On March 14, 2013, both China and the Catholic Church announced their new leaders to the world – Xi Jinping in Beijing and Francis in the Vatican. This might have been a sheer coincidence but it definitely is a good starting point for the two leaders, who up till now do not have any line of communication.
Pope Francis, on his part, dreams of a Church in China that is much freer and open and which has ties with the Roman Pontiff. Chairman Xi, on his part, is very apprehensive of all foreign interference in the country and therefore prefers to maintain a position of total rupture in communication with Rome.
During September I travelled to China together with other Jesuits and had the opportunity to understand the context there and to meet different members of our Jesuit Order who live their vocation in this interesting yet very complex and challenging reality.
We should remember that the Church in China is more than two centuries older than the Church in America. If we begin the Church’s life in China with the first Mass offered there, then it would be more than eight centuries old! And in those 800 years, the Church has suffered and flourished in turns, but it has always survived.
As regards the Jesuit Order in China, on the one hand, the Jesuits there are closely followed and it is strictly forbidden for them to live together in a community or even in the same physical space. On the other hand, the people, as well as the authorities, have a great respect for these men because they represent a legacy that is much more far reaching than we can ever imagine.
We all know that the Jesuit Order’s first attempt to reach China was made by St Francis Xavier in 1552. He never reached mainland China and died on the island of Shangchuan.
Three decades later, in 1582, a group of Jesuits, including Matteo Ricci, started missionary work in China. Thanks to the respect Ricci won for himself with Emperor Wanli, today, even though the government is afraid of the Jesuits because it thinks they can challenge its power, the Society of Jesus still benefits from this respect.
The Chinese authorities fear that a stronger Catholic faith could encourage political dissent or a revolution
To fully comprehend the complex nature of the Church in the country, one needs to look at the Chinese government and how it influences much of Chinese society. Tony, with whom I spoke at length on the situation of the Church during my visit to China, explained the complex situation to me like this:
The Chinese government has two hands, one that is open, generous and ready to shake your hand and the other that is closed and hostile. China has two faces, one that smiles at you and the other that barks at you!
The Chinese government is not against its people practising their religion, whatever it may be. The Church is allowed to flourish in China, as long as it accepts the scrutiny of the government. This is because the government wants to ensure that religion is not used to ignite political rebellions.
This fear is definitely one of the main reasons why government officials refuse to allow Chinese Catholics to recognise the authority of the Pontiff, while the Vatican insists that all its faithful in the country should enjoy the rights to pray freely and remain loyal to the Pope. The Vatican asserts its rights to appoint its own bishops and not let Chinese officials assume this responsibility, because it is a spiritual, not a political act.
The Chinese people love Pope Francis and look up to him as a great leader. This feeling is strong even among non-Catholics. He could definitely play a greater role to inspire a stronger Catholic faith in China. However up till now there is no communication between the Chinese government and the Vatican.
China’s government remains reluctant to smooth relations with the Vatican, even though there can be room for compromise, but the Chinese authorities simply lack trust. They fear that a stronger Catholic faith could encourage political dissent or a revolution.
These fears are groundless because Chinese Catholics focus on spiritual matters, not politics. The Vatican has made a tremendous effort to improve ties with China’s government, and China should demonstrate the same goodwill or risk a long-term and unnecessary freeze in relations. I think the time has come for the Chinese government to extend a warm invitation to Pope Francis to conduct a State visit.
mal-prov@jesuit.org.mt
Fr Patrick Magro is provincial of the Society of Jesus.