Vatican, Beijing at good point in settling row
Top News | 22 Jun 2018Pope Francis has voiced optimism for improved ties between the Vatican and China, rejecting criticism that the Holy See may be selling out Catholics to Beijing's communist government.
The two are advancing in talks to resolve a dispute over the appointment of bishops in China - one of the biggest obstacles to resuming diplomatic ties cut almost 70 years ago.
China's estimated 12 million Catholics are split between an underground church that swears loyalty to the Vatican and the state-supervised Catholic Patriotic Association.
"We are at a good point," the pope said. "Dialogue is a risk, but I prefer risk rather than the certain defeat that comes with not holding a dialogue. As for the timing, some people say it's Chinese time. I say it's God's time. Let's move forward serenely."
Francis said the road to reconciliation with China was divided into three paths: official dialogue, unofficial contacts among ordinary citizens "which we do not want to burn," and cultural dialogue.
"I think the Chinese people merit the Nobel Prize for patience," he added. "They know how to wait. Time is theirs and they have centuries of culture They are a wise people - very wise."
Asked about the comments, Foreign Ministry spokesman Geng Shuang said Beijing is sincere about improving ties and "we are willing to meet the Vatican side halfway."
The most outspoken critic of the pope's China strategy is 86-year-old Cardinal Joseph Zen Ze-kiun, a former bishop of Hong Kong, who has said the direction of negotiations suggests the Vatican is preparing to sell out the underground church.
In Hong Kong, a beachhead for Vatican loyalists, some priests say the talks could be a trap leading to greater persecution of underground believers and ultimately to tighter Communist Party control of their religion.
After his remarks at home, the pope went to Geneva - one of the world's first cities to adopt the Protestant Reformation - for a one-day visit yesterday to promote his view that Christians, whatever their theological differences, can join forces to work for peace and justice.
REUTERS, ASSOCIATED PRESS
