China postpones illicit ordination of new bishop June 07, 2011 Chinese officials have postponed plans to ordain a new bishop without Vatican approval

[Pax_et_Bonum]

China postpones illicit ordination of new bishop
June 07, 2011
Chinese officials have postponed plans to ordain a new bishop without Vatican approval.

The ordination of Father Shen Guoan as Bishop of Hankou had been scheduled for Friday, June 10. Chinese clerics report that the ceremony has been postponed. Officials gave neither an explanation nor a date for the rescheduled ceremony.

The postponement provides at least a respite in a tense struggle between the Vatican and the government-back Catholic Patriotic Association for control of the Church in China, and especially for control of episcopal appointments.

The ordination of a bishop without approval from the Holy See is punishable by excommunication—as the Vatican has warned Chinese officials. But Liu Bainian, the head of the Patriotic Association, has insisted that China will proceed with unauthorized ordinations, claiming that the Chinese people have the right to select their own bishops without Vatican “interference.”

catholicculture.org/news/headlines/index.cfm?storyid=10582

 

[Erich]

The Magisterium of the Church is the Pope and the bishops in communion with him. It seems to me that the Vatican – and not the Chinese Patriotic Association – would be better able to select which candidate(s) for bishop are in communion with the Pope!

 

[Mystic_Banana]

China has the worst record of right to religion on the planet, bar perhaps North Korea and Afghanistan. I doubt very much that whatever version of Buddhism they’re allowing is entirely an honest experssion of the same, and something like Catholicism I’m sure they’d like to modify to death. Amazing if they’re actually giving into Vatican pressure. The Vatican doesn’t apply the kind of pressure countries like China understand. i.e. Brute force

Or maybe they’ll surprise me?