FABC head pained by China's unlawful ordination

(July 13, 2012) The head of the Federation of Asian Bishops' Conferences (FABC), is pained by the unlawful consecration of a bishop in China last week without the approval of the Pope. "The Holy Father has never interfered in the internal affairs of the Chinese government. Through the appointment of bishops around the world, the Holy See only fulfils its pastoral duties," Indian Cardinal Oswald Gracias, secretary general of the FABC told AsiaNews. He was referring to the July 6 ordination of Fr. Joseph Yue Fusheng as bishop of Harbin by the government-sponsored Chinese Catholic Patriotic Association in defiance of the Pope. Cardinal Gracias, who is the Archbishop of Bombay said the Chinese government should allow the Church to function independently and freely. “The Church wants to serve the people of China and work for its spiritual growth," the prelate said. The FABC and the entire "people of God are praying that the Holy See and the Chinese government solve the situation and that matters do not get worse," Cardinal Gracias said. Hopefully, Chinese authorities will "return to a spirit of collaboration, cooperation and dialogue with the Holy See and better understand the Church's mission," he added. Soon after the unlawful ordination, the Holy See issued a statement saying the candidate incurred automatic excommunication or exclusion from the Catholic Church.