Immaculate Conception Church, Maqiao

Maqiao Catholic Church (马桥圣母无染原罪堂, Mǎqiáo Shèngmǔ Wúrǎn Yuánzuì Táng), at 25 Dongjie, has been the parish church of Maqiao since the 1870s. It was one of only two parish seats in the old Shanghai County, and the bell tower that stands out today is largely a work of the 1990s and 2010.

How did a village church become a parish seat?

The Shanghai County Gazetteer says that Catholics in the Maqiao area first travelled to Songjiang for services. A branch was set up in 1850, and in 1869 the congregation raised money for a church at Chenjiacun. In 1879 it was moved to Maqiao, and Maqiao became a parish. The Minhang gazetteer and the 1984 survey date the church itself to 1875, which matches neither 1869 nor 1879. The gazetteers do not explain the gap.

What survived 1966?

In 1955 about 200 people came to morning Mass every day. Maqiao was one of four churches still open in the county in 1957, and by August 1966 activities had stopped. The diocese paid for repairs in 1987, and the church reopened on 21 November 1989, when Auxiliary Bishop Li Side (李思德, Lǐ Sīdé) led the first Mass.

The tower that grew

Most of what visitors see was added after reopening. A pavilion of the Three Holy Figures (Jesus, Mary and Joseph) went up in front of the priests’ house in 1993. A four-storey bell tower 31 metres high followed in 1994. In 2010 the church had a complete overhaul: the tower was restored to its original look and raised to 36 metres, and a white-marble statue of Jesus, 3 metres high, was set in front of the church. On 8 December 2010, Auxiliary Bishop Ai Zuzhang (艾祖章, Ài Zǔzhāng) consecrated the new work with eleven priests and nearly a thousand worshippers. The Minhang District government had already listed the church as a protected cultural relic on 30 September 2000.

What to look for

Look up at the bell tower first; it is the church’s most obvious feature. Then find the white-marble statue of Jesus in front of the building and the small Three Holy Figures pavilion by the priests’ house. The site covers 2,072 square metres and the church holds about 700.