(Minghui.org) Most of my family in Ireland are devout Catholics. They all know that I am a Falun Gong practitioner. Because we respect each other, I have never had any issues with them accepting my practice.
Whenever I am involved in a Dafa project or event, and at the same time there is a First Communion, confirmation, wedding, funeral, anniversary, baptism, or gathering in my family, I take the time to explain to them the importance of the Dafa event and that I cannot miss out on it. They understand that I care about them, recognize the importance of what I'm doing, and support my choices. They know that Falun Dafa is righteous.
In our Fa study group, the issue of whether practitioners should go back to China to take care of relatives or family business occasionally comes up. The prospect of practitioners going back to China always worries me. I have great empathy for Chinese practitioners who have escaped the Mainland, and have, in many instances, not been able to see their parents, grandparents, brothers, sisters, aunts, uncles, or friends for many years. Their children have never been able to visit their grandparents. This can be very difficult for both the practitioners and their families back home in China.
It is my understanding from Master’s teachings that for one's own safety and the safety of one's family, and for the sake of Dafa and the one body, practitioners should not go back to China during this time of great peril. The tribulation is not over.
I am a Western practitioner, so please forgive me if I am ignorant on this subject. It is my suggestion that practitioners, Chinese and others alike, keep in regular touch whenever feasible, and make the effort to clarify the facts to non-practitioner family members, letting them know why we practice Dafa and follow Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance, and informing them of the severity of the persecution.
If they understand the situation better, when there is a family emergency in China, they will know that we have not abandoned them and that we do really care about them. However, they would not want us to risk going back into such peril under any circumstances.
This is my humble understanding. Please clarify any errors.