Pope Francis ended this Monday (04) a historic trip to Mongolia – a country in East Asia – which took on international connotations because of the pontiff’s nods to neighboring China on freedom of religion.
At the end of a Mass on Sunday, the pope sent greetings to China, calling its citizens a “noble” people and urging China’s Catholics to be “good Christians and good citizens.”
On Monday (4), China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said it has taken a positive attitude to improve relations with the Vatican.
Beijing maintains communication with the Vatican, ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning told a news conference when asked about the pope’s comments in Mongolia.
The main purpose of Francis’ trip was to visit the country’s small Catholic community. He ended his five-day mission on Monday with a stop to open the House of Mercy, which provides medical care to the most needy in Mongolia’s capital, as well as homeless people, victims of domestic abuse and migrants.
Housed in a renovated schoolhouse conceived by Mongolia’s leading Catholic cleric, Italian Cardinal Giorgio Marengo, the House of Mercy will coordinate the work of Catholic mission institutions and local volunteers.
“The true progress of a nation is not measured by economic wealth, much less by investment in the illusory power of armaments, but by its ability to provide health, education and the integral development of its people,” Francis said at the house.
He also stated that he wanted to “dispel rumors” that the purpose of Catholic institutions was to convert people to the religion, “as if caring for others was a way of enticing people to ‘join'”.
Buddhist-majority Mongolia has just 1,450 Catholics out of a population of 3.3 million, and on Sunday virtually the entire Catholic community was under the same roof as the pope.
On Monday, about two dozen Chinese Catholics surrounded the pope’s entourage, trying to receive his blessings.
Devotees, who identified themselves as mainland Chinese Catholics and wore uniforms emblazoned with the phrase “Love Jesus”, crowded outside the House of Mercy.
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As Francis’s entourage left the center, they sang a Christian hymn dedicated to the pope in Mandarin and tried to evade security and reach his car. One woman made it through security and received a blessing.
“I’m so happy, I can’t even control my emotions right now,” said the woman.
Mongolia was part of China until 1921 and the pope’s trip was marked by appeals to the superpower, amid the difficult relationship between the Vatican and the Communist Party.
On Saturday, in words that seemed to be aimed at China rather than Mongolia, Francis said governments have nothing to fear from the Catholic Church because it has no political agenda.
Beijing has pursued a policy of “sinicization” of religion, trying to eliminate foreign influences and enforce obedience to the Communist Party.
China’s constitution guarantees freedom of religion, but in recent years the government has increased restrictions on religions seen as a challenge to party authority.
Source: CNN Brasil
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