The Vatican and the Chinese government experienced difficulties in their relationship following the successful capture of power by the Chinese Communist Party (CPC) after 1949. Catholics, amongst other minorities such as Falun Gong[1], have experienced persecution at the hands of the Chinese government and the CPC. However, the recent crackdown on Catholics throughout China is yet another example of the CPC attempting to control Chinese society and prevent ‘outside influences’ gaining a foothold within Mainland China.
What are the points of contention between the CPC and the Vatican?
In its simplest form, it’s all about the Vatican’s, or more specifically the Pope’s, ability to appoint Bishops to Catholic Dioceses within China. But to further confuse the situation, there exists two different Catholic Churches within China. One being recognised by the central government, the Chinese Patriotic Catholic Association (the CPCA is the official Catholic Church in China, with the CPC appointing Bishops and monitoring the liturgy, teachings, and the governance of the Catholic Church), and the unofficial ‘underground’ Catholic Church which, to an extent operates outside the authority of the CPC and recognises/take directions from the Vatican and the Roman Curia.
Why is the Vatican considering a deal with the CPC?
For Catholics to be in full communion with the Church, the structure upon which the Church is governed has to be applied in full communion with the Vatican (or the Universal Church). For example, Bishops gain their authority from the ‘Laying on of Hands’ (this is also done for the ordination of Priests within the Catholic Church) and must therefore be appointed with the consent of the Pope. This gives the Bishops authority over the Diocese under their charge. Bishops have a prominent place within the Catholic Church Hierarchy, from the ordination of Priests, to making sure that the teaching of the Catholic Church are being disseminated correctly, and that the sacraments are being administered correctly throughout their diocese. Thus, for the Vatican, the right to appoint Bishops is important in two regards: 1) that the Bishops are responsible for their actions to the Vatican and thus what occurs within their Dioceses, and 2) to ensure that the spiritual health of Catholics is being met correctly according to the teachings of the Church. With the recent crackdown against the ‘underground’ Catholic Church in China, a deal between the CPC and the Vatican could be a way of preventing further persecution.
Dialogue between the Vatican and China has been continuous from the 1960s with Pope Paul VI, and more so with the current Pope Francis whose personality and teaching “that encourages a process of dialogue and encounter between so many peoples and nations, including China”[2]. This begs the question of why does the CPC what to control the worship of Catholics within the mainland China? Well it’s all about ‘control’, the CPC gains its legitimacy (as it is clear it has abandoned its Marxist principles in favour of Capitalism) from economic growth and its ability to increase the living standards of Chinese people. This justifies its strict control over society, from limited political rights to limited outlets of free expression, the CPC seeks to maintain a tight grip over society, to remain in power. Allowing the Vatican, ‘outside influences’, to have just a small fraction of control over Chinese citizens presents a very real risk of undermining the ability of the CPC to control the masses in China.
From my research there are two overriding points that make a current deal impossible. The Chinese government has set two conditions for re-establishing relations: 1) that the Vatican does not interfere with religious matters in China, and 2), that the Vatican breaks its diplomatic ties with the government of Taiwan as the CPC government in mainland China, only recognises ‘One-China’ (also known as the One-China policy). These two conditions, in my opinion, makes the deal impossible under the current terms as the appointment of Bishops (highlighted above) has many more implications for the governance of the Catholic Church and the spiritual health of Catholics in China. Thus, the Vatican would seek some forms of influence regarding the governance of Churches within China.
Recently the eight out of ten dioceses in Hainan have experienced a ‘crack-down’ in worship, this has not only affected Catholic Dioceses, but Protestant churches/congregations have also been affected by the crack-down in Hainan province[3]. This further put the question of whether a deal between the Vatican and the Chinese government will occur and whether such a deal, if reached by the two parties, would be beneficial to Catholics (and other Christians) in China. A deal between the Vatican and China would not help the faithful rather it would in the longer term place many questions on the Vatican’s commitment to human rights (more importantly in this context, the right to worship freely according to one’s conscience). This has been pointed out by Cardinal Joseph Zen stating “I think the Vatican is selling out the Catholic church”[4].
The moral authority of the Catholic Church is based upon the support and defense of moral causes. The Catholic Church has supported moral causes such as the Adoration Referendum in Ireland and the case of Alfie Evan[5], for the Vatican to shy away from the persecution of Christians (not just Catholics) would be a serious blow to the moral authority of the Churches [6].
As China grows in importance and status, the questions of how it deals with minorities need to be looked at and addressed by the international community. It would be disingenuous of me not to mention that the Chinese government has, from the 1990s, brought hundreds of million out of poverty across China.
I am sure the Vatican is fully aware of such a situation, and I have no doubt that the current Pope will continue to stand up and support moral causes, even if you may disagree with what a ‘moral cause’ is, the Vatican has made it clear that the rights of Catholics to worship freely is a moral cause[7]. The current Pope has been a champion of moral causes from the start of his pontificate and I am sure he will continue to do so in the case of a China-Vatican deal.
[1] Wall Street Journal, (2000), ‘Practicing Falun Gong Was a Right, Ms. Chen Said, up to Her Last Day’, – https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB956186343489597132
[2] See Vatican News – https://www.vaticannews.va/en/world/news/2018-05/holy-see-china-diplomacy-mutual-trust.html
[3] UCA News, (2018), ‘Catholic church seized as China ramps up Henan crackdown’ – https://www.ucanews.com/news/catholic-church-seized-as-china-ramps-up-henan-crackdown/82145
[4] BBC, (2018), ‘Vatican defends itself after Hong Kong Cardinal says it is ‘selling out’ to Beijing’ – https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-china-42883843
[5] The Telegraph, 2018), ‘Alfie Evans granted Italian citizenship after Pope steps in as family hope country can treat toddler’, – https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2018/04/23/protesters-storm-hospital-terminally-ill-alfie-evans-parents/
[6] The Guardian, (2018), ‘ Vatican agreement with China could ‘deal blow’ to Catholic Church’, – https://www.theguardian.com/world/2018/feb/13/vatican-agreement-with-china-could-deal-blow-to-catholic-church
[7] Catholic Herald, (2018), ‘Pope prays that Catholics in China may live their faith in peace’ – http://www.catholicherald.co.uk/news/2018/05/23/pope-prays-that-catholics-in-china-may-live-their-faith-in-peace/
Kieran Nicholl, B.A. in History by the Newman University, is currently studying M.A. in Political Science at the University of Birmingham. He is interested in Economics, the Catholic Church, the Early Modern Europe, history of the 1960s and anything historical in nature.
