BEIJING (UCAN) -- With about 500 days to go until the Beijing Olympic Games, Catholic leaders in China are making arrangements to meet the religious needs of foreign Christian athletes and visitors.

Anthony Liu Bainian, vice chairman of the Chinese Catholic Patriotic Association (CCPA), recently put forward a proposal to the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) to "provide English-language bibles in hotels." Liu, a CPPCC member, made the proposal during the annual meeting here of the conference, the top advisory body of China's central government.

His proposal aims to meet "the religious needs of foreign athletes," since many of these visitors are Christians, he told UCA News on March 21.

The first-ever Olympic Games in China are scheduled to take place in the capital Aug. 8-24, 2008.

Liu estimated that 20,000 copies of the Bible will be needed. Once his suggestion is approved, he said, "I will think of a way to get the bibles."

According to Liu, the CPPCC's proposal commission has examined and verified the proposal. Once endorsed by a CPPCC meeting on March 22, he explained, it would be referred to related departments and organizations to be implemented.

"I'm optimistic it will be taken up," said Liu, who attended the 5th Session of the CPPCC's 10th National Committee meeting, held March 3-15. This ran concurrently with the March 5-16 meeting of the National People's Congress (NPC), China's legislature.

The CCPA and the Bishops' Conference of the Catholic Church in China (BCCCC) have designated Beijing diocese to provide pastoral care during the 2008 Olympic Games.

The diocese provided such services during the 11th Asian Games in 1990, which also were held in the capital. Two priests from Beijing diocese provided religious services at the site of those games, in which more than 6,000 athletes from 37 countries took part.

Liu said he has no doubt the Beijing Olympic organizers would set up similar worship venues. He pointed out, however, that no copies of the Bible were provided in local hotels during the Asian Games.

Another CPPCC member, Bishop Vincent Zhan Silu of Mindong, told UCA News that conference members from the five government-recognized religions discussed the religious needs of Olympic Games participants at the recent meeting and made suggestions to the Beijing Olympics organizers.

The five religions are Buddhism, Catholicism, Daoism, Islam and Protestantism.

"We religious groups should prepare well to receive foreign visitors, such as training suitable local personnel to provide good services," Bishop Zhan said, adding that the local Catholic Church can arrange for priests and nuns who speak foreign languages to celebrate Mass and serve at the event.

He believes Beijing diocese is prepared to meet such needs. His diocese is in Fujian province, eastern China.

Beijing diocese holds English Masses on Sundays at Immaculate Conception Cathedral, also known as Nantang or South Church, and other churches.

Father Peter Zhao Jianmin of Beijing diocese told UCA News March 14 that his diocese is preparing a "comprehensive service plan" for the Olympics and Church personnel will further discuss what needs to be done after Easter.

The diocese may seek help from the CCPA and BCCCC if there are not enough priests to celebrate Masses in foreign languages, said Father Zhao, who is Bishop Michael Fu Tieshan's assistant for managing and coordinating diocesan affairs.

Meanwhile, 75-year-old Bishop Fu of Beijing, an NPC vice chairman, was excused from attending the NPC annual meeting, though he was present at the preparatory meeting on March 4, Liu said. Bishop Fu has been in ill health since late 2004. Liu explained that Bishop Fu needed rest and could not sit through a meeting that ran nearly two weeks.

Other Catholic NPC deputies attending the annual meeting were Bishop Joseph Ma Yinglin of Kunming and Father Joseph Huang Bingzhang of Shantou.

Two other bishops, a priest and a Catholic layman also attended the CPPCC meeting, while Bishop Bernardine Dong Guangqing of Hankou and Bishop Aloysius Jin Luxian of Shanghai, both 90 years old, were absent.

A source from Hankou diocese, Hubei province, told UCA News March 21 that Bishop Dong was hospitalized recently and is critically ill.

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