In an unprecedented development, the Holy See (the smallest sovereign state in the world and the central administration of the Roman Catholic Church) has entered into a "
Provisional Agreement" with China on the appointment of Roman Catholic bishops, as reported by Asia News on 22 September 2018.
Thomas Muller, persecution analyst at World Watch Research, explains: "There have been rumors of discussions about a forthcoming agreement for some months already and it is clear that the Catholic Church is treating the whole issue with some caution. First of all, it is being referred to as a ¢‚¬Å¾Provisional Agreement", indicating that a final agreement has not yet been reached. Secondly, the Holy See has emphasized that the agreement"s goal is pastoral, not political. This caveat is underlined by the fact that the Chinese government did not insist on the Holy See officially breaking ties with Taiwan as a prerequisite for the agreement. But thirdly, and possibly most importantly, the text of the agreement has not been released publicly, so that the process for nominating and appointing bishops acceptable for both sides currently remains a secret."
Thomas Muller continues: "While it should not go unnoticed that this is the first time ever that a Chinese Communist government has granted a
foreign power the right to participate in national religious affairs (as La Croix International rightly pointed out on 25 September 2018), nevertheless, only time will tell how the agreement is implemented and whether or not it will ultimately split the Catholic Church in China. This could happen since some staunch Catholics in China are unlikely to accept being led by a bishop who has been appointed by the government. What can definitely be said, however, is that the crackdown against Christian churches continues unabated, both for Catholic and Protestant congregations. It may even turn out that this agreement is simply another step deemed necessary by the Communist government to Sinicize all forms of
religion and to act against any religious bodies seen as a threat. This was the warning published in Jamestown Foundation"s China Brief on 10 October 2018."
