In the coming weeks, a delegation from the Holy See is expected to leave for China to discuss the renewal of the Sino-Vatican agreement on bishop appointments. Signed in 2018, the agreement has been renewed ad experimentum every two years since then, and so it should be again this time.
The content of the agreement, which has also remained confidential due to its provisional nature, is unknown. What is known is that it establishes a procedure for bishops in China to be appointed with a double approval: that of the Pope, supreme authority on the matter, and that of the Chinese government, which is called upon to give its approval on the appointments of new bishops.
Since 2018, nine bishops have been appointed using the procedures of the Sino-Vatican agreement. In some cases, there has actually been forcing and mechanisms to grease, as when China unilaterally decided to transfer Bishop Joseph Shen Bin to Shanghai. The transfer, in the end, does not seem to have been contemplated in the agreement, but only because there is no such thing as a transfer of an episcopal see: it is always the Pope who makes the appointment.
Moreover, the distribution of dioceses remains to be defined, because China has its own distribution of dioceses and tends to impose it on the bishops. On this question, the Holy See seems to be open to a redistribution, with a more attentive eye on the Chinese administrative units.
Pope Francis' perspective
Returning from his long trip to Asia, which took him as far as Singapore, on the doorstep of China, Pope Francis stressed that he was "happy with the dialogues with China, including the appointment of bishops, and working with good will."
The Pope's was described as a realistic approach. And, in fact, it was Pope Francis himself who rectified the unilateral appointment of Bishop Shen Bin in Shanghai, making the appointment himself some time later. Is this a naive maneuver or a necessary concession?
Those who defend the Sino-Vatican agreement point out that it allowed, in the first place, all Catholic bishops in the People's Republic of China to be in full and public communion with the Pope. They also point out that there have been no illegitimate episcopal ordinations, as well as the fact that eight unofficial bishops have requested and obtained recognition from the Chinese authorities. In short, progress is being made, and two Chinese bishops were even able to attend the 2018 Synod on Youth and the 2013 Synod on Synodality.
To this must be added the presence of several Chinese pilgrims at World Youth Days, as well as the Pope's visit to Mongolia - when, in fact, there were complaints that it was difficult for Chinese Catholics to cross the border to see the Holy Father.
The agreement, in short, is allowing for a difficult, slow, but nevertheless inexorable dialogue, and must be accompanied, despite the setbacks, considering that the life of the Church in China is advancing - as many as 41 people were baptized in Shanghai on the feast of the Nativity of the Virgin Mary.
The situation in China
This is an optimistic reading of reality. Official sources speak of at least 16 million Catholics in China, which, in the country of the Red Dragon, represents a tiny minority, but of great specific weight.
The agreement on the appointment of bishops is likely to be renewed in October for another two years, but this year alone has seen an acceleration in episcopal appointments: three earlier in the year, and a fourth, Joseph Yang Yongjang, transferred to the Hangzhou diocese, with an appointment that for the first time involved someone who was already a bishop.
However, everyone is aware of the limitations of the agreement.
Beginning with the territorial question. The Catholic Church in China used to have 20 archdioceses, 96 dioceses (including Macao, Hong Kong, Baotou and Bameng), 29 apostolic prefectures and 2 ecclesiastical administrations. Instead, the Chinese authorities have created a geography of 104 dioceses (excluding Macao and Hong Kong) delimited according to the boundaries of the civil administration, and excluding the ranks of the Catholic Church, which they also consider to be archdioceses.
However, the situation for Catholics in China has not improved. Recently, Bishop Peter Shao Zumin of the Yongija-Whenzou diocese in eastern China was detained and placed under house arrest on state property. It was not the first time Bishop Shao, 60, had been detained. Leader of the diocese since 2016, detained and repeatedly harassed in 2017, Shao was "taken into custody" primarily for his refusal to join the Patriotic Association of Chinese Catholics, the government-run association that officially represents the Catholic Church in China and is independent of the Holy See.There are at least three other dioceses that have not heard from their bishops for several years. Monsignor Joseph Zhang Weizhu, bishop of Xiangxiang, was detained on May 21, 2021; Monsignor Augusti Cui Tai, bishop of Xuanhua, also disappeared in the spring of 2021; and Monsignor James Su Zhimin, bishop of Baoding, was detained in 1996 and would now be 91 years old.
All these bishops are recognized by the Holy See, but not by the Chinese government. There is also the case of Thaddeus Ma Daqin, who left the Patriotic Association upon his appointment as bishop of Shanghai in 2012. He too ended up under house arrest, and has barely administered the diocese. As a result, the Chinese government thought of unilaterally appointing Bishop Shen Bin in Shanghai, displacing him from the Haimen diocese.
The Holy See, however, seems willing to compromise. In recent appointments, the Holy See accepted in one case the division of Beijing dioceses, establishing the diocese of Weifang instead of a prefecture, and even admitted a candidate who seems to have been appointed by Beijing as early as 2022, at least according to the website chinacatholic.cn.
What does the Holy See want to do?
The Holy See wants to have a representative office in Beijing, a non-diplomatic liaison, to follow the situation closely and help interpret the agreement in the right terms, to avoid misunderstandings. However, it does not appear that the Chinese side is willing to set up a non-diplomatic office. And, if it were a diplomatic office, the Holy See would have to drastically cut relations with Taiwan.
For now, the agreement should not be signed permanently. And it is certain that Parolin and his entourage will try to tinker with the agreement, to define more precisely the rights and duties of the bishops and the role the pope has in relation to them.
