Young Chinese discovers Jesus among friends in Italy
Vatican City (AsiaNews) - She was among the 500 catechumens who met Pope Francis on 23 November, at the conclusion of the Year of Faith. Silvia Peng, 25, has lived in Italy for four years where she works as a consultant. The Guangdong native had never heard of Jesus and Christianity. Thanks to some Italian friends, she discovered the faith, and will be baptised next Easter. Here is what she says about her discovery.
Jesus is a puzzle. I tried to explain this puzzle in my heart with simple words, i.e. that he was always in my heart hidden away, but that my heart was in the dark, often for a long time. Perhaps he has always been in my heart, I doubt it though . . . .
During my education, there was no place for the words "faith" and "Catholics". Sure, I was a "good student" and I thought I could ignore these words, since school exams did not require studying them.
I thought: 'Do I need perhaps to pray to achieve my goals? Do I need to read the Bible? I thought that praying and reading the Bible would put me in a bad mood. I knew nothing of the faith and so I never got serious about it.
In 2010 I visited the family of an Italian friend of mine. Out of curiosity about the way Italians live, for the first time in my life I attended Mass with my friend's mother and grandmother, in an old chapel in the town of Montebelluna (northeastern Italy).
Although I did not understand anything, the Mass left me with a deep impression. The choir singing made people more peaceful; dressed in their best, children attended the Mass and exchanged the sign of peace with others. I also saw how, at the end of the Mass, people greeted each other. . . . But I still did not understand who Jesus was, although I sensed that Jesus was not difficult to understand and that he was not far from me.
That year, my friend invited me to celebrate Christmas at their home. At Midnight Mass I sat close to his grandmother and I thought that the Mass was so special that it was like a great concert. After the Mass, everyone met in the square in front of the church, chatting, and drinking mulled wine and hot chocolate.
My friend's mother and grandmother introduced me to their neighbours, saying: "This is my Chinese daughter, my Chinese granddaughter. I was touched by their affection. Perhaps the warmth of such affection comes from their faith or may be simple hospitality, but for me it was hard to understand. Anyway, I am sure that in Italy I had a true experience of love and my self-awareness as a person grew.
"People who have faith become attached to everything, say thank you for everything, and are full of gratitude. Their life is full of expectations and hope." This is something I discovered in the lives of my Catholic friends. They are always ready to offer themselves, to help others calmly, even if they themselves have difficulties. They communicate with each other in attentive and polite ways, strengthening the positive elements in the other. I think all these aspects are related to their faith. So I started to look for my personal faith.
I am grateful to my friends for bringing me close Jesus. For this reason, I began to study the Bible and attend classes in the catechumenate.
The puzzle in my heart has been unravelling every day. I feel lucky because I see, beyond what I expected, that I am in a hurry to learn in the Christian faith. For this reason, I would like to thank Fr Joseph Zhang and Sister Ida.
A great honour was bestowed upon me when I was welcomed among the catechumens who were introduced to Pope Francis on 23 November. Now I cannot wait for that day [my baptism]. I think that the puzzle in my heart will unravel even more in the future.
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15/05/2020 14:10
