Abrar Hussain: Pope Fra-ncis exclaimed yesterday that he and not China will have the final say in the appointment of bishops after the Vatican and China struck a historic deal last week ending decades of conflict.
“I think of the endurance of the Catholics who suffered. It is true that they will suffer. There is always suffering in an accord, but they have great faith,” the Pope said.
According to the deal, new bishops first will be proposed by members of local Catholic communities together with Chinese authorities, and the names of candidates will be sent to the Vatican.
A Vatican statement had said the agreement was “not political but pastoral.” The pact effectively means the Chinese government recognises the Pope as leader of all Catholics in China.
“It’s not (that the government) names them. It is a dialogue. But Rome will appoint them. Let that be clear,” he said of the deal, which was more than 10 years in the making, the Pope said, adding,”This was no improvisation. It is a journey, a real journey.”
“My thoughts are with the resistance, the Catholics who have suffered, it’s true,” the Pope said.
There are an estimated 12 million Catholics in China split between the underground church and serving state-led Catholic Patriotic Association. Source: WIO News
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