VATICAN CITY (AP) – The Vatican is greeting the visit to Italy of Chinese President Xi Jinping later this week with a new round of overtures\u2026<\/b>
\nVATICAN CITY (AP) – The Vatican is greeting the visit to Italy of Chinese President Xi Jinping later this week with a new round of overtures and says the \u201cdoor is always open\u201d to dialogue.
Italian media have been speculating for days about the possibility of a meeting between Xi and Pope Francis during Xi\u2019s March 21-24 visit. But there has been no word from either side. China and the Holy See haven\u2019t had diplomatic relations for more than a half-century.
When asked Tuesday about Xi\u2019s visit to Italy, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Vatican\u2019s secretary of state, said: \u201cOur door is always open.\u201d But he noted that both sides would have to express a willingness to meet.
The Vatican has been working across a variety of fronts to build on relations stemming from the historic provisional agreement reached in September between Beijing and the Holy See over bishop nominations.
China\u2019s estimated 12 million Catholics are split between those belonging to the government-backed Chinese Catholic Patriotic Association, which is outside the pope\u2019s authority, and an underground church loyal to the pope. Underground priests and parishioners are frequently detained and harassed.
The September deal was aimed at uniting the flock, regularizing the status of seven bishops who weren\u2019t recognized by Rome and thawing decades of estrangement between China and the Vatican.
But it has led to deep reservations of some of China\u2019s underground faithful, for whom the deal represents a sell-out to the Communist government and betrayal of their decades of loyalty to the pope.
In a preface to a new book on Vatican-China relations – the publication of which was timed to coincide with Xi\u2019s visit – Parolin stressed that it\u2019s time to \u201cremember the past and write together a new page for the future of the church in China.\u201d
\u201cThe Catholic Church in China is not a \u2018foreigner\u2019 but an integral and active part of Chinese history and can contribute to the edification of a society that is more harmonious and respectful of all,\u201d he wrote.
\u201cToday, the hope of Pope Francis is that, after so many difficulties, misunderstandings, and sufferings, the Catholic Community, too, can intone in the Middle Kingdom, through sincere dialogue, a hymn of faith and thanksgiving, enriched by authentically Chinese notes,\u201d he wrote.
The book was just the latest initiative by the Vatican-affiliated Jesuit magazine, La Civilta Cattolica, to lay the intellectual and cultural foundations for improved Vatican-China ties.
As part of that effort, the magazine recently teamed up with the Jesuit-run Georgetown University in Washington to launch an ongoing series of talks, the \u201cChina Forum for Civilizational Dialogue.\u201d
The issue of bishop nominations had been the main stumbling block to restoring diplomatic relations that were severed nearly seven decades ago when the Chinese communists came to power.<\/p>\n