These are not ordinary days for the life of the Catholic Church. Faithful around the world are waiting and praying. While the Novendials, the nine days of mourning following the death of the pope, are taking place at the Basilica of St. Peter, the cardinals are preparing for the conclave that will begin on May 7th, during which the new pope will be elected.

The atmosphere is one of suspense. Everything, in a way, has come to a standstill, including the canonization of Blessed Carlo Acutis. The new pope will make new appointments. The ecclesiastical hierarchies will change. No one wants to make decisions before knowing who will sit on the throne of Peter after Bergoglio. No one, we said, except for China.

The Pope is absent, China doesn’t care

In Shanghai, as reported by AsiaNews, Father Wu Jianlin, director of the Commission for Educational Affairs, was elected the new auxiliary bishop of the diocese. The same happened in Xinxiang, in the province of Henan, where Father Li Jianlin was chosen for the role of bishop.

The agreement between China and the Holy See on the appointment of bishops, although secret, stipulates that the candidate of the Chinese Church, chosen “democratically” by assemblies controlled by the Communist Party, must be approved by the pope. However, it is still unknown whether the pontiff can reject a candidate.

Beijing sends a signal to Rome

Perhaps everything had already been agreed upon beforehand, but why choose the only three weeks in the last 12 years when Rome does not have a reigning pope for the election of a bishop, especially in a key diocese like Shanghai for Chinese Catholicism?

Regardless of the lack of respect, Beijing wanted to send a clear signal. Even after signing the agreement with the Vatican, China has never stopped advocating for an autonomous, self-managed, and independent Church from the Holy See. The recent two appointments are a direct consequence of this principle: they can be made even when there is no pope.

China ignores the death of Francis

It had already been evident in recent days that the official ecclesiastical bodies, linked to the communist regime, were indifferent to the death of Pope Francis. Francis passed away on April 21, but the official website of the Chinese Catholic Church took four days to publish these two brief lines: “Pope Francis was called by the Lord at 7:35 in the morning on April 21, 2025 (13:35 Beijing time) at Santa Marta House at the age of 88. Let us pray together that God, in His mercy, welcomes Pope Francis into eternal bliss in Paradise.”

The news was not considered worthy of being among the top five highlighted, accompanied by photos. One of these promoted the ways in which recent graduates could access job interviews at the Patriotic Association.

Three days after the announcement of Pope Francis’s death, the news disappeared from the homepage, mostly occupied by the “pilgrimages” of various dioceses to the country’s main communist monuments and the report of meetings held all over China to “sinicize the Catholic Church,” as ordered by Xi Jinping.

The two bishops disappeared by the regime

These are not the only worrying signs. The recent episcopal appointments are questionable not only in form but also in substance. The diocese of Shanghai already has two auxiliary bishops. The first, Joseph Xing Wenzhi, was appointed by John Paul II and then confirmed by Benedict XVI. He had also gained government recognition but after proving to obey Rome more than Beijing, he was made to disappear.

In his place, Taddeo Ma Daqin was appointed. On the day of his episcopal ordination in 2012, he dramatically announced his resignation from the Patriotic Association because it was incompatible with his role as bishop. He was immediately arrested and imprisoned at the Sheshan seminary, where he remains despite publicly apologizing in 2016.

It should also be noted that the current bishop of Shanghai, Monsignor Shen Bin, was transferred in 2023 from the diocese of Haimen without consulting the Vatican. Pope Francis consented to the “transfer” only after three months to preserve the unity of the Church.

The bishop against young people at Mass

Even the appointment of Father Li Jianlin in Xinxiang is difficult for the Holy See to digest. For Beijing, the seat is vacant, while for Rome, the bishop is already there: it is Monsignor Joseph Zhang Weizhu, ordained clandestinely in 1991 and arrested multiple times for not aligning with the Chinese Communist Party.

Father Li, frequently cited in official regime media, is a decidedly unusual bishop: he is one of the signatories of the 2018 circular by the Henan Patriotic Association that prohibited all minors under 18 years of age from entering the church to attend Mass.

The circular stated in particular:

“[In Henan] it is forbidden to organize any form of activities for the religious education or training of minors. The faithful attending Mass are urged to leave their children in someone else’s care so as not to bring them to church.”