The small group of Chinese Catholics who crossed the border to see Pope Francis lined their faces for worry of reprisal. Church officers blamed the Communist authorities for stopping mainland China’s bishops from coming to see the pope. And diplomats stated that China had watched the pope’s actions intently, and warily.

Yet as Pope Francis returned to Rome on Monday from a four-day journey to Mongolia, he had nothing however optimistic issues to say about China.

“The relations with China are very respectful — I personally have great admiration for the Chinese culture. They are very open, let’s put it this way,” Francis stated in a news convention aboard the papal aircraft. He stated he hoped there could be extra publicity to Roman Catholics in China in order that the Chinese residents didn’t suppose that the church had intentions to form their tradition and values or that it was “dependent on another power.”

In his decade as pope, Francis has excoriated what he considers the authoritarian streak of Western nationalists, the reactionary ideology of American conservatives in the church and the unchristian hardheartedness of leaders in Washington and Europe who don’t open their borders to migrants or act to protect the environment.

But in the case of China, the place he’s hoping his church will make inroads, Francis is way more forgiving.

The pope’s delicate — critics say doormat — diplomacy within the area was highlighted throughout his visit to Mongolia, a nation sandwiched between China and Russia, nice powers run by two strongmen who’ve vexed the Vatican, however whom Francis has been reluctant to criticize.

Francis, as an example, has by no means blamed President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia by title for invading Ukraine. Before leaving for Mongolia, he further angered Ukrainians by praising 18th-century Russian rulers and the Great Russia they helped create — an empire that Mr. Putin has invoked in framing his invasion of Ukraine.

“I spoke about Great Russia not so much in geographic terms, more of its great culture throughout history,” Francis defined on the papal aircraft, including that the incident was “unfortunate.”

But on the flight again, he talked concerning the greatness of Dostoyevsky earlier than clarifying that he by no means meant to exalt imperialism, which “always consolidates in ideology.” Culture he stated, “is never imperialism, but it is dialogue.”

Francis advised that Mongolia embodied that spirit of dialogue, telling a Mongolian reporter, “We can say that your land has two great powers — Russia and China — and for this reason, your mysticism is to try and dialogue with the ‘third neighbor,’ without disrespect for these two with whom you have good relations.”

The “third neighbor” time period was not a Francis neologism, however an echoing of official Mongolian international coverage. While Mongolia’s financial system depends closely on its two big neighbors, and particularly China, it has pursued a diplomatic technique known as the “third neighbor” which seeks to strengthen political independence and domesticate allies and funding companions from international locations together with Japan, South Korea, Germany and the United States.

“It is a very real thing here,” stated Odbayar Erdenetsogt, the international coverage adviser to Mongolia’s president. But that didn’t change the truth that the nation’s precedence was the perfect relations doable with its two precise neighbors: “Our president is very good friends with Putin. He is very close and very good friends with Xi Jinping. We have to have that connection.”

Asked whether or not that relationship may assist the Vatican’s diplomacy with both nation, however particularly China, Mr. Erdenetsogt supplied a diplomatic actuality test.

“I don’t know whether it can help anyone, but we are being very active making our voices heard, but in a correct way,” he stated. “We cannot be too loud. We cannot be too pushy.”

Francis, just like the Mongolians, feels he must tread calmly.

In 2018, Francis, looking for extra entry to China, made a largely secretive deal with the government to make sure extra collaboration over the nomination of bishops. The pope usually appoints bishops, however the Communist authorities has lengthy insisted on naming its personal to extra intently management the state-run church there. China has already violated the settlement by unilaterally making appointments.

On Sunday, as Francis concluded a Mass on the Steppe Arena, he invited two Chinese bishops, Cardinal John Tong Hon, bishop emeritus of Hong Kong, and Cardinal-elect Stephen Chow Sau-yan, the bishop of Hong Kong, onto the stage.

Holding up their arms, Francis stated: “I would like to take advantage of their presence to send a warm greeting to the noble people of China. To all the people I wish the best. Strive ahead, always advancing.” In a message to his flock, but additionally maybe to allay Chinese authorities issues, he concluded, “And I ask Chinese Catholics to be good Christians and good citizens.”

Bishop Chow visited mainland China earlier this 12 months in an try to construct bridges and promote exchanges on the bumpy path of rapprochement between China and the Vatican.

Asked concerning the absence of the bishops from the mainland China, he stated “I would love to see the bishops here,” however added, “honestly I don’t know why they are not here.”

“It is just that they could not come,” he stated, “but there might be other reasons behind it.”

Asked why an evidence for the absence had confirmed so mysterious, the bishop stated: “They don’t feel they need to explain, basically. Different governments, why do they need to explain to everyone? Things happen. You don’t explain your family’s, your company’s, issues to the world, right?”

Other prelates didn’t suppose it was so mysterious why the mainland Chinese bishops didn’t present.

“I did not decide on that,” stated Cardinal Francis Xavier Kriengsak Kovithavanij of Bangkok, “because it’s the Chinese government that takes the decision.”

Caution concerning the Chinese authorities was palpable out within the Mongolian capital’s huge Sükhbaatar Square on Saturday the place officers gave the pope a welcome ceremony fit for an emperor, however the place a bunch of some Chinese Catholics with small Chinese flags joined a tiny crowd in a rustic with solely about 1,400 Catholics.

“It’s so close, we had to come,” stated one of many group members, who declined to provide his title or have his image taken for worry of retribution.

Francis touched on different points through the almost 40-minute news convention on the aircraft house. Now typically utilizing a wheelchair, he stated that he would journey to a convention in Marseilles on the finish of the month, and may go to a small European nation down the street. But, he stated, “to tell you the truth,” it was “not as easy as it was at the beginning” of his hold forth. “We’ll see.”

The similar may very well be stated for the negotiations with China.

But Bishop Chow remained optimistic and backed the pope’s give-no-offense offensive.

“We are honestly both looking for ways to move forward — you know you need to build trust,” he stated, including that he had seen “more openness, more dialogue”

He known as for extra face-to-face conferences and the establishing of chemistry between the negotiators. “I cannot say that China doesn’t want to talk, because it’s not fair,” he stated. “If they don’t want to talk, they stop everything.”