Word: vaticans
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...flags sailed and swooped. Banners proclaimed SANTO SUBITO, Sainthood Now, and already reports were spreading of miraculous healings by the Pope last week. "The Cardinals have seen this outpouring, and it adds to the weight of their responsibility. It says that we need to find someone inspiring," said a Vatican official. "The people want someone who will be great...
...Church, which is administered by the state-run Catholic Patriotic Association, was no less fervent. The church was hung with banners commemorating the Pope, and a priest in purple vestments led prayers for his "peaceful enjoyment of heaven." This was the first time since Beijing severed relations with the Vatican in 1951 that worshippers in state-approved churches were allowed to commemorate a Pope's death. With China's approximately 10 million Catholics united in mourning the Pontiff, the divide between underground and official congregations was blurred. "Underground churches now often work openly in China, and official churches recognize...
...This unity presents an opportunity for the next Pope. John Paul II's great unfulfilled desire was to visit China and re-establish diplomatic relations with Beijing, giving the Vatican a direct link to China's Catholics and a greater ability to object to government repression. In return, China would demand that the Holy See break off its ties with Taiwan, which Beijing regards as a renegade province. In secret negotiations over the past decade, papal representatives cleared most obstacles to this kind of understanding, but one major sticking point has remained: the Pope's right to name bishops...
...Beijing and the Holy See were close to a deal in 2000, but it was derailed by the sanctioned church, which deliberately offended Rome by elevating four bishops without first informing the Vatican. The Vatican retaliated by canonizing Christians killed during the Boxer Rebellion at the turn of the 20th century. The Pope later mended fences by apologizing for the Church's mistakes in China over the past four centuries, and last week, Beijing's Foreign Ministry expressed "sadness" at his passing. But the two sides haven't gone back to the negotiating table. "The Chinese side," says Joseph...
...whole, though, local Catholic leaders are enjoying more contact with Rome than ever before. According to the Vatican, all but about 10 of China's 70 official bishops have been recognized by the Pope. Even those who remain unrecognized?usually for past criticism of the Vatican?may still perform legitimate baptisms, hear confessions, and offer other religious services. Nor does the Vatican object when underground bishops come in from the cold and join the official church. "The official church in China is still a church, and its religious practices are valid," a Vatican official told TIME...