Did Pope Francis Just Validate China’s Godless Communist Regime?

The Federalist ^ | December 1, 2016 | Helen Raleigh

[detective]

According to reports, the Vatican and Communist China have reached an agreement that would end six decades of diplomatic gridlock. While details of the agreement haven’t been officially announced, from what has been leaked to the public, Catholics in China and around the world have reason to be concerned.

Catholicism has had a long and convoluted history in China. Catholic missionaries traveled to China to spread the words of the gospels as early as the Yuan Dynasty (1271-1368). But Italian missionary Matteo Ricci’s arrival in 1582 is often regarded as the official introduction of the Catholic Church to China.

[detective]

Pope John Paul II, once wrote, “(The) curtailment of the religious freedom of individuals and communities is not only a painful experience but is, above all, an attack on man’s very dignity. … (It is) a radical injustice with regard to what is particularly deep in man, what is authentically human.”

Yet Pope Francis seems ready and willing to overlook the Chinese government’s past and current repressive practices in order to reestablish a diplomatic relationship between the Vatican and China. One of his goodwill gestures towards mainland China was to decline an audience with the Dalai Lama in 2014.

[WayneS]

Probably. It would be par for his course.

[Buckeye McFrog]

Most Catholics on FR seem to be more concerned that he might allow some divorced woman to receive Communion.

[BurrOh]

Holding my breath. Does the Commie pope strike again? I can’t with him.

I pray for clarity.

[cloudmountain]

If any country on the planet needs Christianity, it is China.
They still abort female fetuses. They still consider females unlucky, unwanted and unnecessary. They need a "Mary" to lift up the Chinese view of females.

When amniocenteses was first discovered the Chinese aborted SO many female fetuses that it created an entire generation of single men...not the wealthy of course. Those men were called the "Bare Branches."

It sure couldn't hurt the Chinese to see Pope Francis.

Off topic: Luciano Pavarotti visited China to bring classic opera to them. He took his own plane, own food, everything.
The Chinese LOVED him and brought the Chinese into the 20th century with Italian opera. Very odd to see a Chinese tenor singing "La donna e mobile." ♫

[FR_addict]

“If any country on the planet needs Christianity, it is China.”

Read the whole article. The Chinese Catholics feel betrayed. So do the Catholics in Taiwan.

He is giving up the authority of the Catholic Church to the Chinese government.

“Several months ago, it was revealed that the Vatican and Beijing had reached an initial agreement on the appointment of Catholic ­bishops in mainland China. Pope Francis “would commit to recognize as bishops only those clerics who first win nomination from the Patriotic Association’s bishops conference.”

This agreement is a departure from the Church’s long held belief that “the authority of the Pope to appoint bishops is given to the church by its founder Jesus Christ. It is not the property of the Pope, neither can the Pope give it to others” (Pope Benedict XVI). Yet it seems that Pope Francis is going to do exactly that, subordinating his authority to a repressive communist government.”

[A CA Guy]

Whose Pope is Francis again?

I honestly would not cross my living room to even go see this Obama type of character.

[Mrs. Don-o]

That’s an unfair -— more than that, an untrue -— characterization, since there is no Church law or canonical stipulation gainst a divorced person, per se. receiving Holy Communion, and NO FReeper that I know of would say such a thing.

And I’ve been all over those threads.

I’m surprised by your post.

[Buckeye McFrog]

NO FReeper that I know of would say such a thing.

Well, now you know one.

There are at least twelve threads per day here dissecting Amoris Laetitia into it's tiniest sub-atomic bits. All over the minutia of under what circumstances the Church will allow divorced and remarried people to take Communion (an argument that I personally find very silly given that the Church will not stop people like Nancy Pelosi and Tim Kaine who openly flip the bird to the Church on abortion from taking it)

Meanwhile the man says things that openly, brazenly promote Marxism and Communism that barely draw 1/10 the attention of the FR Catholic Caucus. Just the other day the man actually said that ONLY COMMUNISTS TRULY UNDERSTAND HOW TO THINK LIKE A CHRISTIAN!! That did not draw a tiny fraction of the response from Catholics here that diving into the minutia of annulments had drawn.

Let some divorcee take the Eucharist under the wrong pretenses, and it's between their conscience and God. Keep promoting Communist regimes and millions of people are gonna die.

No offense, but I fail to see the proportionality.

[Mrs. Don-o]

Here’s what you fail to see.

First, the people who are “dissecting” Amoris Laetitia -—beginning with Cardinal Raymond Burke and on down -— are the very same people who ARE insisting that the pro-abortion Catholics are ineligible for Holy Communion. And also the very same people who are speaking out against Communist control of episcopal appointments in China. Speaking up clearly and paying up personally.

So your challenge about “why are they protesting *this* but not *that*” falls flat.

Second, if you are following these “twelve threads per day” you cannot have failed to notice that it’s not about some Mickey mouse canonical minutiae: it’s about the bedrock foundation of ALL Catholic doctrine. I mean literally all of it.

Do we follow what Jesus repeatedly said in the Gospels, or do we not?

Are the Commandments actually binding on us? Are some acts -— like adultery and murder —— actually forbidden in every case? Or are they not?

Can acts which are objectively against the Law of God, be tolerated or even celebrated under the banner of “merciful, inclusive” pastoral practice?

Can a person be sacramentally absolved of a sin of which they do not repent and give no intention of avoiding in the future?

Can Pope Francis directly contradict what was taught by, say, St. Pope John Paul II —— whom he himself canonized! —— and claim that his position overrules JP2?

Let these things be plunged into doubt and confusion in an official papal document like AL, and you basically have dynamited Catholic Morality.

All of it.

That’s s what’s at stake.

[detective]

“If any country on the planet needs Christianity, it is China.”

From the article:

“the Vatican and Beijing had reached an initial agreement on the appointment of Catholic ­bishops in mainland China. Pope Francis “would commit to recognize as bishops only those clerics who first win nomination from the Patriotic Association’s bishops conference.”

This agreement is a departure from the Church’s long held belief that “the authority of the Pope to appoint bishops is given to the church by its founder Jesus Christ. It is not the property of the Pope, neither can the Pope give it to others” (Pope Benedict XVI). Yet it seems that Pope Francis is going to do exactly that, subordinating his authority to a repressive communist government.”

Pope Francis is not bringing Christianity to China.

There is already a strong and faithful underground Catholic Church in China. The Chinese government fears them and tries to destroy this church.

Pope Francis is allowing the Catholic Church in China to be infiltrated, controlled and poisoned by the Chinese Communist rulers.

These Chinese totalitarians have spent their entire lives killing and imprisoning Christians. The goal of the Communist government is to destroy the Catholic Church and faithful Catholics. Their goal is to replace the true Catholic faith with a false version of totalitarianism that turns Jesus Christ into a minor follower of Stalin and Chairman Mao.

Pope Francis has worked to support and help the most evil totalitarians of the our lifetime.

Pope Pious has been falsely accused of being “Hitler’s Pope” a vicious slander that originated with the KGB.

Pope Francis has actively supported Communists dictators who are as bad and worse than Hitler.

[ebb tide]

Well, now you know one.

Are you even a Catholic?

[cloudmountain]

Well, Pope Francis is already 79 years old. He can't live forever. He may die next month. I'm sure that he doesn't PERSONALLY affect your life so you COULD ignore him.

OR you and the other Francis-haters can continue to dwell on him, cordially dislike him, soak in as much antipathy about him as you can hold and even get some ulcers.
Maybe you'll even have nightmares about him.

I have more important things to think about, like Mass tomorrow, cleaning my stove, doing the crossword and waiting for my car's bumper to be repaired when it got HIT while I was parked doing some shopping. Yes, the old lady left me a nice note, apologizing for hitting my car AND giving me all the numbers needed for insurance purposes.