Diocese of Tianjin- China

Diocese of Tianjin- China

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In a land area of 11,919.7 square kilometers, the diocesan territory covers the whole Tianjin Muncipality. It includes six city districts, six rural districts, one new coastal district and three counties. Currently, it has two elderly bishops, 36 priests and 45 religious brothers and sisters, as well as four seminarians studying at the seminaries in Beijing and Shenyang. It also runs one elderly home established in 2006, one clinic and one kindergarten. The Beiyang Hospital was established in 2004. There are 35 churches and 42 missionary points. The Catholic population is about 100,000.

Population

As of 2009, Tianjin has a residential population of 10.43 million while registered population was 9.39 million. Among them, 3.76 millions are farming population and the city population is around 4.84 million.

Language

Mandarin but in heavy accent of Tianjin dialect is spoken in the diocesan territory.

History

Tianjin was originally under the Vicariate Apostolic of Coastal Chi-Li (Ce-Li Marittimo), which was erected in April 27, 1912. The name of Vicariate Apostolic of Coastal Chi-li was changed into Vicariate Apostolic of Tientsin (Tianjin) in 1924. It was elevated to a diocese in April 11, 1946.
The opening of the Grand Canal of China during the Sui Dynasty prompted the development of Tianjin into a trading center. Until 1404, Tianjin was called "Zhigu", or "Straight Port". Emperor Yongle renamed it into Tianjin, literally means "the Heavenly Ford", to indicate that the Emperor (son of heaven) forded the river at that point.

The Treaties of Tianjin that were signed at the end of the Second Opium War in 1858, opened Tianjin to foreign trade. Between 1895 and 1900, foreign countries established self-contained concessions in Tianjin, each with its own prisons, schools, barracks and hospitals. These nations left many architectural mementos of their rule, notably churches and thousands of villas.

The presence of foreign influence in Tianjin was not always peaceful; one of the most serious violent incidents that took place was the Tianjin Church Incident. In June 1870, the orphanage hold by the Wanghailou Church, Our Lady of Victories, in Tianjin, built by French Roman Catholic missionaries, was accused of the kidnapping and brainwashing of Chinese children. On June 21, the magistrate of Tianjin County initiated a showdown at the church that developed into violent clashes between Christians and non-Christian Tianjin residents. The furious protestors eventually burned down Wanghailou Church and the nearby French consulate and killed eighteen foreigners including ten French nuns, the French consul, and merchants. Foreign nations complained to the Qing government, which was forced to pay compensation for the incident.

Tianjin was established as a municipality of China in 1927.

Transportation

The first city-wide tramway system in China was opened in Tianjin in 1906. As for 2004, there were 402 bus lines in the city. In 1984, the city commenced the second metro service in China. It was in use until 2001 when service was suspended for reconstruction. The new metro, called the Line 1, was re-opened in 2006 and several other lines are under construction now. The city also runs a light railway line, the Binhai Mass Transit Line. It runs between downtown Tianjin and the coastal Tianjin Economic Development Area.

The Tianjin Railway Station is locally called the 'East Station', due to its geographical position. In January 2007 the station began another long-term restructuring project to modernize the facility. The North Station and West Station are also major stations.

The Beijing-Tianjin High Speed Rail was completed in 2008. Now, traveling time between the two cities is shortened to 30 minutes. The Jingshan Railway (from Beijing to Shanhai Pass), the Jinpu Railway (from Tianjin to Nanjing), the Jinji Railway (from Tianjin urban area to Ji County) and the Jinba Railway ( from Tianjin to Hebei) pass through Tianjin.

There are seven expressways and six national highways passing through Tianjin.

Climate

Tianjin possesses a semi-moist continental monsoon climate as it is greatly influenced by the Bohai Sea. Its four seasons are clearly divided seasons. It is hottest in July and coldest in January. Annual precipitation is not much and does not fall evenly in the area. It is windy in spring with occasionally sandstorm. Summer is hot and often rainy. Autumn is cool with a mild and pleasant temperature, while winter is very cold sometimes.

Economy

Tianjin is an important city for heavy industry, with machinery and electrical equipments' production being the biggest. It also has textile, inorganic chemistry, metallurgical industry and petroleum industry. The city is also an important production and research base of micro and mini computers.

Topography

Tianjin is located along the coast of Bohai Gulf in northern China. As a dual-core city, Tianjin is divided into the old city and the Binhai New Area. The municipality is surrounded by Hebei in all directions except for the sea. It is bordered by Beijing to the northwest. It lies at the northern end of the Grand Canal of China, which connects the Yellow River and the Yangtze River. The municipality is generally a flatland which is swampy near the coast but hilly in the northern part.

Education

In early 1990s, there were nearly 12,000 schools for 1.90 million students in Tianjin. The rate of school attendance among all school-agers reached 99.9%, and the rate of illiterates among young people dropped to less than 0.1%. Major universities include Nankai University, Tianjin University and Tianjin Normal University.