APPENDIX TRANSLATION (French) [TRANSLATOR'S NOTE: Since this material is a re-re-translation, a literal translation from the French is given below-so as not to lose any more of the flavor of the original text (Chinese).—EH.] "LI WEI HAN" DOCUMENT Important documents are lost in the succession of daily events. "DIFFUSION-INFORMATION DOCUMENTAIRE" makes a point of furnishing texts in the form of pamphlets, presenting one document at a time. Full translation of a document published in 1959 by: "The Foreign Language Press [Publications] of Peking for the use of the Latin American section of the Liaison Department of the Chinese Communist Party". This document defines, in its own words, the [various] development stages of the "dialectical struggle within religion for the purpose of progressively replacing the religious element therein by the Marxist element, *** and of leading the Catholics to destroy, by themselves and on their own account, the divine images which they themselves had created." PUBLISHED BY THE FOREIGN LANGUAGE PRESS OF PEKING FOR THE EXCLUSIVE USE OF THE LATIN AMERICAN SECTION OF THE LIAISON DEPARTMENT OF THE CHINESE COMMUNIST PARTY Printed in the People's Republic of China THE CATHOLIC CHURCH AND CUBA (ACTION PROGRAM) The Catholic Church, which has its headquarters in Rome, is a reactionary organization which stirs up counter-revolutionary activities within the People's democracies. So that the People's Democracies may continue to advance via Socialism and Communism, it is necessary, first of all, to do away with the influence of the Catholic Church and with the activities which it carries on. The Catholic Church is neither sterile nor impotent; on the contrary, its power must be recognized and a number of measures must be taken to block its way. When the political struggle and the production forces have attained a high level of production [rate of productivity] it will be possible to destroy it [the Church]. That is the objective to be attained and that is what we are fighting for. To make a frontal attack and to strike [it] in the face, as we will be poorly equipped and as we will not have educated the masses properly, would result only in giving the Church an even greater control over the masses because they would then feel in sympathy with it and clandestinely support its counter-revolutionary activities. It must also be prevented that the counter-revolutionary leaders of the Church Would appear as martyrs. The line of action to be followed against the Church consists in instructing, educating, persuading, convincing, and gradually awakening and fully developing the political consciousness of the Catholics through obtaining their participation in study groups and political activities. We must undertake [engage in] the dialectical struggle within religion through the instrumentality of "activists" (militant Communists).1 We will progressively replace the religious element by the Marxist element, gradually change the false con1 Explanatory note of the translator [from Chinese to Spanish to French]. sciousness into a true consciousness, so that the Catholics will eventually destroy of their own accord and on their own account, the divine images which they themselves had created. That is our line of action in the struggle for victory against the counter-revolutionary Catholic Church. Furthermore, we will present a program of tactics applied with success in the Chinese People's Republic in order to liberate the Chinese people from the influence of the Imperialist Catholic Church of Rome. The Church and its faithful must be induced to take part in the People's government so that the masses may exert their influence on them. The Church cannot be permitted to preserve its supra-national character which places it above the will of the masses. Within the People's government a Bureau in charge of religious affairs and organizations must be created. By imposing on the Church the processes of Democratic centralism the road is being opened through the instrumentality of the masses, to patriotic measures which will weaken the Church and reverse its prestige. This Bureau will organize national, regional, and local associations which will group the Catholics into patriotic organisms. Each association will manifest its submission to the laws of the nation, and its will to observe them. When these associations have been created and have professed their submission to the laws of the nation, that is when the reactionaries and counter-revolutionists will come forth. These counter-revolutionists, risen from within the Catholic Church, are the first to be rooted up with determination, without, however, the use of force. In any event, the measures taken must be in accordance with the law. Counter-revolutionary aspirations, by their very nature, lead to actions against the government. This principle indicates to us what kind of laws must be applied against those who protest. They must be regarded as unpatriotic criminals who follow the imperialist instructions [directives] issued by the headquarters of the Catholic Church, by Vatican City. During this phase, the masses will experience a psychological conflict because, on the one hand, they will feel loyalty toward the Church and the Clergy, and, on the other hand, their patriotism will push them to support the People's Government. This conflict should be explored and studied with attention. If one acts precipitously without keeping in mind the acuteness of this psychological conflict, one risks isolating [alienating] the sympathy of these masses. If the bonds between the masses and the Church are very close, the principle of two steps forward and one step backward should be followed. In taking the step backward the People's government must state that it is defending religious freedom and that by the will of the masses, it is establishing reform committees in the associations so that the patriotic masses may express themselves more directly in the leadership of the affairs of the Church. Let us be vigilant! The Party militants must direct the work of the reform committees. They must eliminate the reactionaries who will be found among the masses. For this job, these slogans must be followed: it is patriotic to adhere to the government and to observe the laws; disobedience is unpatriotic; the associations must profess their patriotism; the unpatriotic elements must be eliminated from the associations and judged as criminals by the masses; for it is the duty of every citizen to punish the criminals. The militants must turn the masses against the criminal elements. As soon as the masses have condemned the criminals and have eliminated them from the associations, they must be judged under the provisions of the laws of the People's government. At the same time, the associations will have to again profess their submission to the laws and make efforts to discover hidden counter-revolutionary activities among their members. Though the reactionaries have been discovered, the psychological conflict among the masses must continue. It is important that the ecclesiastical authorities and the leaders of the Church should assure them that religion has become purer now that it has been freed from criminal and unpatriotic elements. Our militants who are members of these associations have the important task to cause the leaders of the Church to make these declarations. Of course, during this phase, other disagreements will arise. If one acts arbitrarily one will lose the control over the movement of the masses. The People's government must push in depth [to the utmost] the discussion of all disagreements. During these discussions, care should be taken to discover the counter-revolutionists who had previously gone unnoticed. During this phase, as in the one preceding it, the same slogans are called for: it is patriotic to observe the laws; disobedience is unpatriotic and criminal. The masses must also be informed of the results of conversations between the State and the Church, as well as of the patriotic renaissance of the religious masses in the process of taking the place of [divesting themselves of] decadent, imperialist, and unpatriotic sentiments. With the exception of spiritual affairs, every indication or expression of liaison with Vatican City will have to be spurned as being motivated by imperialist interests and supporting counterrevolutionary activities. The experience in the [our] brother [sister] countries proves that the Catholic Church has always sustained counter-revolutionary activities. Considering the universal scope of the Catholic Church, these experiences constitute irrefragable [irrefutable] proof its conspiracy. During this phase, Vatican City may be expected to voice protests against our campaign. These protests must be utilized as further evidence of the conspiracy of the Church under the direction of Vatican City. This leads us to the next phase in our attack; its object is the liaison which exists between the Church and Vatican City. It must be anticipated that in the course of the attack the clergy will react violently because it feels it has been struck at its point of support [foundations] and at the very source of its power. It [the Church] must be reminded that its protests against the attacks, of which it is the object because of its attachment to the Vatican, are unpatriotic and against the laws and the State. It must also be made to feel that what it incarnates is unpatriotic. It is the task of our militants to convince the masses that the individual may have his religion, without Vatican City directing the affairs of all Churches of the world. Our militants must also explain the principle of coexistence of patriotism and religion. Thus, those who follow the orders of the Vatican will be ousted from the masses, thus opening the road for the establishment of an independent Church. A preparatory campaign must be made before a Church may be proclaimed independent. The clerics who cannot be persuaded to submit to the will of the government will be denounced before the masses. Their protests will be used to destroy their influence on the masses. The best tactic [to be followed] for this [purpose] will be to do a simple and anonymous job. Our militants must bring denunciations against these persons. History abounds in proof [examples] as to the possibility of legal action [action at law] against those who are opposed to a separation of the Church and the Vatican. During this phase all necessary arguments must be compiled to convince the Catholic intellectuals that breaking with the Vatican is a step forward, not a step backward. The provisions of the law protecting all religions, and the history of the different protestant [protesting?-protest?] movements will help convince these intellectuals. At the same time, it will be the task of our militants to lead the Catholic associations into a comprehensive movement, requesting the People's government for authorization to establish an independent Church in order to remove from the Catholic associations any unpatriotic stain caused by elements still attached to the Vatican. The People's government will give the authorization, and the independent Church will be organized. It must be kept in mind that the break between the Catholic Church and the Vatican is of importance only for the theologians. The masses, in practicing their religion, are only weakly linked with the Vatican. And now we have come to the last stage. The separation of Church and Vatican having been consummated, we can proceed to consecrating the leaders of the Church chosen by us. This will arouse the loud protest of the Vatican and major excommunication. It must be made clear that the struggle is carried on away from the faithful and in no way from within their midst [from without and not from within the group of believers]. The Catholic associations will continue to operate, and the masses will be encouraged to practice their religion in the new Church. If one acts with tact and wisdom [if tact and wisdom are applied], one will not destroy the liturgy and the masses will notice only slight differences in the new Church; the protests of the Vatican against the consecration of bishops will reach only the hierarchy of the Church, and the People's government will take charge of rejecting the complaints of the Vatican. Thus, the "old guard" of the Vatican will gradually be isolated. So isolated, action against it will become more and more legal; for it will feel a violent need for protest and playing the martyr. As a result of this attitude, it can only compromise itself by unpatriotic actions. Though our struggle against the Catholic Church may be victorious, we must use [the force of] persuasion toward the rear-guard of the clergy. This moderate attitude will make the masses understand that the People's Government is truly anxious to guarantee freedom of religion to everyone. And, at the same time, the protesters are ranked with those who are opposed to the feelings of the people and the government. Once the key posts of the clergy are in our hands and submitted to the People's Government, one will proceed to progressively eliminating from the liturgy those elements which are incompatible with the People's Government. The first changes will affect the sacraments and the prayers. Then, the masses will be protected against all pressure and all obligation to put in an appearance in the church, to practice religion, or to organize associations of whatever religious group. We know full well that when the practice of religion becomes no more than an individual responsibility, it is slowly forgotten. New generations will follow the old, and religion will be no more than an episode of the past, worthy of being dealt with in the history [books] of the World Communist Movement. Translated by ELIZABETH HANUNIAN, Legislative Reference Service, Library of Congress. TRANSLATION (Russian) APPEAL OF THE PARTICIPANTS OF THE ALL-UNION CONFERENCE OF THE RELATIVES OF PRISONERS OF THE CHURCH OF ECHB [EVANGELICAL CHRISTIAN BAPTISTS] IN THE U.S.S.R. To all EChB, saints and faithful in Jesus Christ: Happiness and peace to you from God our Father and God Jesus Christ. Beloved Brothers and Sisters, St. Paul, in his epistle to the Philippians wrote: "*** my bonds in Christ are manifest in all the palace" and that "the things that happened unto me have fallen out rather unto the furtherance of the gospel." (Phil. 1: 12-13.) It happened to St. Paul in the first century, but today, it is happening with our relatives and ourselves, although it is now the 20th century. We, the relatives of prisoners, also want that what happens to us may serve the furtherance of the work of God and, therefore, we want that the imprisonments of our relatives become known to all of you so that you may be participants in that body about which it is said: that it is "fitly joined together and compacted by that which every joint supplieth." (Eph. 4: 16.) Apostle Paul asked the servant of the Christ's Church, Timothy: "Be not thou ashamed of the testimony of our Lord, nor of me, his prisoner." (II Tim. 1: 8.) "Remember my bonds", he asked the Church in his letter to the Colossians. (Col. 4: 18.) At this time, your own brothers and sisters beg of you: "Be not ashamed of us, remember our bonds." We thank God for you, that, due to your serving Him, we, though persecuted by the world, are not left alone and, through you, God in his word, satisfies our needs. And we ask you that, in your prayers to God, you always remember your brothers and sisters in prisons. How sad it is to read about the case Prophet Jeremiah (Jer. 38: 15-13): The only man who remembered the bonds of the Prophet who was in a dungeon, was the heathen Ebed-melech, the Egyptian, but of the people of Israel for whom Prophet Jere niah had shed tears (Jer. 9: 1) and whom he wished all the best with all his heart, nobody remembered his sufferings in the dungeon. Today, the blood of Jesus Christ, our Lord, united us in one body and, therefore, if one member suffers, the whole body suffers; when one member is praised, the whole body is praised with him. We wish to suffer jointly and to enjoy jointly the comforting of Christ, and all the Saints who constitute the Church of God and Christ! Therefore, if there is someone else who is in a similar situation as we are, having brothers, husbands or sons imprisoned for the word of God, let us know about them and we shall notify the Church. The Church, in its prayers, will convey the message to its Head, Jesus Christ, who will soon send his protection. Our Lord is not indifferent to the sufferings of His Church, as the scripture says: "What toucheth you, toucheth the apple of His eye." 2 [In Spanish:] "Then the masses will be protected against constraint and pressure to attend church, to practice religion, or to organize collective groups representing whatever religious sect." Therefore we shall not hide our sufferings from the Lord in the face of His Church. We shall say, with Paul the Apostle, that we, too, boast of our sorrows (Rom. 5:23). We also want to share with you the sorrows which we, the mothers bear, as our children were taken away from us. Loving them and following the word of God, that the "future generations to which children will be born" may know (Ps. 78: 4-7) and also having received a direct command of God (Heb. 6:4), we brought up and educated our children according to God's teaching. For this, we were separated from our children. Only you can fully conceive this sorrow, as you are the members of one living body of the Church of Christ, which is also threatened with such participation [in suffering]. We implore you, our brothers and sisters, in our Lord, Jesus Christ and in the love of the Spirit, to rise with us in your prayers to God for our relatives who are in prisons, listed in the information we are herewith enclosing as well as for us and our children. God bless you! Yours in Christ, brothers and sisters, relatives of prisoners for the word of God. At the direction of the All-Union Conference of relatives of the prisoners, EChB in the U.S.S. R. FEBRUARY 23, 1964 1. GOVORUN (Smolensk) REPORT ON THE ACTIVITIES OF ALL-UNION CONFERENCE OF RELATIVES OF THE PRISONERS, ECHB, AS OF FEBRUARY 23, 1964 On February 23, 1964, the All-Union Conference of relatives of the prisoners, EChB, took place, which conducted its business according to the following agenda: AGENDA OF THE ALL-UNION CONFERENCE OF RELATIVES OF THE PRISONERS SENTENCED FOR THE WORD OF GOD 1. Collection and specification of information concerning the prisoners, EChB, sentenced during the period from 1961 through February 1964, at the time of the introduction of the "New Statute" of the All-Union EChB. 2. Establishing: For what reason and on what charge were sentenced our relatives, brothers and sisters who are now in prisons and in places of deportation. 3. Establishing: for what reasons children are being taken away from believing parents. 4. Our relation, as relatives of prisoners, to officials and authorities. 5. Our service, as relatives of sentenced persons, to the Church and our service to God in our families. THE COURSE OF THE CONFERENCE The All-Union Conference of Relatives of Prisoners, remembering the words of the Holy Scripture (Heb. 13: 3), studied the reports which arrived from local Churches concerning the prisoners, EChB, sentenced during the period of 1961 through February 1964, edited them and established the following: 1. Full reports were received concerning 102 prisoners. 2. Supplementary information (incomplete) were later received concerning 53 prisoners. 3. Total number of prisoners is 155 persons. 4. Out of this number, 10 persons were released after serving their time or for other reasons. 5. Four persons died during the investigation, before trial and after trial, in prisons and camps. 6. The total number of persons in prisons as of February 1964 (as to which reports were received) was 141 persons. 7. The number of dependents in the families of the prisoners is 297. 8. Of this number, 228 persons were children of preschool and school age. 9. The oldest prisoner is: Arend, Iu. V.-76 years of age. |