How has China followed Pope Francis' Asian tour, and what interests has it seen in it?

Michel Chambon: Beijing has closely observed the entirety of this trip, seeking to assess to what extent Pope Francis could contribute to the balance of power, the common good, and the development of the region—and to what extent, therefore, this "universal sovereign" could be an interesting partner for China.

On Chinese social media, Pope Francis' gestures and speeches have been shared in real-time, under the watchful eye of the Communist Party, which allowed this information to circulate.

Like other Asian leaders, China has also seen political interests behind this tour as it expands its influence throughout Southeast Asia and seeks to secure a share of the region's vast natural resources (forestry, minerals, etc.).

Recently, Beijing took a major step by forming a military alliance with the Solomon Islands, east of Papua New Guinea, which has caused significant tensions with Australia and the Western world.

Chinese diasporas have also long been present in various Southeast Asian countries (such as Indonesia), which China seeks to make part of its sphere of influence.

For Beijing, there were therefore several significant geopolitical and economic stakes.

What message has the Pope sought to send to the Chinese authorities?

M.C.: By visiting these Asian countries, the Pope has shown that he is fully committed to the unity of peoples and the integrated development of the region. With his "soft power," he helps all parties return to fundamental issues of stability, dignity, justice, and peace.

The Holy See has demonstrated, through extensive communication, what kind of universal sovereignty Francis wants to exercise in Asia in the service of the common good.

The Pope has also shown great delicacy and adaptability toward his various interlocutors: one can see this as a signal to Beijing, indicating that he can also be its partner.

What impact could this trip have on the renewal of the China-Vatican agreement, which is set to expire at the end of October?

M.C.: In my opinion, it is highly likely that the agreement will not only be renewed but that a new version will be developed in the coming weeks.

The international context—the Pope's trip to Asia, the Synod on Synodality, U.S. elections—seems favorable: the Holy See and Beijing are free to renegotiate this agreement in peace.

This will likely be done quietly. Chinese authorities also seem eager to move forward. At the end of August, the Holy See announced that Beijing had recognised an "underground" bishop (1) in the northeastern part of the country.

Both parties are reminding the world that the agreement exists and is working, even though Beijing still maintains tight control over civil society, including Catholics.

In early August, Pope Francis once again expressed his desire to visit China. Do you think such a trip could really happen for him?

M.C.: I strongly doubt that this will ever concretely happen. Francis is 87 years old, and China is not ready. For me, these somewhat provocative statements are more of a form of "gunboat diplomacy."

By publicly envisioning such a trip, Francis is once again demonstrating his desire to build a relationship of collaboration and trust with Beijing despite all obstacles.

(1) Previously recognised by Rome, but not by Beijing.

• First published in La Croix
• Michel Chambon is a theologian and cultural anthropologist. He is Research fellow at the National University of Singapore.

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 to periods of imprisonment and house arrest.

Despite these challenges, his recognition as bishop comes after years of negotiation between the Holy See and Beijing. It marks the first time since 2005 that the diocese of Tianjin has a bishop accepted by both church and state.

"The Holy See has learned with satisfaction that today, 27 August 2024, Bishop Melchior Shi Hongzhen has been officially recognised under civil law as bishop of Tianjin" a Vatican press office statement said.

"This measure is a positive fruit of the dialogue established over the years between the Holy See and the Chinese Government."

Sinicization of Catholicism

The announcement comes just weeks before the anticipated renewal of a provisional agreement between Rome and Beijing. The agreement regarding the appointment of bishops was initially established in 2018.

The recognition ceremony, held at a local hotel rather than Tianjin's cathedral at Shi's request, was attended by Bishop Joseph Li Shan of Beijing, a figure appointed by the government but also recognised by Pope Benedict XVI.

Reports indicate that during the ceremony, Shi pledged to uphold China's constitution and support the Sinicization of Catholicism. Some critics view this process as a means of increasing governmental control over religious practices.

Although this development is viewed as a success, some sceptics in Rome might dismiss the recognition of a 95-year-old bishop as merely a symbolic gesture.

Meanwhile, some in China argue that the government aims to frame the acceptance of a well-known underground bishop as a victory for the state-controlled Church.

In a recent interview, Pope Francis described Chinese Catholics as "faithful people who have gone through so much and remained faithful".

"The Chinese are masters of patience, masters of waiting, you have the ‘virus of hope" the pope said. "It's a very beautiful thing."

Sources

Crux Now

The Pillar

CathNews New Zealand

The decision by the United Front Work Department of the Chinese Communist Party, first reported by America, the Jesuit magazine, is the latest sign of tension in the already strained relations between China and the Holy See.

Flying to Mongolia on Aug 31 for his four-day visit, Francis issued a telegram while in Chinese airspace to the country's president, Xi Jinping: "Assuring you of my prayers for the wellbeing of the nation, I invoke upon all of you the divine blessings of unity and peace," the pope wrote.

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With the pope's endorsement, the famous 16th-century Italian Jesuit missionary to China is now on the path to sainthood.

Last December the Vatican announced that Francis had the prefect of the Vatican Dicastery for the Causes of the Saints, to promulgate a decree recognising Ricci's "heroic virtues".

For the pope to declare him blessed (the next step on the path to sainthood), the person presenting his cause for canonisation (ie the postulator) will need to provide evidence of a miracle through Ricci's intervention.

By Vatican convention, a second miracle will be needed for him to be declared a saint.

A brief bio

Matteo Ricci, a professed priest of the Society of Jesus - and a known inspiration to Pope Francis - was born in Italy in 1552. He died in Peking [now Beijing], China, in 1610.

Last May, Francis described Ricci as a "champion" of the "culture of dialogue".

The Vatican's announcement of Ricci's advancement towards sainthood is important for the Catholic Church in China and its 12 million members.

There, the Jesuit missionary is famed not only for his actions and his writings, but for being "a man of encounters, who went beyond being a foreigner and became a citizen of the world".

Ricci began his missionary work in 1582 in Macau, then a Portuguese colony. He then moved to mainland China, adopting the Chinese lifestyle and language. He died in China 27 years later.

He made history in 1601 as the first European to enter China's Forbidden City in Peking. When he died, he became the first Westerner to be buried in Imperial Ground in the capital city by a special decree of the Emperor.

Known as "​​Li Madou" to the Chinese, Ricci provided the Emperor with scholarly works in optics, astronomy, music, geography, geometry and numerous other fields.

He subsequently converted several prominent Chinese officials to Christianity, including one whose cause for sainthood is also under consideration. Ricci also cooperated Chinese scholars in translating classics like Euclid's Elements into Chinese and translating important Confucian texts into Latin.

Still important to China

The Chinese recognise Ricci as a bridge builder between the East and the West. They commemorated him in the Millenium Monument in Beijing. The only other Westerner so honoured is Marco Polo.

Source

• America Magazine

This is a move which observers say is a setback to China's hopes of implementing the deal smoothly.

The deal was signed secretly in September 2018, and no details have yet been released.

Its key provision is believed to apply to the appointment of bishops. The Chinese Communist Party would name a slate of three bishops, from which the Pope would select one.

Auxiliary Bishop Vincent Guo Xijin of Mindong announced his resignation on 4 October and said he will no longer participate in public activities.

An online letter being circulated said the bishop was resigning in view of the "signs of a new era, a new chapter for the Church, and particularly in the Diocese of Mindong".

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In welcoming Bishops John Baptist Yang Xiaoting and Joseph Guo Jincai to the synod, Francis wept, saying: "The communion of the entire episcopate with the successor of Peter is yet more visible thanks to their presence."

Yang and Guo's presence with government approval at the synod is seen as a sign of the Church in China's restored communion with the Bishop of Rome.

It is also seen as an affirmation from China's government of the historic provisional agreement on the selection of bishops signed in Beijing last month.

Since it was signed, there has been much debate about the wisdom of the provisional agreement.

Some view it as an essential step in ensuring the unity of Catholics in China with the universal church.

Others view it as an unacceptable concession to the Chinese government and a betrayal of Chinese Catholics who have risked their lives for decades by refusing to allow the government to control the church.

However, in praising Francis's efforts for the Church in China, Yang says Francis's agreement with the communist government of China is a sign of the unified church in the world.

At a mass Yang and Guo concelebrated in Rome, Yang told parishioners: "Just as a family constituted by a husband and wife is always one, so is the church, which is one, holy, catholic and apostolic.

"In Italy, in China or in any other country, Christ's love is the same.

"Pope Francis, who knows very well the situation of the Catholic Church in China, did not want to leave us, did not want to separate us from the universal church."

Yang went on to tell them China's Catholics were hopeful that Pope Francis, "and you, too," could visit China one day.

"In the love of Christ, in the love of God, we are always one family; the universal church is always like a family," he said.

"Even if we live in different countries and even if there is diversity between our cultures, liturgies and other things, our faith in the Lord is always one."

Because of other commitments and the short time frame between the date the agreement was signed and the synod's opening date, the two Chinese bishops are not able to stay until the synod ends on 28 October.

Source

• Catholic Philly
• Angelus News
• Image: naijachurchnews

The Vatican is a popular destination with Chinese tourists.

The recent resumption of diplomatic talks between the Vatican and China has prompted an increase in the flow of tourists-pilgrims.

If he realises they are at the Vatican, Pope Francis greets them personally and poses for selfies with them.

Some see their visit in the nature of a pilgrimage while others go because they are curious.

Travel agents have been warned they will be fined up to UK£34,000 if they don't cancel scheduled tours to St Peter's and Vatican City.

The Chinese Communist Party says it has established the ban because "there are no diplomatic relations" between China and the Holy See.

However, news reports say relations between China's ruling Communist Party and the Vatican have been strained since Chinese Catholics fled to Taiwan after losing a civil war to Mao Zedong's communists in 1949.

The news sources note that, in 1950, a Catholic priest was jailed for his alleged involvement in a plot to assassinate China's leader, Mao Tse-tung.

China has since indicated a desire to restore relations with the Vatican.

The catch is, the Vatican must agree to sever links with Taiwan, which China sees as a renegade province.

The Vatican is the only European state with which Taiwan has full diplomatic relations.

However, all European Union nations recognise Taiwan as a Chinese territory.

It is not clear what effect, if any, the ban will have on a recently agreed joint cultural exhibition between the Vatican and China.

Source

• Herald Malaysia
• Express
• Image: South China Morning Post

Speaking at the country's five-yearly Communist Party conference, Xi said religion poses threats to national security. He told the conference that separatism promoted under the guise of religion would not be tolerated.

Although China officially recognizes Buddhism, Taoism, Islam, Protestantism and Catholicism, it is strongly against Muslim and Buddhist groups suspected of separatism.

It is also against Falun Gong, a meditation-focused spiritual group that was banned in 1999. Falun Gong supporters suffer state persecution.

Critics say Xi's comments were directed toward Tibetan Buddhists, many of whom have advocated for independence from China.

The critics also say the speech is part Xi's push to suppress religion or drive it underground. Churches have been forming in private homes in the mainly atheist country.

This specifically affects the country's 12 million Catholics.

Despite nominally supporting Catholicism, China refuses to recognise Pope Francis's role or authority. Nor does the government recognise many of the country's Vatican-appointed church leaders.

Instead, the government has established the Chinese Catholic Patriotic Association (PA). The PA is "a sort of alternative ecclesiastical hierarchy officially recognized by the Chinese authorities".

Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI has called the PA "incompatible with Catholic doctrine" since it recognises both legitimately and illegitimately appointed bishops.

The Vatican and the Chinese government are having talks about recognising and appointing bishops.

The current proposal would allow the government to select possible episcopal candidates and send the names to the Pope for approval or denial.

Source

• Catholic News Agency
• Newsweek
• Image: BBC.com

In 2016, he was for some time the apostolic administrator of Agãna, in Guam.

Hon's appointment in Guam followed a request from Archbishop Anthony Sablan Apuron of Agãna, who was under investigation as a result of allegations of sexual abuse made against him.

Hong Kong-born Hon, who is a Salesian, was at that time secretary of the Vatican's Congregation for the Evangelisation of the Peoples.

He told ucanews.com then that the task of being administrator was an added service to his position as secretary.

Pope Benedict XVI had appointed him secretary at Propaganda in 2010.

He did so on the recommendation of fellow Salesian Cardinal Joseph Zen and another powerful Salesian - the thenn Secretary of State, Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone.

Hon has been the only high-ranking Chinese official in the Roman Curia. He has been seen as Zen's eyes and ears in the Roman Curia.

Zen is well known for his aggressive anti-communism and support of Catholics who are at odds with the government. He is the most senior critic of Pope Francis' policy of rapprochement with Communist China.

Hon has been back in Rome for less than a year; his appointment to Athens seems to indicate that Pope Francis has a very clear strategy for engaging Communist China and, in this difficult operation, insists on aides who fully embrace this project.

Source

• UCAnews
• UCAnews
• LaCroix
• Image: Archdiocese of Agãna

Cardinal Joseph Zen Ze-kiun, the retired bishop of Hong Kong, told the Wall Street Journal that if the Vatican agrees to let Beijing appoint bishops, the Catholic Church would become "totally subservient to an atheist government". Read more

He, made the comment on Tuesday following an announcement by the current bishop, John Tong Hon, that the Vatican and the Chinese government are in dialogue over the appointment of bishops.

According to the South China Morning Post, an initial accord has provided for the pope to choose bishops from a list of candidates approved by Chinese bishops and state authorities.

The move would be a step forward in China-Vatican relations, where the issue has been a flashpoint for many years.

Tong said: "The Apostolic See has the right to choose from the recommended list the candidates it considers as most suitable and the right to reject the candidates recommended by a bishops' conference of China and the bishops in the provinces under it."

However, Zen told Apple Daily: "To officially let [the Chinese government] manage the church? That would mean surrender."

He added: "Once the relationship has been established, what then? When the pope visits China, and the [central government] selects only the obedient people to meet the pope, what then for those belonging to the underground churches?"

The 'underground churches' have been formed by Chinese Catholics in an act of resistance to the state-approved Chinese Catholic Patriotic Association.

According to the Catholic church, there are currently 110 bishops in China. Up to 30 of them still operate in underground churches which pledge allegiance only to the pope.

Zen said he supported the Vietnamese system under which the Church chose its bishops and the government approved the decision.

Source

• Church
• AsiaNews.it
• Images: www.dici.org