” “The formal (de jure) "normalisation" of the relations between China and the Holy See "is likely to surprisingly take place". But "don’t let’s except miracles" because "even afterwards, the Chinese Church will still have problems and these problems might become even more apparent": this is stated by the historian of religions, father Roman Malek, who last Saturday spoke of the relations between China and the Vatican at the VII European Talks of Catholics about China, organised by Pime (Papal Institute for Overseas Missions) at Triuggio (Milan). Father Malek specified that "relations between China and the Vatican are diplomatic relations between the Holy See and the Chinese Government, nothing more and nothing less", not be mixed up with "the issue of the appointments and ordinations of the bishops". So, "normalisation in diplomatic relations mainly means recognising the People’s Republic of China as a sovereign state", and this is where the problem of Taiwan and the "temporary" seat of the Holy See’s delegate come into play. Malek listed, instead, many signs of an "actual normalisation", such as, for instance, "the spreading of the Pope’s portraits, encyclicals and other documents", the presence of "many Chinese priests, seminarians and nuns who study abroad", "many pilgrimages to Rome, young people taking part in the World Youth Days", "the authorisation given to foreign bishops to visit the Churches in China", "the authorisation given to the bishops of the unofficial Church to speak with high delegates of the Holy See". (to be continued)” “
