To the editor:
In the September 27 edition of the Catholic Herald, you printed an article entitled, “Vatican signs agreement with China on naming bishops.” However, the article failed to mention some relevant information.
Beijing will acknowledge the pope as head of the Catholic Church in China, yet they will have the final say in the appointment of bishops. The Vatican has agreed to recognize, and consecrate, seven illegitimate “bishops” (previously rejected by the Holy See), installed by the communist-controlled Catholic Patriotic Church. The Vatican has requested that two bishops from the persecuted underground church step down in order to make room instead for the “bishops” from the Patriotic Church.
We must urgently pray for China’s Cardinal Zen, who is such a strong and holy shepherd for Christ and His Church. Prayers, too, must go to heaven for the suffering people of China and the 30 or so yet-underground bishops. The lives of these persecuted bishops and fellow Catholics may truly be at stake.
Will they, too, be numbered among the Martyr Saints of China (Augustine Zhao Rong and his 119 companions, mid-17th Century to 1930) who have sacrificed, often in silence, their very lives for Christ and the truth?
Prayerfully,
Denise Schroeckenthaler, Madison