BEIJING (AP) – The back story of Wuhan Jinintan, one of the first hospitals to be selected for the treatment of coronavirus fever in China, is intriguing. Formerly known as the “Wuhan Infectious Diseases Hospital”, the Franciscan church has come out with a revelation about the history of the hospital. According to the Franciscan Church’s website, Pascal Ange (Angelicus), better known as May Shanchun, was named after the Italian friar named Meloto OFM.
Born in Lonigo, Italy, Fr. Melotto joined the Franciscan church in 1880. In 1902 he arrived in China. In 1923, he was abducted for involvement in local affairs and demanded a ransom. Being a foreigner, the Italian and French embassies were also involved in this issue. Three months later, one of the kidnappers shot him with a poisonous bullet. He sacrificed his life saying, “I lived for the Chinese. I’m glad to die for them.”
Previously, it was customary for large numbers of missionaries to be killed in foreign countries to receive compensation. However, when Benedict XVI issued a pastoral letter entitled ‘Maximum Illud’ to end the relationship between colonialism and religion, Fr. A hospital was named after Meloto. The remains of the clergyman were moved to the Memorial Hall known as the Plum (May) Pavilion.
The hospital was a great relief to the poorest sections of Hankov. In 1949, the hospital had twenty Franciscan Sisters and seven nurses serving 150 beds and two clinics. When the missionaries were expelled from China in 1952, the hospital was taken over and redesigned by the Chinese government. It was in 2008 that the original building was demolished and the hospital was moved to its present location and the ‘Plum’ Pavilion was demolished. Done. The Franciscan Church hopes that they will be able to run the hospital again if the state permits.
