Bishop Joseph Zhu Baoyu of Nanyang, China, is 98 years old. He fell ill with pneumonia from Covid-19 (the coronavirus first identified in Wuhan, China) on February 3. On February 12 he tested negative, and on February 14 his lungs were no longer infected.
Bishop Zhu had other illnesses such as arrhythmia and pleural effusions besides the virus, and was cured thanks to a thoracic drainage catheter. Doctors and epidemiologists say that his case and his recovery are exceptional, since the virus is proving fatal for the elderly and for those patients with complicated clinical conditions.
Bishop Zhu had to endure hard years of imprisonment and “re-education” labor along with about twenty priests and hundreds of nuns from the congregation of St. Joseph. Later, on March 19, 1995, he was ordained bishop and exercised his ministry until age and health forced him to retire.
As could not be otherwise, the case of Bishop Zhu has made a splash in Chinese public opinion and is becoming an example of how to overcome the illness.
And today we celebrate...