The world’s oldest Trappist monk, Fr. Benedict Chao, has died in Hong Kong at the age of 108.
His life was far from easy. Born in China in 1918, he joined the Cistercians at age 23 and was ordained a priest in 1949.
Several years prior, Japanese forces seized his monastery, imprisoning and killing many of the monks living there.
But the worst came when the Chinese dictator Mao Zedong rose to power. In 1947, communist forces attacked the abbey, set it on fire and tortured the monks, forcing them on what became known as the “death march.”
They were forced to carry elderly monks on their shoulders through the rain, with their hands bound by chains or wire.
The news has made headlines around the world. Fr. Chao died in the hospital, and many people are expected to gather to bid him a final farewell.
