Catholic dynamic shifts in China

[rug]

Jul 26, 2012
By Francesco Sisci

BEIJING - Ties between China and the Vatican are at a crossroads. The ordination on July 7 of Ma Daqin as the Vatican's bishop of Shanghai and his public announcement that he would renounce his membership in the official Catholic Patriotic Association have the potential to create a huge change in ties between Beijing and Rome.

The first reaction in Rome to this announcement was of surprise, meaning that the Holy See didn't command the bishop to give up his membership and didn't encourage him to do so. Evidence of this is the fact that many bishops in China are members of the Catholic Patriotic Association, and Rome has not demanded they give up their memberships.

However, the Patriotic Association is controversial for Catholics. It is a legacy of the Cold War and in theory sometimes puts laymen in charge of religious affairs. For this reason, some people in Rome rejoiced at the announcement, claiming that Bishop Ma was a brave man. He is now reportedly being held by the authorities at a local seminary.

Things are very different from Beijing's point of view. Ma's appointment came after months of bitter negotiations between the two sides - and to the satisfactions of both, they actually reached a compromise. Beijing then felt betrayed because even after an agreement was reached, Rome - or in this case, its representatives in the person of Bishop Ma - changed his mind and backed off from the compromise by breaking with the Patriotic Association. That is, in other words, Beijing now feels it cannot trust pledges from the Catholics, even after an agreement has been reached.

http://www.atimes.com/atimes/China/NG26Ad02.html

[demosincebirth]

1. The last sentence must be the height of hypocrisy