Catholic Church & China: Pope Francis Can Change Bad Policy

Pope Francis should see the writing on the wall and revise the Holy See’s China policy. There is no hiding that its five-year-old agreement with Beijing has served Chinese Communist Party interests, to the detriment of the Vatican’s and those of Chinese Catholics. The pope’s recent decision to elevate Hong Kong’s Bishop Stephen Chow to the College of Cardinals provides an opportunity for a new approach.

A “good bishop,” Hong Kong’s Cardinal Joseph Zen called him when meeting with the pope in January. A Jesuit, like Francis, Chow could serve as a key papal China-policy adviser. The pope could benefit from frank, on-the-ground accounts by someone he trusts. There will be opportunities for that in late August, when both are in Mongolia for the papal visit, and then in September, at the consistory for new cardinals in Rome.

About the Author

Nina Shea

Nina Shea is director of Hudson Institute’s Center for Religious Freedom and author of the new report “Ten Persecuted Catholic Bishops in China”

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Pope Francis should see the writing on the wall and revise the Holy See’s China policy. There is no hiding that its five-year-old agreement with Beijing has served Chinese Communist Party interests, to the detriment of the Vatican’s and those of Chinese Catholics. The pope’s recent decision to elevate Hong Kong’s Bishop Stephen Chow to the College of Cardinals provides an opportunity for a new approach.

A “good bishop,” Hong Kong’s Cardinal Joseph Zen called him when meeting with the pope in January. A Jesuit, like Francis, Chow could serve as a key papal China-policy adviser. The pope could benefit from frank, on-the-ground accounts by someone he trusts. There will be opportunities for that in late August, when both are in Mongolia for the papal visit, and then in September, at the consistory for new cardinals in Rome.