World Notes China

Although the Patriotic Association of Chinese Catholics has usurped the allegiance of more than 3 million believers, a small underground church in China, holding clandestine services in private homes, has remained faithful to Rome. A hero of this remnant has been Gong Pinmei (Ignatius Kung), the bishop of Shanghai, who has been imprisoned for treason since 1955, steadfastly maintaining his loyalty to the Vatican. Xinhua, the official government news agency, last week reported that Gong, now nearly 84, had "repented" and had been paroled after agreeing to forswear any further contact with the Vatican. Gong, the news agency said, had kissed the ring of the Patriotic Bishop of Shanghai "and promised to act under his guidance."

Diplomats in Peking and observers in Rome pointed out that Gong had spurned earlier offers of release under similar conditions. Vatican officials suggested the Chinese government acted because it did not want the aging bishop to die in prison. The Vatican asked for Gong's freedom when Jaime Cardinal Sin of Manila visited Peking last year. At least twelve other Roman Catholic priests are believed to remain in Chinese prisons or labor camps.