Chinese official urges Catholics to adhere to socialism

A senior Chinese official called on Catholics to adhere to socialist values of the Communist Party and operate independently of the Vatican.

Yu Zhengsheng, one of the seven members of the Politburo Standing Committee, urged Catholic leaders to promote the "good virtue of patriotism" and "adhere to the principles of independence and self-management."

"The Church should adhere to the principles of self-administration, run religious affairs independently and guide believers to adhere to the Sinicisation path of the religion," Yu said in a speech at a meeting of China's official Catholic church, as reported by Catholic Herald.

Yu added that Chinese Catholics must "unify patriotism with affection for the church" and "unite all believers to contribute to construction of the socialism with Chinese characteristics."

Yu's speech came as Pope Francis is trying to improve its relations with China.

The rift between China and the Vatican began shortly after the Communist Party took power in 1949 and expelled Catholic missionaries. The party only allows believers to worship in state-sanctioned churches, but many of the country's estimated 12 million Catholics are believed to be members of underground churches.

Central to the dispute between the Vatican and the Communist Party is the issue of the appointment of bishops. China insists that bishops should be named by the local Catholic community. The communist regime refuses to accept the pope's authority because they consider the pontiff to be a head of a foreign state that should not meddle with the affairs of the country.

The pope has stated that the meetings regarding the naming of bishops have resumed, but the Vatican expressed disappointment when a bishop excommunicated by the Vatican participated in the ordination of two new Chinese bishops.

According to state media, Ma Yinglin, another excommunicated bishop, was re-elected president of one of the groups at the Bishops Conference of Catholic Church of China.

One priest, who was identified only as Fr. Peter, called the meeting "a staged theatrical representation."

"Everything was very well planned: the assignment of roles, their scripts, the well-chosen audience, who raised their hands to vote and approve content, the media coverage," he said.