This by email, the original in Italian, arrived in French and G-translated to English.
"They are killing the Church in China". Let's listen to Cardinal Zen
01/14/2020
A letter from Cardinal Zen on China
9 Jan 2020
It dates from July 2019, but it has just been made public. It is a dramatic appeal to his cardinal brothers to make them aware of the situation of the Church in China, and to denounce the agreements that Cardinal Parolin is in the process of signing. And it is a new thorn in the side of the Pope, a Chinese version of the “ dubia ”, to which Francis will be careful (we can bet) to respond.
Marco Tosatti
The NBQ
January 9, 2020
My translation
The publication of the letter that the Chinese cardinal Joseph Zen sent last September to his brothers in the Sacred College opens a window on the dramatic crisis for the Chinese Church which opened with the signing of the agreements between the Holy See and China. It is the voice of one crying in the desert.
Last September, Cardinal Joseph Zen, Archbishop Emeritus of Hong Kong, wrote a letter to all the cardinals. A dramatic appeal, and a way to try to make them aware - and to make them aware - of the situation of the Church in China. The letter was made public yesterday; as far as we know, it was not published by the cardinal himself, but it was probably sent to the press - in its formulation in Italian (there is apparently also an English version) by one of many recipients.
The docuмent consists of the letter of appeal, the ample quotation from the Pastoral Orientations published by the Holy See and specific observations made by the Cardinal himself on various points in the Orientations. The incipit gives all the drama of the problem:
"I apologize for the inconvenience this letter will cause you. It is because in conscience, I believe that the problem I present concerns not only the Church in China, but the whole Church, and we cardinals have the grave responsibility of helping the Holy Father to lead the Church. "
Thus begins the cardinal's message, a very harsh criticism especially of the pastoral directives issued by the Vatican, and which would encourage, in the words of Zen, "the faithful in China to enter a schismatic Church independent of the Pope and under the orders of the Party Communist ”.
The letter was written in September 2019. In this docuмent, Zen declares that during the July 2019 meeting with Pope Bergoglio, during which Zen had given him his written observations, which Zen defines with a touch of humor his "Dubia", the Sovereign Pontiff had promised to take an interest in the question. But since then, he hasn't heard of it. " He promised to take an interest in it, but to date I haven't heard anything yet ." (1) Zen obviously hoped to generate a certain mobilization within the College; or at the very least he wanted to be aware that he had experienced all possible avenues.
A coincidence perhaps not accidentally fact that in these very days AsiaNews gave news of the imminent entry into force of the regulations for the religious associations (cf. www.asianews.it). In practice, these are rules which decide on the organization, functions, responsibilities, supervision, work plans and economic administration of communities and groups at national and local level. Every aspect of the life of religious communities - from teachings to rallies, to annual and daily projects - will be subject to the approval of the government's Department for Religious Affairs. And the settlement requires religious personnel to support, encourage and implement total submission to the Chinese Communist Party among all members of their communities.
In fact, it is stipulated that "religious organizations must adhere to the leadership of the Chinese Communist Party, respect the constitution, laws, regulations, orders and policies, adhere to the principle of independence and self-government , respect the directives on religions in China, implement the values of socialism […] ”. And again: "Religious organizations must disseminate the principles and policies of the Chinese Communist Party, educate religious personnel and religious citizens so that they support the leadership of the Chinese Communist Party, supporting the socialist system, adhering to and following the path of socialism with Chinese characteristics… ".
The Chinese cardinal, in his letter and in his comments, strongly criticizes the secretary of state, Cardinal Parolin, and accuses him, among other things, of manipulating the thought of Benedict XVI. “What inspires me with disgust [ mi fa ribrezzo ] is that they often declare that what they are doing is in continuity with the thought of the previous pope, while the opposite is true. I have reason to believe (and I hope to one day be able to prove it with archival docuмents) that the agreement signed is the same as that which Pope Benedict had, at the time, refused to sign ” . And he concludes by addressing his colleagues:“Dear Eminence, can we passively witness this murder of the Church in China by those who should protect and defend it from enemies? Begging on your knees, your brother, Cardinal Joseph Zen ”.
Certainly, in the light also of the regulations which will come into force, and of the declarations of certain pro-party bishops, one has the impression that the Holy See, by signing the provisional agreement, has slipped into a situation where room for maneuver and exit is anything but easy.
http://www.benoit-et-moi.fr/ 2020/2020/01/09 / une-lettre-du- cardinal-zen-sur-la-chine /
(1) He had done the same with the Dubias of the 4 cardinals, on the apostolic exhortation Amoris laetitia. They never received a response from François ...
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Topic: They are killing the Church in China - Cardinal Zen (Read 219 times)