Pompeo struck the Holy See as if looking, and the Pope was openly upset

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Pope Francis interviews United States Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, who visited the Vatican during his tour of Europe in October 2019. [EPA=연합뉴스]

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo did. To who? From Pope Francis. This is Minister Pompeo who visited the Vatican on the 29th of last month (local time). Initially, he was planning to interview the Pope. However, the Pope rejected it.

The apparent reason is political neutrality. The United States faces the presidential elections in November. In the midst of this, it is inappropriate for the Pope to meet with the incumbent minister.

However, Italian media La Repubblica said: “In relation to Pompeo’s recent publication in a magazine criticizing the agreement between the Holy See and China, there is analysis that the Pope actually refused to interview Pompeo.” .

Secretary Pompeo has contributed to the conservative American Catholic magazine First Things. Here, he wrote, “After the 2018 agreement (China and the Holy See), the human rights situation of Christians in China has significantly deteriorated,” he wrote. Minister Pompeo made the same argument on Twitter.

United States Secretary of State Mike Pompeo speaking at a symposium organized by the United States Embassy to the Holy See on the 30th.[AP=연합뉴스]

Minister Pompeo said at a symposium organized by the US Embassy to the Holy See on the 30th, “No country in the world oppresses religious freedom like China.” Pointing to the Catholic Church, “secular considerations must not break these principles.”

In the Vatican, public criticism of Pompeo is considered quite rude.

Vatican Foreign Minister Paul Gallagher speaks at a symposium organized by the U.S. Embassy to the Holy See on the 30th.[AP=연합뉴스]

Paul Richard Gallagher, who also attended the symposium, asked the ANSA news agency when asked, “Do you think the United States unilaterally held this event with the intention of using the Pope in its own presidential election?” “The reason I don’t want to see each other” he replied.

What kind of agreement has been reached between China and the Holy See so that the United States does not extend this agreement?

A Chinese citizen rides a skateboard in front of St. Joseph’s Cathedral in Beijing, China, in April.[UPI=연합뉴스]

China and the Holy See have had a bad relationship for a long time since China’s founding in 1949. Problems with the appointment of bishops were the cause. The Holy See maintained that the appointment of a bishop was the responsibility of the Pope himself. China refused to appoint a bishop without his approval. It is the so-called principle of “philanthropy”. In the end, the Holy See recognized Taiwan as a legitimate government instead of China in 51

Then China declares a break with the Holy See. The Chinese government established its own Catholic Patriotic Association in 57 years and appointed Catholic priests. Churches and priests in China also administered themselves. Catholics who were not affiliated with the Catholic Patriots were repressed. He is a supposed “underground church believer”. This story continues to this day. There are an estimated 7 million and 10 million members of the Patriot Church and the underground church in China, respectively.

Pope Francis and Chinese President Xi Jinping.[로이터]

The situation changed when Pope Francis was crowned in 2013. When the Pope sent a friendly message to China, China and the Vatican entered into negotiations on the right to appoint bishops. Then, on September 22, 2018, China’s Vice Foreign Minister Wang Chao and Vice Foreign Minister Antoine Camilleri signed an agreement in Beijing. The agreement was not officially announced, but the content was known. The main point is that the Pope approves seven bishops appointed by the Chinese government, and China officially recognizes the Pope as the head of the Catholic Church.

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China was able to continue to control the national Catholic forces through the right to appoint a bishop. Based on the agreement that “the right of veto (appointment of bishops)”, the Holy See interpreted and consoled that “the final right to appoint a Catholic bishop in China rests with the Pope.”

There was also a critical view of the consensus within Catholicism. Words like “the Pope condoning religious persecution in China” and “abandoning the Chinese believers who followed the Vatican” appeared.

Singing a Christmas hymn at a cathedral in Beijing, China in 2017.[EPA=연합뉴스]

This is because there is a religion under the control of the Chinese Communist Party. In 2016, Chinese President Xi Jinping said: “All religions must follow the leadership of the Party.” After the Corona 19 incident, the Chinese government imposed a ‘preaching on patriotism’ while resuming Mass. The experts analyze that “this behavior is due to the fact that the Communist Party of China considers religion as a threat to its dominance.”

However, the Vatican did not want to miss the advantage of being able to reach 17 million Chinese believers. China also needed the Holy See. The Vatican is the only European country that maintains diplomatic relations with Taiwan. South China Morning Post (SCMP) analyzes that “China needs friendship with the Vatican because it wants to break the relationship between Taiwan and the Vatican.”

In April, Chinese citizens are doing gymnastics in front of St. Joseph’s Cathedral in Beijing, China.[로이터=연합뉴스]

The Vatican intends to extend the agreement for one or two years. The Chinese government is also positive. However, Secretary Pompeo pressured him not to expand it.

Pope Francis interviews United States Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, who visited the Vatican during his European tour in October 2019. [EPA=연합뉴스]

However, Secretary Pompeo’s contributions and comments on Twitter are unusual. It was not an underwater conversation, but an open pressure on the Holy See. As usual, it is correct to meet with the Pope and request related information in secret, or to discuss first with the Holy See working group. Chancellor Gallagher said at a symposium on the 30th: “In general, when we prepare for a visit from a high-level government, we discuss the agenda privately or intimately. This is one of the diplomatic principles.”

That is why some point out that the United States attracts the Pope to its politics. Researcher William N. Amnesty told the SCMP that “Pompeo’s remarks were intended to influence Catholic voters who could not make up their minds in the presidential election.” It is President Donald Trump who created strong anti-China sentiment ahead of the November presidential election.

It seems that the Holy See was caught up in the conflict between the United States and China. It is difficult to say that China will not appoint a bishop in Japan. The United States is also prepared to continue pressing against the extension agreement. What will Pope Francis choose?

Reporter Seungho Lee [email protected]