Gallicanism Redux

Gallicanism is the practice of the French selecting their own bishops. Henry VIII had two beefs with Rome. One was a succession issue, related to his first marriage, an issue oftentimes taken care of by Rome in a slight of hand, and the second was the fact that Rome controlled the Church in England but allowed the French to do whatever they liked. Gallicanism if you will, albeit a stretch.

Back when Gregory I became Bishop of Rome he was elected by the people of Rome, despite his protests. There were no cardinals and in fact Gregory was subservient to the Emperor in Constantinople.

Then along came a variety of Popes who created cardinals, often not even priests, but princes of the Church, who got the exclusive right to elect the Bishop of Rome, who in the 14th century lived in Avignon, having been expelled by the people of Rome. Strange tale.

But for the past centuries Papal authority ruled and Rome and the Pope selected and elevated bishops, and cardinals. Gallicanism was obliterated during Vatican I.

Now comes China. The NY Times reports:

The Vatican said Saturday that it had reached a provisional deal with the Chinese government to end a decades-old power struggle over the authority to appoint bishops in China. It was the Communist country’s first formal recognition of the pope as leader of the Roman Catholic Church in the world’s most populous nation, Vatican officials said. Under the breakthrough, Pope Francis recognized the legitimacy of seven bishops appointed by the Chinese government. Because they had not been selected by the Vatican, they had previously been excommunicated. The deal was in keeping with pope’s outreach to parts of the world where he hopes to increase the church’s presence and spread its message. It gives the church greater access to a huge population where the growth of Protestantism is far outpacing Catholicism. But for critics loath to share any of the church’s authority with an authoritarian government, the deal marked a shameful retreat and the setting of a dangerous precedent for future relations with other countries.

Is this truly a bad situation? Frankly from history's perspective, one could say so. People choosing their own bishops was not a bad idea. It was democratic. Popes selecting them was a remnant of divine right of Kings. Nations having a say, one could note, led to revolutions, specifically the French Revolution, not to mention Henry VIII, and even Martin Luther.

 It will be interesting to see how this one is justified. But perhaps for the papacy, consistency is the hobgoblin of petty minds, kind of.