Catholic church in China

The Catholicisme in China has a relatively recent history, which really develops that starting from the first missions Jésuite S at the 16th century. Today Chinese Catholicism is complex in the Chinese measurement or government, and this since the arrival of the Communisme, does not recognize the Catholic church, which leads to a dissension between the catholics known as “patriotic” and the “clandestine ones”. One estimates in 2007 that there would be between 12 to 14 million catholic Chinese.

History of Catholicism in China

First traces

The oldest traces of Christianisme in Chinese civilization is the fact of Christians nestoriens of the 7th century, attested by a stele found in 1625 with Chang' year (Xi' year). A first mission Franciscain E is present in China between the 13th century and the 16th century, during the Mongolian dynasty of Yuan. These had to leave when the dynasty was reversed. Christianity preached then was without nuance nor adaptation.

Mission Jesuit in China

19th century

In the middle of the 19th century, after the First war of opium, the catholic missions included in the coastal areas. The chief of the revolt of Taiping was inspired partially of the lesson by the missionaries to build the idelogy of his movement.

From 1900 to 1949

Until the advent of the Popular republic of China, many sino-Westerners cultural exchanges were done via the Christian missions, which founded education institutions. Thus one estimates that there was, before 1949, a dozen missions of more than ten countries. Among the hundred thirty-seven Diocèse S in the country, only twenty-nine were managed by bishop S Chinese. The country counted three million practitioners then.

Since the advent of the Popular republic of China

1949-1957

At the time of the advent of the Popular republic of China the relations changed again and the Communist government which considered the religion as “opium of the people” very quickly will be organized, at the same time as the Cultural revolution, in order to limit any relation between the catholics and the the Vatican. Thus in the Years 1950, a certain number of Chinese catholics are supported by the government in order to launch a patriotic movement, wishing that the Chinese Catholic churches be managed by the Chinese believers themselves, apart from the supervision of the Vatican. China founded in 1957 with Beijing an national association, the patriotic catholic Association of China. The religions are thus highly oppressed, and one can observe a dissension within the Catholicism of China between those which obey Rome and those which obey the patriotic Church. Thus the independence of Chinese Christianity was jealously preserved against any foreign interference. Article 36 of the Constitution of the Popular republic of China warns the religions against the tender at all “foreign domination”. This aims at the catholics and their allegiance to the pope.

1978-2000

The policy of opening and Modernization inaugurated by Deng Xiaoping with the third plenum of XIe Congrès of the Party in December 1978 allowed a material change in the vision of the religions. Thus five religions were officially recognized: the Buddhism, the Islam, the Taoism, the Protestantism and the Catholicism, because they are founded on canonical Writings and teach a moral discipline. The believers were thus invited to take part in the modernization of China. However there still this opening should not be made that within the framework of “patriotic associations”, which are not managed and are not organized by the State but under a very broad control, very critical of the policy or mode being very severely sanctioned. Moreover Chinese catholic patriotic Association had to repudiate the pope officially.

21e century

The relations remain very tended between the Chinese mode and the pope, however Benoit XVI in a letter thus requires the unit of the catholics of China, not recognizing division between the “two Churches of China”, one patriotic, the other clandestine one. One can however note that this letter was censured in China by the government. One estimates in 2007 qu ' there is between twelve and fourteen million catholics in China, this estimate not being exact because of taking into account of the “clandestine” catholics known as, of the increase in the Chinese population, but also in the control of the Chinese government.

Diplomatic relations between the Popular republic of China and the the Vatican

The government of the Popular republic of China refuses to recognize the Vatican and poses two prerequisites with the establishment of diplomatic relations. The Holy See should initially break with the dissenting government of the Republic of China with Taiwan. It should then give up any interference in the Chinese interior matters. This last point blames the nomination of the bishops in China.

Churches of China?

The fact that there are catholics who recognize the pope, and others which do not recognize it tends to show that there are two Churches catholic in China. However the pope Benoit XVI, which refuses this division, regularly recognizes the nominations of the bishops of the Church known as official as Joseph Zen affirms it, while not denying his authority on the Church known as clandestine. Thus for the pope there is only one Church of China, however the official character of the Church in practice changes many things for the catholics according to whether they belong or not to the official Church.

Diocese of HongKong - Macao

The statute of the diocese of HongKong - Macao is very particular, before the Joint Declaration sino-British on the question of HongKong and its retrocession in 1997, it was autonomous and did not belong to China in measurement or the two cities were independent. Today this diocese belongs to officially to China. However the religious liberty is much more important there and the problems which one encounters in Popular republic of China do not exist insofar as these cities have a particular status, having a very great religious liberty. The catholics of HongKong function like the majority of the dioceses of the world, the bishops being named by the pope and there is no clandestine Church. One estimates at two hundred and fifty thousand the number of the catholics who account the territory on the seven million inhabitants. The bishop of HongKong, Joseph Zen Ze-Kiun, regarded very critical towards the Communist regime and as a defender of the Democracy, was named cardinal by the pope Benoit XVI the February 22nd 2006, in order to reinforce the weight of the Chinese in the catholic hierarchy.

Clandestine church of China

The official rejection of the authority of the pope explains the existance catholic communities “clandestine” which refuse to subject themselves to the control and the requirements of the patriotic Association of the catholics. These clandestine denounces with more or less strength the catholics who collaborate with the civil authorities and is subjected to the directives of patriotic association.

International agencies such Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch, or the Foreign missions denounce the cases of tortures which the authorities inflict with the " Churches not officielles". Indeed, the catholics recognizing the authority of the pope and refusing the official Church are persecuted and taxed with " sects hérétiques" , in the same way that the totality of the worships which are not recognized by the PCC.

Official church of China

The patriotic Association of the catholics is charged to establish the link with the government organizations and to ensure the respect of the official political line inside the Church. The control of the religious activity in China undoubtedly remains very tight but development considerably since a quarter century.

One can note various situations within the people of the official Church: part of the bishops of the dioceses of the “official Church” would be named by catholic patriotic Association, but secretly asked for the recognition of Rome and obtained it; they are faithful to Rome. The number of bishops in this situation would be important, but there remains difficult to check insofar as he is held secret by the Vatican, which however officially recognized the existence of this practice. Another part of the dioceses would have a bishop named by catholic patriotic Association, without the downstream of the Holy See and the bishop not requiring recognition (and thus becoming in extreme cases of Catholicism).

Michael Fu Tieshan was the director of Chinese patriotic association.

List official dioceses in China

List of the official dioceses in China

Chinese cardinals

There was in the history only six cardinal Chinese one finds in the chronological order: Thomas Tien Heng-hsin (with Beijing, 1890 - 1967), Paul Yu Pin (with Nankin, 1901 - 1978), John Baptist Wu Cheng Chung (with HongKong, 1925 - 2002), Ignatius Kung Pine-mei (with Shanghai, 1901 - 2000), Paul Shan Kuo-hsi (with Kaohsiung) and finally Joseph Zen named in 2006 (bishop of HongKong).

See too

Chinese saints or missionaries:

External bonds

catholic dioceses as a Popular republic of China (Giga-Catholic Information)
Site extremely documented on Catholicism in China
File of the newspaper '' the Cross '' on Catholicism in China

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