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November 3, 2001
Pope calls for dialogue with China
from The Record, 11/1/01
By CINDY WOODEN
Catholic News Service
In a renewed plea for an official dialogue with the government of mainland China, Pope John Paul II apologized for any actions taken by Catholics that offended China or gave an impression of disrespect for its culture.
Over the centuries, personal limitations, political pressure and theological disputes sometimes led to tensions and mistrust between China and the Vatican, offsetting the good work accomplished by missionaries in evangelization, education and health care, the pope told scholars.
"I feel deep sadness for these errors and limits of the past, and I. regret I that in many people these failings may have given the impression of a lack of respect and esteem for the Chinese people on the part of the Catholic Church," he said.
The pope's message was addressed October 24 to an international conference in Rome marking the 400th anniversary of the arrival of Jesuit Father Matteo Ricci in Beijing.
With "renewed and deeply felt friendship toward all the Chinese people," the pope said, "I express the hope that concrete forms of communication and cooperation between the Holy See and the People's Republic of China may soon be established."
The pope said the values of mutual respect and sharing which existed between the Chinese imperial court and Father Ricci, an Italian scientist and missionary, could be recovered and applied to a new Vatican-Chinese relationship.
Father Ricci lived in Bejing from the beginning of 1601 until his death in 1610, sharing with Chinese leaders his knowledge of Western science and his Catholic faith and learning about Chinese culture and science from them.
Pope John Paul said Father Ricci's work was built on two pillars: first, the Chinese who embraced Christianity did not have to renounce loyalty to their country; and. second, Christianity did not attempt to replace Chinese culture, but "complemented everything beautiful and good, just and holy, in what had been produced and handed down by the ancient Chinese tradition."
Just as at the time of Father Ricci, the pope said, "so too today, the Catholic Church seeks no privilege from China and its leaders, but solely the resumption of dialogue in order to build a relationship based on mutual respect and deeper understanding."
The pope described the Catholic Church and China as "two of the most ancient institutions in existence and operating on a world scene."
'The church has very much at heart the values and objectives which are of primary importance also to modern China: solidarity, peace, social justice, the wise management of the phenomenon of globalization and the civil progress of all peoples,"' he said.
As China continues its push toward social and economic progress, he said, the Catholic Church is ready to offer its help, especially "in the promotion land defense of the human person and of the person's values, spirituality and transcendent vocation," the pope said.