Related
Advertisements *
Elsewhere
Subscribe: RSS
RNB's RSS feed What is this? |
Subscribe: Email
![]() |
![]() Subscribe by Email What is this? |
Most Popular
- RNB Roundup: Atheism ads get tax support; Holland bans Magic Mushrooms; Fritzl turns to Buddhism; More…
- UK pastor who claimed to produce ‘miracle babies’ another step closer to extradition
- Europe court says no to turban on Sikh’s driving licence
- Two teens file lawsuit against evangelist Tony Alamo over beatings
- Decision expected this week on whether parents will face trial in faith healing death
- Church tries Goth Liturgy
- Ganas commune co-founder sues current and former members
- Japan: Security agency calls for extension of surveillance of Aum cult
- Mormon church publishes journal of founder Joseph Smith
- Judge allows reckless homocide charges in faith healing death of Madeline Neumann
China Considers Allowing Dalai Lama Visit
BEIJING, China (AP) — China suggested Monday that it was open to a visit from the Dalai Lama and to establishing ties with the Vatican.
The Dalai Lama, exiled spiritual leader of Tibetan Buddhists, announced last month that he hoped to travel to China on a pilgrimage. He said envoys had conveyed his message to officials in Beijing.
He has repeatedly said he wants autonomy, not independence, for his Himalayan homeland. But Beijing has expressed suspicion.
“As long as the Dalai Lama makes clear that he has completely abandoned Tibetan ‘independence,’ it is not impossible for us to consider his visit,” said Ye Xiaowen, head of the State Administration for Religious Affairs, quoted by the China Daily.
But Ye said the Dalai Lama “has failed to deliver a clear message on his stance.”
The Dalai Lama fled Tibet in 1959, after communist forces occupied the region. He hasn’t been back since.
Ye was also quoted by the government newspaper as saying China and the Vatican are in contact about normalizing relations but haven’t worked out a timetable.
The Vatican has said it is ready to move its embassy from rival Taiwan — a key sticking point. But the two sides remain divided over China’s insistence on appointing its own bishops.
The communist government forced Roman Catholics to cut their ties to Rome in 1951 and allows worship only in churches run by the state-sanctioned Chinese Patriotic Catholic Association.
Ye said Beijing has not changed its stance on the issue of bishops, though he said it was open for discussion.
“We have always been appointing and consecrating our own bishops,” Ye said. “This is what we must stick to.”
Taiwan and China split amid civil war in 1949. The Vatican is the last European government that has official relations with Taipei.
The newly appointed Roman Catholic cardinal in Hong Kong, Joseph Zen, said last weekend that China’s official church has to relinquish some control if Sino-Vatican relations are to be established.
Hong Kong is Chinese territory but its Catholics are allowed direct contact with the Vatican and Zen was appointed by the pope.
What You Can Do From Here
|
Read More Articles On These Topics
Share, Blog About, Bookmark, or Email This Article
Subscribe
Read Another Article
Find Related Information
Find Related Books
|
Share This Article
To share this page simply copy and paste one of these URL's:



