China's Underground Church Mourns Pope
By Patrick Goodenough, CNSNews.com
Monday, April 4, 2005
Pacific Rim Bureau -- Pope John Paul II traveled widely, even visiting communist bastions such as Cuba in 1998 and his native Poland in 1979. But although he wanted to, he never made it to China, which has one of the largest Catholic communities in Asia.

Most of China's estimated 12-15 million Catholics worship underground, and many leaders have been imprisoned.
China has no diplomatic relations with the Vatican, which recognizes Taiwan.
Beijing does not recognize the Roman Catholic Church, but has instead instituted its own "patriotic" Catholic organization, which does not recognize the pope's authority and appoints its own bishops.

Millions of Catholics remain loyal to the Vatican, however, and meet in secret.

As recently as last week, a Chinese Catholic campaign group in the U.S. announced that three more underground Catholic priests had been arrested. In Hebei province alone - home to the largest Catholic community - five underground bishops and 24 priests were now in jail, the Cardinal Kung Foundation said.

During his tenure, Pope John Paul II ordained bishops for the Chinese church in secret, for their safety and for that of their underground congregations.