Pope Francis: Indonesian, Vietnamese, & Chinese Reactions

It is safe to say Pope Francis' inaguration has had an overall positive reaction in Southeast Asia. The Philippines, Vietnamese, and Indonesians, all have high hopes for him. The Chinese, however, are not welcoming him so warmly.

Pope Francis has a special appreciation for the Vietnamese archbishop. He recognizes the challenges the Vietnamese Church faces because of the government. The Vietnamese government doesn't like the Catholic Church because it thinks the church is doing "anti-government activities".

Cardinal Jean Baptist Pham Minh Man recounts his interaction with Pope Francis positively, "Both times, when I kissed the Pope's ring he reciprocated the gesture of kissing my ring. He is probably aware of the events of Vietnam. And, in doing so, he sought to express his appreciation for the Church in Vietnam. A Church that had the courage to stay alive and to witness to the faith, even in moments of profound difficulty."

The Indonesians had an equal if not, close to the same reaction as the Vietnamese. The Muslim leader of Indonesia hopes to improve Muslim-Christian relations within the country. There were strong positive reactions the the fact Pope Francis is a Jesuit and is stressing the importance of helping the less fortunate. Indonesian Professor Din Syamsuddin remarks, "I hope that the new pontiff will improve already good relations between Catholics and the Vatican with the varied Muslim world, represented in this case by the nation with the largest number of Muslims in the world, namely Indonesia".

While most of Southeast Asia is reacting positively towards the new pope, China is taking an opposite stand. In July of 2012 Bishop Thaddeus Ma Daqin of Shanghai was ordained and resigned from the China’s Patriotic Catholic Association (CPCA). This resulted in him being placed under house arrest. This is only one instance in a series of disputes between the Vatican and CPCA. Both are arguing about who should control the selection of Chinese Cardinals. While the CPCA is not welcoming Pope Francis warmly, Catholics there in general are hoping the relationship between China and the Vatican will improve.

"We pray for the new pope," said Father Francis Zhang, a Beijing priest. "We hope he will be spiritual, dynamic and open minded. We hope he will be more open to China, more pragmatic, and someone who understands very well the Chinese Catholic church."

It is interesting to see the perspectives of Asian countries to a new Pope in Europe. The majority of Southeast Asia reacted positively and I and certainly many others will be paying close attention to Pope Francis' "first 100 days".

Indonesia
http://www.asianews.it/news-en/Indonesian-Muslim-leader-with-Pope-Francis-for-the-neediest-27421.html

Vietnam
http://www.asianews.it/news-en/Cardinal-of-Saigon:-Pope-Francis-pays-special-attention-to-the-Vietnamese-Church-27497.html

China
http://freebeacon.com/a-pope-for-china/
http://shanghaiist.com/2013/03/14/chinese_reactions_to_pope_francis_i.php

More on Pope
http://www.thejakartaglobe.com/afp/pope-vows-to-embrace-poorest-at-grand-inauguration/580851