The Vatican’s secret accord with China over appointments of bishops extended from two to four years deal has drawn a lot of controversy
The Vatican and Chinese authorities announced they have renewed a controversial agreement on episcopal appointments for a third time, while this time extending it for four years instead of the two-year period previously agreed upon.
A 22 October Vatican statement said: “In light of the consensus reached for an effective application of the Provisional Agreement regarding the Appointment of Bishops, after appropriate consultation and assessment, the Holy See and the People’s Republic of China have agreed to extend further its validity for four years from the present date.
“The Vatican Party remains dedicated to furthering the respectful and constructive dialogue with the Chinese Party, in view of the further development of bilateral relations for the benefit of the Catholic Church in China and the Chinese people as a whole.”
A Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman also announced the renewal of the deal during a regular briefing on 22 October, noting that authorities had decided to renew it for a four-year term, rather than the two-year term agreed on the previous two occasions.
Struck in 2018, the terms of the deal have never been made public and are thus described as “secret”, but it is believed to allow the Pope to choose from a selection of candidates put forward by Chinese authorities.
Since it was first struck, the accord has been a source of widespread controversy, including from top Church personalities such as Cardinal Joseph Zen, the retired bishop of Hong Kong, over religious freedom concerns in China, as well as several breeches of the deal by Chinese authorities.
In November 2022, Chinese officials installed Bishop John Peng Weizhao as an auxiliary bishop for the Diocese of Jiangxi, an ecclesiastic territory recognised by Chinese authorities but not by the Vatican, without the Vatican’s knowledge or approval.
Peng Weizhao had been appointed to the papally-recognised Diocese of Yujiang by Pope Francis in 2014, four years prior to the 2018 agreement. Considered an “underground” prelate not recognised by authorities, Peng Weizhao was arrested and held for six months before being released under strict observation.
In April 2023, Chinese authorities breached the agreement again by transferring Bishop Shen Bin of the nearby Diocese of Haimen to the Diocese of Shanghai, which had been vacant for 10 years, again without the Vatican’s prior knowledge or approval.
Supporters of the deal have argued that this move was necessary in order to unite the Catholic ecclesial communities in China.
The Church in China has for decades been divided into an “official” Church run by the government-backed Chinese Patriotic Catholic Association (CPCA), and a so-called “underground” Church in union with Rome. The 2018 deal, ostensibly, intended to unite the two.
Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin indicated earlier this year the deal could be renewed with some modifications.
He was a keynote speaker at a day conference titled “100 years since the Concilium Sinense: Between history and present”, which was held in May at Rome’s Pontifical Urban University, marking the 100th anniversary of the Council of Shanghai.
On that occasion, Parolin said the Vatican wanted the deal to be renewed, and “also developed in some points”, but did not offer any further details. It appears the duration of the agreement was one of the modifications.
The renewal of the agreement for a longer term comes after several major gestures of goodwill on the part of the Vatican toward China.
After Shen Bin’s unauthorised transfer last April, Pope Francis officially recognised the move in July of 2023, with the announcement made alongside an interview involving Parolin in which the Vatican Secretary of State suggested that a permanent resident papal representative be appointed in Beijing.
Pope Francis last September made an historic visit to Mongolia in which, during his concluding Mass, he called the former bishop of Hong Kong, Cardinal John Tong, and the city’s current bishop, Stephen Chow, on stage and praised the “noble Chinese people” in a stadium filled with many Chinese faithful who had made clandestine trips to Mongolia to participate in papal events.
After returning from Mongolia, the Pope made Chow a cardinal, which was followed by two Chinese bishops being welcomed to participate in the first half of the first Rome-based session of Synod of Bishops on Synodality last year.
Chow visited Beijing in April 2023, marking the first time a Hong Kong bishop had travelled to the city since 1985, when Hong Kong was still a British colony. Last November, the gesture was reciprocated when Beijing’s Bishop Joseph Li Shan visited Hong Kong.
Shen Bin, who is president of the CPCA, was also a keynote speaker alongside Parolin and other CPCA officials at the conference on the Council of Shanghai in May. This followed a slew of episcopal appointments for the Church in China announced earlier this year, which numbered more than had occurred collectively in all the previous years since the agreement was reached.
Two bishops from China have participated in this year’s final session for the Synod of Bishops on Synodality in Rome, set to close this week, and they appear to be remaining for the duration of the event.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lin Jian said on 22 October that both sides will continue to hold constructive talks in order to advance the improvement of relations.
The renewal of the agreement follows public figures and media this week drawing attention to the continued persecution of the Catholic Church in China through the oppression of 10 bishops by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), alongside criticism about the Vatican’s muted response to the situation.
Source X/Vatican/CH