Catholic Patriotic Association

Further information: Catholic Church in China

The Catholic Patriotic Association (simplified Chinese: 中国天主教爱国会; traditional Chinese: 中國天主教愛國會; pinyin: Zhōngguó Tiānzhǔjiào Àiguó Huì), abbreviated CPA, is a state-sanctioned organization of Catholicism in the People's Republic of China. It was established in 1957 after a group of Chinese Catholics met in Beijing with officials from the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and the Religious Affairs Bureau. It is the main organizational body of Catholics in China officially recognized by the Chinese government. It is not recognized by the Vatican. The organization is overseen by the CCP's United Front Work Department (UFWD) following the State Administration for Religious Affairs' absorption into the UFWD in 2018.^[1]

Catholic Patriotic Association
Classification	Catholic
Polity	Association
Region	China
Founder	State Administration for Religious Affairs
Origin	1957
Merged into	United Front Work Department

Catholic Patriotic Association
Traditional Chinese	中國天主教愛國會
Simplified Chinese	中国天主教爱国会
Transcriptions Standard Mandarin Hanyu Pinyin Zhōngguó Tiānzhǔjiào Àiguó Huì Wade–Giles Chūngkuó T'iēnchǔchiào Àikuó Huì Yale Romanization Jūngkwó Tyānzhǔjyào Àigwó Hwèi

The CPA does not oversee Catholics in Macau and Hong Kong.

History

After the establishment of the People's Republic of China in 1949, the Chinese Communist Party sought for ways to bring religions in alignment with the communist cause. While all religions were seen as superstitious, Christianity had the added challenge of being foreign.

Efforts were made by Chinese Protestants in May 1950 in a meeting with Premier Zhou Enlai. This resulted in the penning of the "Christian Manifesto" that condemned foreign imperialism and argued for building a Chinese Protestant church apart from foreign control. This was based in part on earlier Protestant missiological strategy of creating an indigenous church based on the so-called "three-self principles": self-government, self-support, and self-propagation.^[2]

In December 1950, Chinese Catholics followed suit, with Father Wang Liangzuo in north Sichuan province, penning the "Guangyuan Manifesto" and signed by some 500 Catholics. It declared:^[3]

We are determined to sever all relations with imperialism, to do all we can to reform ourselves, to establish a new Church that shall be independent in its administration, its resources, and its apostolate.

— "Guangyuan Manifesto" (December 1950)

Other Catholic manifestos followed, such as the "Chongqing Manifesto" published in January 1951 with over 700 signatures. Similar to the Protestant "Christian Manifesto," the Catholic manifestos spoke of the need for a "three-self" or "three-autonomies" (as it was translated into English), even though this was previously only part of the Protestant missiological literature and not discussed among Catholic missionaries. Premier Zhou Enlai met with Chinese Catholics and spoke of his appreciation for the sacrifices of the Catholic Church and its missionaries, and the need to remain united with Rome on spiritual matters. But he also encouraged the development of the "three-self." Pope Pius XII issued Cupimus Imprimis (1952) and Ad Sinarum Gentes (1954) praising Chinese Catholics for their loyalty and underscoring the importance of martyrdom. Ad Sinarum Gentes additionally spoke out against the "three-self," arguing that independence would make a church no longer "Catholic."^[4]

In July 1957, 241 Chinese Catholics from all parts of China, including laity, priests, and bishops, convened a meeting in Beijing with officials from the Chinese Communist Party and the Religious Affairs Bureau. They approved the creation of the Catholic Patriotic Association with Archbishop Ignatius Pi Shushi of Shenyang elected as president.^[5] By early 1958, the first Catholic bishops were illicitly appointed without reference to Rome or the Pope. In June 1958, Pope Pius XII issued Ad Apostolorum Principis, refusing to recognize any consecrations performed without prior Vatican approval. The question of consecrating bishops would be a major sticking point in Sino-Vatican relations ever since.^[6]

With the rise of the Anti-Rightist Campaign and the Cultural Revolution, all public religious activities came to an end and organizations like the CPA were shut down. However, as Deng Xiaoping's reforms enabled a restoration of religions in the 1980s, the CPA once again became the official state-sanctioned organization for Catholicism in China. A sizable population of Chinese Catholics remain as part of the so-called "underground church", seen as "Vatican loyalists", and who boycott masses said by CPA priests.^[7]

The CPA does not recognize the proclamation of the dogma of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary by Pope Pius XII in 1950, canonizations from 1949 onward (e.g. the canonization of Pope Pius X), Vatican declarations on even well-established devotional piety (e.g. on the Sacred Heart of Jesus or on Mary as Queen), and the Second Vatican Council (1962–1965). In practice, however, the Catholic Church in China uses Chinese translations of the documents of the Second Vatican Council, of the 1983 Code of Canon Law, of the 1992 Catechism of the Catholic Church (revised in 1997) and of the 1970 Roman Missal. These had at first to be imported from Taiwan and Hong Kong, but have been printed locally for some years.^{[8][better source needed]}

In 2018, the CPA's parent organization, the State Administration for Religious Affairs, was absorbed into the CCP's United Front Work Department.^[1]

Appointment of bishops

Further information: China–Holy See relations

In 1978, Pope Paul VI offered a special faculty that opened up the possibility of bishops in the underground church to appoint new bishops. This was particularly important during a time when the last Vatican-approved bishops occurred in the 1950s, three decades earlier. Peter Joseph Fan Xueyan, the Bishop of Baoding, in 1981 became the first to make use of this special faculty and consecrated three bishops without any prior approval from the Holy See. Pope John Paul II retrospectively gave approval for Fan's actions, and gave further authority to Fan to consecrate more bishops without prior consent.^[9] However, given the dire situation of the Catholic Church in China, Pope John Paul II gave permission to five bishops belonging to the underground church and four bishops connected to the CPA, all of whom were consecrated bishop between 1949 and 1955, the authority to appoint new bishops without prior approval.^[10][11] It was precisely in that period that bishops ordained according to CPA rules began to request and obtain recognition from the Holy See.^{[citation needed]}

In June 2007, fifty years after the establishment of the Catholic Patriotic Association, Pope Benedict XVI made publicly available a letter to the Church in China underscoring the importance of unity and outlining a willingness to engage in "respectful and constructive dialogue" with Chinese bishops and government authorities.^[12][13] Following the letter, five new bishops associated with the Catholic Patriotic Association were ordained in 2007, all with papal and Chinese government approval.^[14]

In September 2018, a provisional agreement was signed between the Vatican and the Chinese government that stipulated that China would recommend bishops for papal approval^[15] and that the pope had the ability to veto any recommendations.^[16] Pope Francis also recognized seven bishops of the Catholic Patriotic Association who were previously not in communion with the Vatican.^[17] Some have raised concerns that the agreement would divide Catholics across China because it offers more control to the Chinese government.^[18] Among the most outspoken critics has been the Hong Kong cardinal Joseph Zen, who published an opinion piece in The New York Times entitled "The Pope Doesn’t Understand China," and asserting that this attempt at unifying the Chinese church will instead lead to the "annihilation of the real Church in China."^[19] While the agreement has generally been recognized as far from perfect, it is also seen by Pope Francis as a step towards healing and the task of evangelization.^[20][21]

In October 2022, the agreement was renewed for another two years.^[22] In November 2022, the Vatican accused the Chinese government of violating the terms of the agreement.^[23][24]

Other state-sanctioned religious organizations

The CPA is one of five state-sanctioned religious organizations set up in China after 1949. The others are the Protestant Three-Self Patriotic Movement, the Chinese Taoist Association, the Buddhist Association of China, and the Islamic Association of China.^[1]

See also

•  Catholicism portal
•  Christianity portal

• Underground church
• Religion in China
• Christianity in China
• Catholic Church in China
• Chinese Regional Bishops' Conference of Taiwan
• Catholic Church in Macau and Catholic Church in Hong Kong
• Separation of church and state

References

Notes

1. Joske, Alex (May 9, 2019). "Reorganizing the United Front Work Department: New Structures for a New Era of Diaspora and Religious Affairs Work". Jamestown Foundation. Retrieved 2019-11-18.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
2. Wickeri 2011, pp. 127–133.
3. Charbonnier 2007, p. 431.
4. Chow 2021, pp. 10–12.
5. Charbonnier 2007, p. 434.
6. Bays 2011, p. 174.
7. Bays 2011, p. 192.
8. (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 11 February 2014.
9. Lam 2011, pp. 22–23.
10. Lam 2011, pp. 25–27.
11. Zhu 2017.
12. Benedict XVI 2007.
13. Heyndrickx, Jeroom (12 July 2007). "Pastoral directives of Pope Benedict XVI for China". The Atlantic.
14. "Pope Benedict XVI's Letter Inspired Church In China In 2007". UCA News. 3 January 2008.
15. "Vatican announces deal with China on bishop appointments". NBC News. from the original on 22 September 2018. Retrieved 23 September 2018.
16. Rocca, Francis X.; Dou, Eva (22 September 2018). "Vatican and China Sign Deal Over Bishops, Allowing Pope a Veto". Wall Street Journal. from the original on 23 September 2018. Retrieved 23 September 2018.
17. "Briefing Note about the Catholic Church in China". Holy See Press Office. 22 September 2018.
18. Sherwood, Harriet (22 September 2018). "Vatican signs historic deal with China – but critics denounce sellout". The Guardian.
19. Zen, Joseph Ze-Kiun (24 October 2018). "The Pope Doesn't Understand China". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 25 October 2018.
20. Francis 2018.
21. Tang 2020, p. 51.
22. Pullella, Philip (2022-10-22). "Vatican confirms renewal of contested accord with China on bishops' appointments". Reuters. Retrieved 2022-10-22.
23. Pullella, Philip (2022-11-26). "Vatican says China violated pact on bishops, wants explanation". Reuters. Retrieved 2022-11-26.
24. Rocca, Francis X. "Vatican Says China Broke Agreement on Bishops". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 2022-11-26.

Bibliography

• Bays, Daniel H. (2011). A New History of Christianity in China. Chichester: John Wiley & Sons. ISBN 978-1-4443-4284-0.
• Benedict XVI (27 May 2007). "Letter to the Bishops, Priests, Consecrated Persons and Lay Faithful of the Catholic Church in the People's Republic of China (May 27, 2007)". www.vatican.va.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: ref duplicates default (link)
• Charbonnier, Jean (2007). Christians in China: A.D. 600 to 2000. San Francisco: Ignatius Press. ISBN 978-0-89870-916-2.
• Chow, Alexander (2021). "Introduction: Ecclesial Diversity and Theology in Chinese Christianity". In Chow, Alexander; Law, Easten (eds.). Ecclesial Diversity in Chinese Christianity. Palgrace Macmillan. pp. 1–23. ISBN 978-3-030-73069-7.
• Francis (26 September 2018). "Message of Pope Francis to the Catholics of China and to the Universal Church". Holy See Press Office.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: ref duplicates default (link)
• Lam, Anthony (2011). "Recalling the 1981 Episcopal Ordinations and Their Consequences for the Chinese Catholic Church" (PDF). Tripod. 31 (163): 20–33.
• Tang, Edmond (2020). "Mainland China (Catholic)". In Ross, Kenneth R.; Alvarez, Francis D.; Johnson, Todd M. (eds.). Christianity in East and Southeast Asia. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press. pp. 51–62. ISBN 978-1-47445-160-4.
• Wickeri, Philip L. (2011). Seeking the Common Ground: Protestant Christianity, the Three-Self Movement, and China's United Front. Eugene, OR: Wipf and Stock. ISBN 978-1-61097-529-2.
• Zhu, Rachel Xiaohong (2017). "The Division of the Roman Catholic Church in Mainland China: History and Challenges". Religions. 8 (3): 39. doi:10.3390/rel8030039. 39.

External links

• Official website   (in Chinese)