Hong Kong cardinal calls for Vatican’s top diplomat to resign over China rapprochement talks

A Hong Kong cardinal who has spearheaded opposition to the Vatican’s rapprochement with Beijing on Thursday called for the Pope’s secretary of state to step down, saying any deal with mainland China would amount to a betrayal of the Catholic faith.

The Vatican and Beijing have been in advanced talks this year to forge what would be a historic breakthrough and precursor to a resumption in diplomatic relations after 70 years, with Secretary of State Pietro Parolin among the chief negotiators.

The Vatican may send a delegation to China before the end of this month. If the meeting goes well, the two could reach an agreement on the appointment of bishops, a Chinese state-run newspaper reported earlier this week.

Cardinal Joseph Zen, the most senior Catholic cleric on Chinese soil, said he believed the two sides were making a “secret deal”, although he acknowledged he had no connection with the Vatican and was “completely in the dark”.

“They’re giving the flock into the mouths of the wolves. It’s an incredible betrayal,” he said.

He described Parolin, the highest ranking diplomat in the Vatican, as someone who despised heroes of faith.

“He should resign,” Zen said at his home on a wooded hillside on Hong Kong Island.

“I don’t think he has faith. He is just a good diplomat in a very secular, mundane meaning.”