by Gianni Criveller, Editor of AsiaNews
AsiaNews editorial director, Father Gianni Criveller, comments on Pope Leo XIV’s words on China in a recent interview: “He guarantees the continuity of previous choices, aware that there is time between now and the new expiry of the Agreement in 2028. But he also says he is listening to the “underground” communities that [rightly or wrongly] feel they have been sacrificed. So that the government’s narrative is not the only one in this complex and painful ecclesial affair.”
Pope Leo’s interview with American journalist Elise Allen—contained in the book Leo XIV: Citizen of the World, Missionary of the 21st Century and released on September 18—is important because it allows us to delve into the thoughts and programme of a pope who is still little known.
Among the many topics covered, we focus here on the question concerning China. The very fact that it is included among the first questions to be asked of the pontiff confirms the enormous importance that this nation has for the Holy See, for the life of the Church and for the world.
This is the pope’s first statement on this difficult issue.
His words go beyond the usual answers and therefore deserve a comment from the editorial director of an agency such as AsiaNews, which has been following the events of the Church in Asia, and in China in particular, for decades.
Allen asks the pope if he already knows what his approach to China will be. The answer is a clear “no”. The fact that the he has not yet established his policy on China seems to me to be an important signal.
Pope Leo states that he does not consider himself wiser than his predecessors and that, for now, he will follow the same line
However, this is followed by a statement that seems to downplay the significance of what has just been said: in the meantime, Leo will continue along the lines of his predecessors. A line that the interviewer has defined as Ostpolitik [eastern policy, alluding to normalisation of relations between then-West and East Germany from 1969-1974]. I think that defining the popes’ policy towards China with the term is a rather hasty choice of words.
While it is true that since Pope St. Paul VI, all popes have actively sought dialogue with the authorities of the People’s Republic of China, it is also true that the word “Ostpolitik” does not best represent the thinking of Pope St. John Paul II [who did not approve of it] and Pope Benedict XVI [who withdrew from signing an agreement with China that seemed to have been reached].
In any case, Pope Leo states that he does not consider himself wiser than his predecessors and that, for now, he will follow the same line.
Ostpolitik, according to the pope, means realism: “what we can do now, looking to the future”.
It is interesting what the pope goes on to say: “I am also in constant dialogue with various Chinese people on both sides of some of the issues at stake.”
He is therefore listening to different people who think differently, in order to “better understand how the Church can continue its mission, respecting both the culture and the political issues that are obviously of great importance, but also respecting a significant group of Chinese Catholics who for many years have experienced some form of oppression or difficulty in living their faith freely and without taking sides.”
I am also in constant dialogue with various Chinese people on both sides of some of the issues at stake
Pope Leo XIV
The reference to Catholics in the so-called underground [unofficial] communities is quite clear. About 20 bishops in China [out of a total of about a hundred] are not recognised by the government authorities.
Numerous priests refuse to sign declarations of support for the religious policy of the authorities.
The sinicisation of Catholicism, like so many other religious and cultural realities, is imposed with rhetoric and increasingly invasive measures. Many Catholic communities meet in private places to escape the control of the government authorities.
It must also be recognised that even members of official communities, led by bishops recognised by the government, are controlled in the practice of their faith and suffer from the limitations imposed on their Catholic identity.
It is important to hear from the pope himself that he is not unfamiliar with the situation in China. Pope Leo says that he will take into consideration the “experiences I have had previously in dealing with the Chinese people, both in government and with religious and lay leaders”—alluding to his previous experiences, about which we know little, including trips to China as superior general of the Augustinians.
While he will follow the path he has laid out in the short term, in the long term the pope reserves the right “not to say this is what I will or will not do.” He also says that he has “already begun discussions at various levels on this subject.”
Pope Leo is certainly prudent: he guarantees the continuity of previous choices that led in 2018 to the Provisional Agreement between the Holy See and the Beijing authorities on the appointment of bishops
In short, the situation in China is “very difficult.”
What can we say? Pope Leo is certainly prudent: he guarantees the continuity of previous choices that led in 2018 to the Provisional Agreement between the Holy See and the Beijing authorities on the appointment of bishops.
The agreement, which has been renewed several times, is set to expire in 2028. So there is time.
In the meantime, Pope Leo will continue a dialogue that excludes no one, in particular that significant group of Catholics who for years have experienced oppression or difficulties in living their faith. And who in recent years—rightly or wrongly—have felt that they have not been listened to.
The pope’s words are therefore not easy or obvious. Of course, they do not herald a turning point: the agreements established must be respected. But the pope shows that he wants to listen to more parties and that he has no prejudices.
I think this is an important sign. Pope Leo knows that the situation of Catholics in China is not normalised and aligned. In mid-September AsiaNews reported on the events related to the establishment of the new Diocese of Zhangjiakou, Hebei province, headed by Bishop Joseph Wang Zhengui.
The old dioceses of Xiwanzi and Xuanhua headed by Bishop Joseph Ma Yanen and Emeritus Bishop Augustine Cui Tai, have been suppressed and incorporated into a larger diocese
The two bishops have finally been recognised by the government: the former has become auxiliary bishop of the new diocese, while the latter has retired.
The Catholic communities that looked up to them were taken by surprise and feel saddened. The two bishops obeyed the will of the Holy See. Their fidelity and that of their communities, may go without recognition.
Pope Leo seems aware that the future of the Chinese Catholic community should not be one of normalisation according to the government authorities’ account. That is not the only narrative of this complex and painful ecclesial affair.
