China, Vatican may have ties by Olympics: cardinal

Joseph Cardinal Zen Ze-kiun, S.D.B.

Function: Bishop of Hong Kong [Xianggang]

Title:

Birthdate: Jan 13, 1932	Country: Hong Kong

Elevated: Mar 24, 2006	More information: [link=http://www.catholic-hierarchy.org/bishop/bzenz.html][www.catholic-hierarchy.org]

Send a text about this cardinal »

View all articles about this cardinal »

China, Vatican may have ties by Olympics: cardinal
Apr 06, 2006
China and the Vatican could re-establish diplomatic relations by the 2008 Beijing Olympics, Cardinal Joseph Zen, the most senior Roman Catholic clergyman in the country, said on Monday.

HONG KONG (Reuters, Apr 3, 2006) - Ties were cut in 1951 and the Vatican has formal relations with Taiwan, the self-ruled island that Beijing considers a breakaway province.

But momentum has been building in recent years for the Vatican to make the switch from Taiwan to China. As a precondition, Beijing insists that the Holy See sever diplomatic links with Taiwan and refrain from meddling in China's internal affairs.

China and the Vatican could have diplomatic relations "as early as the Olympic Games", Zen said told Reuters. "I think it's a very reasonable target. The process may be long and it may be short. It depends on how they (China's leaders) open their way of seeing things."

Zen, who does not play a formal role in the talks with Beijing but has taken an active interest in Sino-Vatican affairs, has said the Vatican was prepared to make such a move.

A sticking point has been that Beijing refuses to allow the Vatican to name Chinese bishops unilaterally, which is the usual procedure. Zen said the Pope could give some ground on the issue.

"The Pope can make concessions without giving the whole authority to them (the Chinese authorities). Surely he can listen to their opinion," he said.

"Maybe ... the Holy Father presents a list of names to them and they may veto some of those names, or give their preference."

Zen, formerly a Hong Kong bishop who criticized the lack of religious freedom in China, said at the time of his elevation to cardinal he hoped it would help ease ties between the Vatican and Beijing. Hong Kong has had wide-ranging autonomy since returning from British to Chinese rule in 1997.

China refuses to allow Catholics to recognize the authority of the Pope, saying this would interfere in its internal affairs.

The Vatican estimates it has about 8 million followers in China who worship at "underground" churches, while the official church has 5 million followers.

27 READERS ONLINE

INDEX

back to the first page

printer-friendly

CARDINALS

in alphabetical order

ARTICLES