Shan Ren Shen Fu

News of the Mindong encounter was posted online and later removed. For Zhan Silu, Msgr. Ma’s embrace is a kind of "revenge" for the embrace received in Shanghai five years earlier, at Ma's ordination. A premonition of China-Holy See relations, in which everyone mingles and embraces ... While Msgr. Guo Xijin is taken away.

The majority of Chinese faithful have no interest in China-Vatican dialogue. They are not affected by the Patriotic Association. This is a mere instrument of government policy.

For the famous priest-blogger Fr. Shanren, “the Ninth Assembly has created even more confusion in the Chinese Church, just like the smog that is choking the capital and many parts of China these days. The bishops were treated like "dolls" by Party members present there. The root problem is that an atheist Party wants to control, manage and correct religious experience.

A priest from the official (state-approved) Church speaks about the news that the signing of agreement between China and the Vatican is “imminent”, that the legitimisation of excommunicated bishops is “imminent”, and that the right to appoint bishops will soon pass into Beijing’s hands (or rather those of the Council of Chinese bishops, which is not recognised by the Holy See). “Some have said that the negotiations between China and the Vatican have come at the expense of the underground Church. In fact, if the pope grants Beijing the right to appoint bishops, then the entire Church in China will be sacrificed." Writing under the name of ‘hermit priest,’ the author of this piece is a well known blogger from northern China.

The illegitimate ordination of underground priest Dong Guanhua (condemned by Bishop Jia Zhiguo) is shaking the Church in China and is creating multiple, painful fractures. A priest from the official Church expresses his weariness: too many divisions threaten to kill the Church. He asks everyone to follow the Pope in his efforts towards greater openness and mercy.