Posted on 11/22/2018 9:09:42 PM PST by ebb tide
Two months out, the China-Holy See provisional agreement on episcopal appointments is proving to be yet another tool for Beijing to suppress the Chinese faithful. And its damage goes even deeper than the Chinese government’s selection of Catholic bishops, as critical as that is for the hierarchically structured Roman Catholic Church.
In asserting state control over religion, Chinese President Xi Jinping continues the harshest crackdown since the Cultural Revolution against all religions, the Catholic Church included, as documented by the Congressional-Executive Commission on China. Meanwhile, the agreement gives the Chinese regime moral cover and provides it with new opportunities for influencing religious matters at home and in Rome.
Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin, who oversaw the Church’s negotiations, concedes that it is “not a good agreement,” but stresses its historic significance for unifying the Chinese Catholic Church with the Pope as head. Beijing, however, seems intent on seeing unity on its terms and relegating the Pope as a figurehead of the Church in China.
The text of the agreement remains secret, but it reportedly gives the officially atheist Chinese government the right to nominate bishops and grants the Pope veto power. A papal veto could lead to more vacant dioceses than the 12 at present. And, if September is a precedent, then the Pope has only the right to rubber-stamp: Pope Francis admitted into full ecclesial communion all seven government bishops who were excommunicated or otherwise deemed canonically illegitimate in Church eyes and appointed two of them to replace “underground” bishops as diocesan heads. No other appointments were made. Pope Francis teared up in welcoming these bishops into the Church and for the unity this seemed to suggest.
(Excerpt) Read more at ncregister.com ...
Ping
In the world of Pope Francis missionary work is cultural imperialism. At his core he is ashamed of Catholic missionary work in China. Hence the vile agreement with the Communists to surrender control of the Catholic Church in China. Notice the paucity of recognized Chinese Catholic martyrs.
Bergoglio is ashamed of making the sign of the cross during his apostolic blessings for fear of offending non-believers.
There are more than 120 canonized martyrs of China: see https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chinese_Martyrs
And that does not include those martyrs since the Communist revolution.
Posting some further important info from the article:
“...
But all 12 million Chinese Catholics, not only the underground half, are suppressed. Youth under age 18 are banned from churches, under new religious-law regulations. In September, the Communist Party previewed a cybersecurity law that will censor from the internet mention by nongovernmental sites of Catholicism, including the Mass and baptism.
The Catechism is subject to censorship. Online Bible sales were banned in April. Catholic sources deem it an “all-around strangulation” of evangelization. Some Catholic churches have replaced Jesus’ picture with President Xi’s, and the congregation is led in songs of praise to the Communist Party.
China’s new Orwellian social credit score system, to control behavior and based on government-gathered data, also poses a threat to the Church. Civil authorities in Zhejiang and Jiangxi Sept. 26 forced their employees, including in schools and hospitals, to pledge not to hold any “religious beliefs.”
Since July, priests in Henan must register and turn over the numbers of the faithful and their socioeconomic conditions to the government. Surveillance cameras are inside some churches and police are outside. Chinese Catholics will think twice about going to confession when their priests must report on them. Clerics will not dare to preach Church teachings against abortion and the death penalty.
Being too enthusiastic about religion can also be punished, as Father Liu Jiangdong, from the government-recognized Sacred Heart Catholic Church in Zhengzhou (Henan), found out on Sept. 23. The priest was detained for a week and then suspended from the priesthood by the Patriotic Association, reportedly for organizing too many youth and elderly parish groups.
...”
China can now gain influence and legitimacy through Vatican soft power, such as exchanges that Cardinal Parolin proffered as a plus of the agreement. The first occurred in Rome in October, when two Chinese bishops, including one who was formerly excommunicated, participated in the Vatican’s youth synod. A synod attendee told me that there was no apparent mention of Chinese persecution — not even a single question on youth being banned from churches."
This really fries my nose. These Chinese bishops were at a Synod on Youth, and were not questioned about the new Chinese law prohibiting children from participating in religious activities!
It doesn’t bother Francis that it is a “bad” deal. He would much prefer that the world embraced atheism than traditional Christianity.
This pope is a disgrace. He has sold out his church to the people who he really loves: marxists.
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