EFor the first time in almost 40 years, a Hong Kong bishop is due to visit mainland China in April. As the Hong Kong diocese announced on Thursday, Bishop Stephen Chow is traveling to the Chinese capital for five days at the invitation of Beijing Bishop Li Shan. The visit underscores the diocese’s role as a “bridge church,” according to its website. This refers to the late Pope John Paul II, who said the mission of the Hong Kong Church is to bridge the gap between the Catholic community in China and the universal Church.
The invitation was extended last year, it is said. In October, China and the Vatican extended their secret agreement on the appointment of bishops by two years, despite international criticism. Since the deal was finalized in 2018, the Communist Party has continued to increase pressure on the underground church in China. Former Hong Kong bishop Joseph Cardinal Zen has sharply criticized the agreement. He has always acted in Rome as an advocate of the underground church and conveyed secret messages from the Chinese underground bishops who cannot express themselves publicly.
The incumbent Bishop Chow, on the other hand, is apolitical. In an interview in November, he said he hoped to visit the mainland. He’s not afraid of being “brainwashed”. It is only the second invitation of this kind since the founding of the People’s Republic. In 1985, John Bishop Wu was also received by representatives of the communist leadership. The visit was intended to allay fears that Hong Kong’s religious freedoms would be suppressed as Britain handed Hong Kong back to China. Since the crackdown on the 2019 protest movement, there have been renewed fears of the Communist Party’s takeover of the church in Hong Kong.