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Day #29
Today is the 29th day since the publication of
Archbishop Carlo Maria Vigano's "Testimony."
(The full text is here; it was made public on the evening of August 25.)
The Vatican this morning published the following
statement:
Communiqué
concerning the signing of a Provisional Agreement
between the Holy See and the People’s Republic of
China
on the appointment of Bishops
Today, 22nd September 2018, within the framework of the
contacts between the Holy See and the People’s Republic of China that
have been underway for some time in order to discuss Church matters of
common interest and to promote further understanding, a meeting was
held in Beijing between Msgr. Antoine Camilleri,
Undersecretary for the Holy See’s Relations with States, and H.E. Mr. Wang
Chao, Deputy Minister for Foreign Affairs of the People’s
Republic of China, respectively heads of the Vatican and Chinese
delegations.
During that meeting, the two representatives signed a
Provisional Agreement on the appointment of Bishops.
The above-mentioned Provisional Agreement, which is the
fruit of a gradual and reciprocal rapprochement, has been agreed
following a long process of careful negotiation and foresees the
possibility of periodic reviews of its application. It concerns the nomination
of Bishops, a question of great importance for the life of the Church,
and creates the conditions for greater collaboration at the bilateral
level.
The shared hope is that this agreement may favour a
fruitful and forward-looking process of institutional dialogue and may
contribute positively to the life of the Catholic Church in China, to
the common good of the Chinese people and to peace in the world.
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Comment of Greg Burke, Director of the Holy See
Press Office:
“This is not the end of a process. It's the beginning.
This has been about dialogue, patient listening on both sides even when
people come from very different standpoints. The objective of the
accord is not political but pastoral, allowing the faithful to have
bishops who are in communion with Rome but at the same time recognized
by Chinese authorities."
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