China: Eight years after the 2018 agreement, the faithful Church under increased pressure

Context

The provisional agreement between the Holy See and the People's Republic of China, signed on September 22, 2018 in Beijing and remained secret in its exact provisions, will reach its eighth anniversary in two months. It was renewed for the first time in 2020 for two years, in 2022 for two years, and then in 2024 for four years. It mainly concerns the appointment of bishops, now subject to a mechanism of agreement between Rome and Beijing. It was intended, in the spirit of Vatican Francis, to bring the "underground" Church, which remained faithful, and the "official" Church registered by the Patriotic Association closer together.

The Facts

On July 9, 2026, LifeSiteNews publishes an article signed by a regular observer of the Chinese question, stating that eight years after the signing, the persecution of faithful Catholics has intensified. The author documents the continued detention of underground bishops, the closure of unregistered churches, and recent measures by the Party on the sinicization of Christianity. Open Doors ranks China fifteenth in the world in its World Watch List 2026. The release of Pastor Ezra Jin Mingri, early July, does not contradict the picture; it rather reveals the exception.

Doctrinal Analysis

The Church has a firm and ancient doctrine on religious freedom. Vatican II, in the declaration Dignitatis humanae (1965), affirms in n° 2 that the human person has the right to religious freedom based on the dignity of the person itself, and that this right must be recognized by civil law. The Catechism, in n° 2107, specifies that religious freedom can only be limited by a just public order. Faced with a regime that subordinates worship to political loyalty, the word of Saint Peter remains the criterion: "We must obey God rather than men" (Acts 5:29).

Stakes for the Church and the Faithful

The 2018 agreement was supposed to buy peace through concession. It has delivered a lever to the Party, without obtaining any tangible counterpart for the faithful. Bishops ordained before 2018 remain hostages of their own recognition: those who have rallied are now under surveillance, those who refuse risk house arrest. It is the conscience of Chinese Catholics that pays the price.

Critical Reading and Blind Spots

LifeSiteNews is a biased source: the article does not cite recent cases of agreed nominations that have, in some provinces, allowed faithful bishops to receive civil recognition. The balance sheet remains nevertheless damning: no official figure from the Holy See contradicts the counts of Open Doors, AsiaNews or UCA News.

To Reflect and Act

Pray for Chinese Catholics, support AED and Open Doors, and refuse, in the West, the temptation of a diplomacy that exchanges the Church for the illusion of peace.