Vatican Secretary of State: There is no contradiction between being Chinese and Christian

The Secretary of State of the Vatican, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, assured that there is no contradiction between being authentically Chinese and Christian, within the framework of an event about Father Matteo Ricci, an Italian Jesuit who evangelized China in the 16th century.

“There is no contradiction between being authentically Chinese and good citizens and being Christians. On the contrary, the Gospel vivifies Chinese culture from within. And so this great teaching of Matteo Ricci continues and now continues to inspire us,” said the cardinal, according to Vatican News.

“Matteo Ricci has always been a reference figure in the entire process of dialogue with China for his moral stature, but above all for his role as a bridge between Western and Chinese culture and for his great effort to inculturate the faith,” he added. the cardinal

The Secretary of State’s statements were given within the framework of the event “A legacy of friendship, dialogue and peace”, dedicated to Father Matteo Ricci, held at the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome.

The agreement between the Vatican and China for the appointment of bishops

One of the main fruits of the dialogue between the Vatican and China has been the renewal of the provisional agreement, announced in October for four more years until 2028, for the appointment of bishops.

The renewal came days after a Hudson Institute report detailed how seven Catholic bishops in China have been detained without due processwhile other bishops have experienced intense pressure, surveillance and police investigations since the agreement was first signed.

Originally signed in September 2018, the interim agreement was previously renewed for a two-year period in 2020 and again in October 2022.

In February 2020, Bishop Emeritus of Hong Kong and critic of the agreement, Cardinal Joseph Zen Ze-kiun, claimed that the Chinese communist government wanted the Vatican to surrender.

The terms of the agreement have not been made public until now, although Pope Francis said in 2023 that it includes a joint commission between the Chinese government and the Vatican, overseen by Cardinal Parolin.

The dialogue between the Vatican and China has not always been smooth. The Holy See has acknowledged that China violated the terms of the agreement by unilaterally appointing Catholic bishops in Shanghai and the “diocese of Jiangxi,” a large ecclesiastical jurisdiction created by the Chinese government that is not recognized by the Vatican.

According to a recent report by the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF), Chinese officials have recently ordered the removal of crosses from churches and have replaced images of Christ and the Virgin Mary by images of President Xi Jinping.

Although critics have expressed serious concerns on the Vatican’s diplomatic approach toward Beijing and the Chinese sinicization policythe Holy See has publicly redoubled the diplomatic strategy of supporting Beijing.

Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Vatican Secretary of State, in 2020 he praised the “sinicization” campaign of religion and culture in Chinese President Xi Jinping’s country, saying it relates to the Catholic concept of inculturation “without confusion and without opposition.”

George Weigel, biographer of St. John Paul II and distinguished fellow and holder of the William E. Simon Chair in Catholic Studies at the Ethics and Public Policy Center in Washington, firmly rejected Cardinal Parolin’s interpretation, in a commentary published in the National Catholic Registertitled Sinicization is not inculturation.