Breitbart: Pope Francis has defended the 2018 Vatican deal with China over the naming of bishops but acknowledges that “mistakes” can be made.
“China is not easy, but I am convinced that we should not give up dialogue,” the pope said in an interview with Spanish radio this week. “You can be deceived in dialogue, you can make mistakes, all that… but it is the way.”
“There is a way that seems right to a man,
But its end is the way of death.: Proverbs 14:12
“Closed-mindedness is never the way,” he continued. “What has been achieved so far in China was at least dialogue… some concrete things like the appointment of new bishops, slowly… But these are also steps that can be questionable and the results on one side or the other.”
According to China expert Father Gianni Criveller, of the Pontifical Institute of Foreign Missions (PIME), the pope was responding to the frequent criticisms that the Vatican-China deal has brought forth little fruit for Chinese Catholics and instead has muzzled the Vatican from speaking out against China’s egregious human rights abuses.
The pope’s acknowledgement that “China is not easy” seems to be a concession in comparison to past statements “that only underscored the greatness of Chinese civilization,” the priest noted Thursday.
The affirmation that “you can be deceived in dialogue, you can make mistakes” means the pontiff does not rule this out, Criveller added. Read More
