Chinese authorities have sought to diffuse “religious theories with Chinese character” into the five official religions supervised by the government, including the Chinese Catholic Patriotic Association. This has included instructing Christian churches to remove images of the Ten Commandments and replace them with the sayings of Chairman Mao and Xi.
Parolin said “Pope Francis — with determination and patient foresight — has decided to continue along this path not under the illusion of finding perfection in human rules, but in the concrete hope of being able to assure Chinese Catholic communities, even in such a complex context, of the guidance of pastors who are worthy and suitable for the task entrusted to them.”
The provisional agreement with China on the appointment of bishops is “a limited but significant part,” Parolin said.
“Of course,” he continued, “we do not hide the numerous difficulties that affect the concrete life of the Catholic communities, which enjoy our utmost attention, and for the good solution of which new steps forward are necessary in a collaborative relationship that has multiple protagonists: the Holy See, the central authorities, the bishops with their communities, and the local authorities.”
“The ultimate goal of this journey is for the ‘little flock’ of Chinese Catholics to advance in the possibility of living serenely and freely their Christian life,” he said.
Cardinal Joseph Zen, retired bishop of Hong Kong, has been an outspoken critic of the Vatican’s China deal.
The cardinal, 90, was arrested in May along with other democracy activists under Hong Kong’s strict national security law.
He is standing trial for failing to properly register a fund to provide legal aid to pro-democracy protesters. The trial is scheduled to resume Oct. 26.
The story was updated at 4:37 a.m. MDT with the comments from Cardinal Parolin.
Hannah Brockhaus is Catholic News Agency's senior Rome correspondent. She grew up in Omaha, Nebraska, and has a degree in English from Truman State University in Missouri.