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Pope calls for reconciliation of Catholics in Communist China
The open letter is pastoral in nature, but it is also a declaration for religious freedom in China. And the Holy See continues formal diplomatic relations with Taiwan. ROME: In an extraordinary open letter directed to Chinese Catholics, Pope Benedict XVI has acknowledged the suffering experienced by Catholics under Communist rule but also concluded that it was time to forgive past wrongdoings and for the underground and state-sponsored Catholic churches in China to reconcile. Openly hoping for a renewal of relations between China and the Vatican, which were suspended in the 1950s, Pope Benedict reassured the Chinese government that the Vatican offered no political challenge to its authority, while urging the state-sponsored Catholic church to acknowledge the Vatican's control on religious matters. "The misunderstanding and incomprehension weighs heavily, serving neither the Chinese authorities nor the Catholic Church in China," the letter, which was released Saturday, said. It was the pope's long-awaited first official and explicit statement on China's estimated 12 million Catholics, the majority of whom worship in underground churches to avoid having to register with the government and swear loyalty to it. Months in preparation, the 28-page letter was issued in multiple languages, including Chinese, along with an unusual accompanying "Explanatory Note" highlighting main points. The pope praised China for "the splendor of its ancient civilization" and noted with approval that it had greater religious freedoms and decisive movement toward socioeconomic progress. He underlined that the Roman Catholic Church "does not have a mission to change the structure or administration of the State." Gerolamo Fazzini, editor of Mondo e Missione, a magazine for the Pontifical Institute for Foreign Missions, said: "This is a step forward because it states the Vatican position clearly and holds out a hand to civil authorities. It says the church and authorities can be allied in dialogue. That you can be good Chinese citizens and Catholics at the same time." Posted by: mrp 2007-07-01 |
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