In a move seen as a significant step in Sino-Vatican relations, the Chinese government has officially recognised Bishop Melchior Shi Hongzhen as the bishop of Tianjin. The Vatican portrays this development as a victory for Pope Francis’s ongoing efforts to engage with China. Bishop Shi, 95, has long resisted joining the state-sanctioned church. This led Read more
The leader of China’s Communist Party-sponsored version of the Catholic church will visit Hong Kong this month at the invitation of the city’s pope-appointed Roman Catholic cardinal, fostering dialogue as China-Vatican relations remain strained. Joseph Li, the state-appointed archbishop of Beijing, will take a five-day trip to Hong Kong starting Nov 14 at the invitation Read more
On his first working day in Mongolia, the government feted the pope with traditional events such as a parade, including men on horseback dressed as ancient Mongol warriors. In an address to bishops, priests, missionaries and pastoral workers, he said Jesus gave no political mandate to his apostles but told them to alleviate the sufferings Read more
China’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson said the country is willing to expand the “friendly consensus” achieved with the Vatican over bishops’ nominations. Zhao Lijian (pictured) was responding to complaints from the Vatican that Beijing was violating a 2018 interim accord over bishop appointments. The Vatican issued an unusually harsh statement on Saturday complaining that Beijing on Read more
An app called CathAssist, designed for Chinese Catholics, was shut down last week. The company behind it was unable to get a licence from the Chinese government to continue operations. According to the CathAssist team, “Since the implementation of [new rules] on 1 March, we have made various efforts to apply for an Internet Religious Read more
Two state-sponsored church bodies in China have elected new leaders who promised to invigorate the Catholic faithful pastorally in line with the socialist principles of the Chinese Communist Party. The three-day 10th National Congress of Catholicism in China ended in Wuhan, the capital of Hebei province in central China, in August. The national conference is Read more
Pope Francis said he hopes the Vatican’s agreement with China on the appointment of Roman Catholic bishops would be renewed in October. In an interview with Reuters, Francis discussed the China deal first struck in 2018 and to be renewed every two years. The agreement was put in place to ease a longstanding divide across Read more
A Vatican-approved Chinese bishop remains in detention more than one year after his arrest for allegedly violating the communist country’s repressive regulations on religious affairs. Bishop Joseph Zhang Weizhu of Xinxiang in Henan province was arrested on May 21 last year. His arrest came a day after police arrested 10 priests and an unknown number Read more
Christian funerals are banned in some areas of China as the government begins to enforce new regulations on religious practices. In the eastern province of Zhejiang, a set of Regulations on Centralized Funeral Arrangement are being enforced. These regulations ban priests from attending funeral prayers outside a religious place. The new rules – enacted in Read more
Priests and parishioners have barricaded themselves in a Catholic church in the Chinese province of Hebei. According to reports, the Catholics are attempting to prevent the Chinese government from tearing down the Church. The protest began at 6am Thursday morning at the church in Wu Gao Zhang, part of the Guantao district of Hebei, on Read more