Pope prays for Chinese Catholics to remain in communion with Rome

Pope Leo XIV on Sunday asked for prayers for Chinarsquos Catholics to remain in communion with the Holy See making his first public comments on one of the most challenging foreign policy issues of his new papacy reported the APHistoryrsquos first American pope recalled that the Catholic Church had marked a special feast day on Saturday to pray for the Church in ChinaPope Benedict XVI had introduced the feast day as part of his efforts to unify Chinarsquos estimated 12 million Catholics who have long been divided between an official statecontrolled church that does not recognize papal authority and an underground church that has remained loyal to Rome despite decades of persecution the AP report statedOn the feast day Pope Leo said ldquoIn the churches and shrines in China and throughout the world prayers have been raised to God as a sign of solicitude and affection for Chinese Catholics and their communion with the universal Churchrdquo according to the AP reportSpeaking from his studio window during his noontime blessing Leo prayed that Catholics in China and elsewhere ldquoobtain the grace to be strong and joyful witnesses of the Gospel even in the midst of trials to always promote peace and harmonyrdquoPope Francis had advanced Benedictrsquos unification efforts further by approving a controversial 2018 deal regarding the nomination of bishops Although the details of the agreement were never made public it allowed the statecontrolled church to have a say in the appointment of bishops while Francis insisted he retained veto power over the final decisionHowever the deal has been criticized by some especially among conservative Catholics for giving in to Beijingrsquos demands and allegedly abandoning the underground faithful in China The Vatican has defended the agreement saying it was the best compromise possible and it has been renewed periodicallyPope Leo will now have to decide whether to continue renewing the accord There have already been apparent violations on Chinarsquos part including unilateral bishop appointments made without papal approvalThe issue came to a head just before the conclave that elected Leo pope when the Chinese church proceeded with the preliminary election of two bishopsmdasha step that typically precedes official consecrationAccording to the Fides missionary news agency Cardinal Stephen Chow the Archbishop of Hong Kong said Pope Leo had told him that he had visited China several times and had come to understand Chinese culture and society These comments were shared by Chow in his diocesan weekly newsletter following the conclaveChow added that he expected Pope Leo to continue along the path set by Pope Francis regarding the Church in China He also mentioned giving Leo a small statue of Our Lady of Sheshan a Madonna figure especially venerated by Chinese Catholics and celebrated on the feast day May 24Chow a Jesuit said he had urged Pope Leo not to forget the Church in China and the Chinese people ldquoHe nodded his head to indicate that he will not forgetrdquo the newsletter said as quoted by FidesThe Vatican has been trying for years to improve its relationship with China which was officially severed more than seventy years ago when the Communist government came to powerTensions have largely centered on Chinarsquos insistence on having the sole authority to appoint bishops as a matter of national sovereignty while the Vatican insists the pope alone has the right to appoint successors to the ApostlesThe 2018 deal aimed to unite Chinarsquos divided Catholic population regularize the status of seven bishops previously unrecognized by Rome and ease the longstanding rift between China and the VaticanWith inputs from APatOptionskeyd0ddb8ef8f1a62a8cdd22fac27fc5ea7formatiframeheight90width728params