Posted on 02/20/2020 5:51:22 PM PST by marshmallow
* Wang Yi met his counterpart Archbishop Paul Gallagher in Munich on Friday in a rare meeting between the two sides
* Holy See seeking to renew or formalise agreement on appointing bishops, source says
A historic meeting between the foreign ministers of China and the Vatican in Munich last week was initiated and approved by Pope Francis, according to two sources familiar with the arrangements.
The Pope was “eager” to use the talks to explore “renewal or formalisation” of a provisional deal reached in 2018 to allow the Vatican to appoint bishops pre-approved by Beijing, one of the sources said. The agreement is said to be expiring in August.
Archbishop Paul Gallagher, the Vatican’s secretary for relations with states, met Foreign Minister Wang Yi, who is also a state councillor, on Friday in a rare high-level meeting between the two sides. But Wang did not meet Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Vatican’s top diplomat.
The second source said the Pope was “delighted” with the meeting, which took place at the Bayerischer Hof hotel, where dozens of world leaders had gathered for the Munich Security Conference
The sources could not confirm whether either side had proposed a further meeting between President Xi Jinping and Pope Francis. The Pope, who became the first Latin American pontiff in 2013, has shown more willingness to engage with China’s ruling Communist Party than most of his predecessors, who have condemned Beijing for violating religious freedom.
Beijing broke off diplomatic relations with the Holy See in 1951, and the Vatican is the only European sovereign state to formally recognise Taipei instead of Beijing.
(Excerpt) Read more at scmp.com ...
The commie Pope is perfectly at home with the Chicoms.
a provisional deal reached in 2018 to allow the Vatican to appoint bishops pre-approved by Beijing, one of the sources said. The agreement is said to be expiring in August.
A deal with communists, but still not revealed to Catholics.
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