SIANGYANG, DIOCESE OF
In the northern part of Hubei Province, in central China.
It was erected as an apostolic prefecture on 25 May 1936, comprising four civil sub-prefectures of the apostolic vicariate of Laohokow, and entrusted to the Chinese secular clergy. On 11 May 1951 it was elevated to a diocese, a suffragan of Hankow.
It covers an area of approximately 15,000 km². As of 30 June 1949, with a total population of about 1,500,000, there were 20,047 Catholics and 15,546 catechumens; 22 priests, of whom 2 were foreign; 54 minor seminaries; 28 Chinese and 6 foreign sisters. Among its works were 2 hospitals, 1 oratory, 1 old people’s home, and 4 schools with 367 pupils.
During the reign of Emperor Kangxi (1662–1722), Christian communities existed at S. and in various villages near the cities of Tsayang and Nanchang. After 1838, when the apostolic vicariate of Hukwang (Hubei and Hunan) was erected, European missionaries and Chinese priests—former students of the Chinese College of the Holy Family, founded in Naples by the Venerable Matteo Ripa—worked in the territory of S. Frequent disturbances and persecutions forced many faithful to emigrate, while others apostatized. By 1870 the number of Catholics had fallen to 1,325, rising again to 19,987 by 1935.
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SIBA (Heb. Sibha) « twig »
A foreigner (note the Aramaic form of the name) Saul (v.), a slave or servant in the royal household. After gaining his freedom—perhaps at Saul’s downfall—he had formed a large family (15 sons and 20 servants), but David restored him to service under Mephibosheth (v.) as a tenant farmer (2 Sam. 9:9 ff.). He accepted the arrangement but, at the first opportunity, sought to throw off the yoke.
When Absalom rebelled, Siba prevented his master Mephibosheth from joining David and even accused him before the king of siding with the rebel. The king immediately made Siba steward of all that Mephibosheth had administered (ibid. 16:1–4). After the revolt ended and Mephibosheth’s excuses were heard, David still allowed him to retain half of his lands (ibid. 19:24–30). Siba is the classic example of an unscrupulous opportunist. Gino Bressan