Roman Catholicism in China

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Catholicism in China has a long and complicated history. Christianity has existed in China in various forms since at least the Tang Dynasty in the eighth century A.D. (For a full account of the history of Christianity in China up to contemporary times, see Christianity in China).

Contents 1 Early history 2 Post-Reformation 3 Modern History 3.1 Hong Kong and Macao 3.2 Diplomatic relations with the Vatican 4 Chinese terms for God and Christianity 5 See also 6 External links 7 References

[edit] Early history

Catholic missionary priests from Europe are first recorded to have entered China in the 13th century. They had some success during the Mongol regime of the Yuan Dynasty but their influence gradually faded.

[edit] Post-Reformation

During the post-Reformation explosion of Catholic missionary efforts around the world, particularly in Asia, Jesuit missionaries attempted to enter China. They had mixed success at first, but eventually came to have a strong impact, particularly in inter-cultural scientific and artistic exchanges among the upper classes of China and the imperial court.

According to the website AD2000.com.au, the first Catholic mission in Beijing was founded in 1234 by Giovanni de Montecorvino, an Italian Franciscan. By the year 1300, Catholics numbered to about 30,000. (See Jesuit China missions for details)

[edit] Modern History

Since 1949, following the establishment of the People's Republic of China by the Communist Party of China, the status of Catholicism as an institution in Chinese society has been highly ambiguous. The Chinese government maintains that Chinese citizens' activities must not face interference or influence by external powers and demands that all Chinese "Catholics" must be loyal to the State. All worship must legally be conducted through State-approved churches, and though the CPC is a secular organisation it also reserves the right to appoint priests. The resulting church has been referred to as the Loyal Chinese Catholic Church.

Beijing does not differentiate between temporal and spiritual loyalty. A Catholic can be loyal to his/her own government, while still listen to the Pope's teachings on religion. In an authoritative survey of Chinese Catholicism in the American Catholic publication, Commonweal, the Chinese Catholic Patriotic Association is an organization with oversight over the Chinese Catholic Church. However, it is not a Church itself, and, according to Commonweal, neither priests, bishops, nuns or laity are required to belong to it anymore. In the meantime, two-thirds of China's registered Church bishops are now recognized by the Vatican. More significant, during the Summer of 2005, the Vatican and Beijing agreed upon the appointment of an Auxiliary Bishop of Shanghai. In the past, a major impediment to the re-establishment of relations between the Vatican and Beijing has been the issue of who appoints the bishops.

In a further sign of rapprochement between the Vatican and Beijing, Pope Benedict XVI invited four Chinese bishops, including two government recognized bishops, one underground bishop, and one underground bishop recently emerged into the registered church, to the October 2005 Synod of the Eucharist. Beijing ultimately denied the four bishops the right to attend the meeting.

It is estimated that there are 13 million Catholics in China, 8 million following the underground church still loyal to Rome and 5 million following the officially sanctioned Chinese Catholic Patriotic Association. [1]

[edit] Hong Kong and Macao

Donald Tsang, the Chief Executive of Hong Kong is a Catholic.

Pope John Paul II was denied a visit (deemed "inappropriate") to Hong Kong in 1999, a decision many believe was made under pressure from the central PRC government.

[edit] Diplomatic relations with the Vatican

The issue of Sino-Vatican relations has been a highly contentious one and often difficult for both sides (see below). The Chinese Catholic Patriotic Association (CCPA) is a division of China's Religious Affairs Bureau, and has oversight over China's Catholics. According to at least one source, however, China's Catholics, including its clergy and religious sisters, are no longer required to be a members of the CPCA.[2]

By 2007, the Vatican had indicated one multiple occasions that it desires to establish full diplomatic relations with China, and would be willing to move its embassy from Taiwan to mainland China if necessary.[3] However, a major obstacle between the two sides has been the Roman Catholic doctrine that only the Pope can appoint bishops of the Church. Currently, bishops in the CCPA are government-appointed. In recent years, this issue has proved a frequent aggravating factor in Sino-Vatican relations.

Some, including "outspoken" Hong Kong Cardinal Joseph Zen, see the progress between Vietnam and Vatican officials towards re-establishing full diplomacy, as a model for Sino-Vatican normalization of relations.[4]

By late 2004, prior to the death of Pope John Paul II, Vatican and Chinese government representatives were in contact with the apparent goal of moving closer to the normalization of relations.[5] In late 2004, John Paul II received a "quasi-official" Chinese delegation in the Vatican. These overtures continued after the installation of Benedict XVI as pope.

[edit] Chinese terms for God and Christianity

Main article: Chinese terms for God

The Chinese language generally divides Christians into two groups: adherents of Catholicism, Tianzhu jiao (天主教), and adherents of Jidu jiao (基督教)—literally, Christianity—or Jidu Xinjiao (基督新教), believers of Protestantism. Chinese speakers see the two as distinct religions, viz. Christians and Catholics, a degree of distinction sometimes made in the Western world. In Western languages, in theory at least, the term "Christianity" can subsume both Protestants and Catholics (i.e. Christians as opposed to, for example, Hindus or Jews), yet in Chinese, no term exists in prevalent usage that can subsume the two.

Terms used to refer to God in Chinese are different in different churches/denominations. The Catholic church historically favored Tianzhu (literally, "Lord of Heaven") over Shangdi (literally, "The Emperor from Above"), a term used more commonly by Protestants. Many Protestants also use Shen, which means "God" or "Spirit". The Mandarin Chinese translation of "Christ" all Christians use is Jidu (基督). Originally, some Roman Catholic missionaries and scholars advanced the use of Shangdi as being more native to the Chinese language, but Catholic hierarchy ultimately decided that Tianzhu was to be used exclusively, at least in official worship and texts.

[edit] See also

• Medieval Roman Catholic Missions in China
• List of Roman Catholic missionaries in China
• Chinese house church
• Catholicism in Japan
• Cardinal Kung
• Maryknoll
• Christianity in China
• Protestantism in China
• Chinese Catholic Bishops Conference
• Chinese Catholic Patriotic Association
• Missions étrangères de Paris
• Jesuit Missions to China
• List of Catholic cathedrals in China
• List of Catholic Churches in Hong Kong

[edit] External links

• The Catholic Church in China by Giga-Catholic Information
• Beijing Northern Church - a Full Introduction to the Home of Beijing Diocese by ChinaReport.com

[edit] References

• Wise Man from the West, Vincent Cronin, Fortuna Books, London, 1955 (on Matteo Ricci)
• Jesuits at the Court of Peking, C. W. Allen, Kelly & Walsh, Shanghai, c.1933