 . November 20, 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20221120024107/https://www.ucanews.com/directory/dioceses/china-chengdu/255 . live .
    4. News: Wang . Teresa . June 10, 2020 . 四川:天主教南充教区为董育德教授举行隆重追思弥撒 . Sichuan: Solemn Memorial Mass for Professor Audrey Donnithorne Held in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Nanchong . zh-hans . Faith Weekly . Shijiazhuang . November 23, 2022 . November 18, 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20221118055716/https://www.xinde.org/show/48811 . live .
    5. Doris . January 2020 . 平安橋天主堂─東方建築與西方宗教的魔幻交融 . Ping'anqiao Catholic Church: The Magical Fusion of Eastern Architecture and Western Religion . zh-hant . 旅讀中國 [OR China] . Taipei . Cheer Link Development Limited Taiwan Branch . November 20, 2022 . November 18, 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20221118075522/https://www.orchina.net/article/1611 . live .
    6. Web site: Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception, Chengdu . . August 26, 2018 . mzzj.chengdu.gov.cn . November 20, 2022 .