VATICAN (CNS): The Vatican has told bishops and priests in China that they must follow their own consciences in deciding whether to register with the government and it urged Catholics in the country not to judge them for the choices they make.
 
The Vatican said the problem is that registration almost always requires the bishop or priest to accept “the principle of independence, autonomy and self-administration of the Church in China,” which could be read as a denial of one’s bonds with the pope and the universal Church.