HONG KONG (UCAN): Catholics in China’s Henan province are concerned that a new appraisal system for religious personnel is a front for political screening.
 
On priest said that the provincial Chinese Catholic Patriotic Association and Catholic Church Committee approached him during Holy Week seeking to appraise him. A few days later, he found the newly launched annual appraisal scheme with an assessment form on WeChat. 
 
“The appraisal is ridiculous,” he said.
 

Vatican (UCAN): “The Catholic Church in China is not a ‘foreigner’ but an integral and active part of Chinese history and can contribute to the edification of a society that is more harmonious and respectful of all,” Pietro Cardinal Parolin, the Vatican secretary of state, wrote in the preface of a soon to be launched book, The Church in China: A New Departure.
 

HONG KONG (UCAN): Chinese bishops attending the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) in Beijing gave their backing to the Vatican-China provisional agreement on the appointment of bishops.
 
Bishop Vincent Zhan Silu of Mindong, a CPPCC member and a vice-chairperson of the Chinese Catholic Patriotic Association (CCPA), told Hong Kong’s Sing Tao Daily on March 3 that the deal was a win-win agreement that would promote the unity of the Chinese Church and its healthy development.
 

ROME (AsiaNews): China’s president, Xi Jinping, will be in Italy from March 20 to 23, and rumours are already circulating of a possible meeting with Pope Francis. Should this be the case, it is important to clarify the fate of the unofficial Church and the Chinese Catholic Patriotic Association (CCPA).