Catholic Church and Vatican Talk
The Catholic Church and the government-acknowledged Chinese Catholic Church have been at odds for many decades.
The main concern between the Vatican and the Chinese government has been one of control: Who controls the local church and who appoints bishops. In the past, the government officials in charge of Church affairs have insisted on appointing bishops without consulting the Pope, causing a rift between the two bodies.
Bishop Joseph Zen of Hong Kong, one of the most outspoken individuals in the Chinese church on the subject of government restrictions on religious freedom, told the Bishops Synod on the Eucharist recently that “the overwhelming majority of bishops in the official church have been legitimated through the magnanimity of the Holy Father.”
“Especially in recent years,” Zen said, “it has become ever clearer that bishops ordained without the approval of the Roman pontiff are not accepted, either by the clergy nor the faithful.”
Bishop Zen said this move is opposed by some “conservative” persons of the official church, but he hoped that it will lead to a ‘“normalization” of relations with the government.
Bishop Zen’s impressions were confirmed by German theologian Fr. Hans Waldenfels in an article in Civilta Cattolica. Waldenfels said that today in China, “before being consecrated bishops by the official community, candidates normally seek to obtain the nomination of the Holy See.” He mentioned specific instances, including the appointment of Giuseppe Xing Wenzhi, the new bishop of Shanghai. Waldenfels went on to say that the successors to the bishops of the “underground” church will most likely not be named, leading to a healing of the Chinese schism. Whether things will develop as suggested remains to be seen.
See the Source: John L. Allen Jr., “Coverage of Bishops Synod on the Eucharist,” National Catholic Reporter, 13 October 2005.
A Dying Germany
Germany is dying, as regular readers of this publication know, with a Total Fertility Rate (TFR) of only 1.3 children. The German population is slated for a steep decline in the years to come. Yet there are signs of hope on the horizon.
One of these is the appointment of Ursula von der Leyen as Minister of Families by the new Chancellor, Angela Merkel. Mrs. von der Leyen, 47, is a gynecologist, and the social minister in Lower Saxony. But her preeminent qualification to head a ministry dedicated to families is her own: She and her husband are the parents of seven children.
Her example will, hopefully, encourage other German couples to go and do likewise.
See the Source: Judy Dempsey, “Merkel Appoints Six Conservatives to Jon a Shaky German Cabinet,” The New York Times, 18 October 2005.
European Pro-Lifers Meet
The European Doctor’s Action (Europaeishe Aerzteaktion in German), founded in 1975 by Dr. Siegfried Ernst (1915–2001) with the encouragement of Father Paul Marx, O.S.B., recently met in Salzburg, Austria, to discuss the demographic crisis currently besetting Europe.
The conference, which was held in the Baroque Palace of Salzburg from September 30 to October 2, 2005, was entitled “Europe — quo vadis?”
Among the presenters were the Italian Minister of Culture, Rocco Buttiglione, who had been ousted from the European Parliament because of his stand against homosexuality; the philosopher Guenter Rohrmoser; the Auxiliary Bishop of Salzburg, Dr. Andreas Laun; and other outstanding leaders in the fight for life in dying Europe. (The paper that Father Paul Marx prepared for this conference can be found on page 2 of the June–July 2005 issue of Global Family Life News, vol. 4, no. 3, available from Population Research Institute.)
The speakers not only inventoried problems, but discussed how to avert the ongoing depopulation crisis, how abortion, euthanasia, contraceptives and cannibalizing embryos can be ended, and the veil of secrecy around these horrific practices and their consequences can be lifted. The solutions are to be found in widely accepted human rights, as well as in such encyclicals as Humanae Vitae and Evangelium Vitae.
The papers will he available (in German) in the quarterly Medizin und Ideoilogie of the Europacische Aerzteaktion and on the Internet (www.eu-ae.com) Address: Europaeische Aerzteaktion, Postfach 1123, D-89001 ULM (Germany).
Source: Dr. Hans Schieser of Europaische Arzteaktion
