Tension between the Vatican and China

The Vatican has told bishops and priests in China that they must follow their own consciences in deciding whether to register with the government, and it urged Catholics in the country not to judge them for the choices they make.

The Vatican also asked China’s communist government on Friday to stop intimidating Catholic clergy who want to remain unequivocally loyal to the pope and refuse to sign ambiguous official registration forms.

The problem, the Vatican said, is that registration almost always requires the bishop or priest to accept “the principle of independence, autonomy and self-administration of the church in China,” which could be read as a denial of one’s bonds with the pope and the universal church.

Releasing the “pastoral guidelines of the Holy See concerning the civil registration of clergy in China” June 28, the Vatican acknowledged that acceptance of the independence of the church in China comes despite “the commitment assumed by the Chinese authorities,” in an agreement with the Vatican in September, to respect Catholic doctrine.

Deciding whether to register with the government, which is the only way to be able to minister openly, is a choice that is “far from simple,” the guidelines said.

Via National Catholic Reporter