Disappointment for Mexicans, joy for Iraq's Chaldeans

• April 20, 2005 | Moscow | 08:00 a.m. ET

Not front page news, but hopes to heal centuries-old split

Preston Mendenhall

In a congratulatory message to Pope Benedict XVI on Wednesday, Patriarch Alexiy II, the head of the Russian Orthodox Church, signaled a new willingness to heal a centuries old split between the two faiths.

“Our Churches, which have authority and influence, should unite their efforts to spread Christian values to modern humankind. The secular world is losing its spiritual way and needs our joint testimony as never before,” he said.

Some Russian media, meanwhile, appeared to take caution in dedicating coverage to the new pope, perhaps a result of nationalism ignited by the death of Pope John Paul II. In the wake of the pope’s passing, one Russian lawmaker proposed a ban on coverage, saying it amounted to Catholic “propaganda” at the expense of the Russian Orthodox Church. A parliamentary vote on the proposal failed to pass.

Only a handful of newspapers gave the new pope front-page coverage, relegating the story to the inside pages. Breaking news of Benedict XVI’s election did get prominent attention on state-controlled Russian television on Tuesday.

Despite the Russian patriarch’s positive comments on a Catholic-Orthodox rapprochement, others saw the new pontiff, the former Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, as a possible roadblock to better ties between the two religions.

Daily newspaper Gazeta noted that Ratzinger, as chief of religious doctrine under John Paul II, believed in the supremacy of the Roman Catholic Church over the Russian Orthodox Church, which split from Rome in the Great Schism of 1054.

The newspaper said Benedict XVI could treat the Orthodox as a “forgotten daughter than a sister religion.”

• April 20, 2005 |Beijing | 07:45 a.m. ET

China's Catholics hail pope

Eric Baculinao

The election of Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger as the new pope has brought joy to China’s Catholics, both in official and underground churches, and prompted hopes for “improved ties” from the Chinese government.

"With joy and happiness in the Risen Christ, we offer to you our hearty congratulations," said the joint message of the official Chinese Catholic Patriotic Association and Chinese Catholic Bishops' Conference.

“We are very happy over the choice of Pope Benedict XVI,” said Sister Teresa Yu of officially-sanctioned Beijing South Cathedral. “We will pray for him.”

“We were excited upon learning the news about the new pope,” echoed Father Paul, who belongs to an underground church in northern China. “We hope he can make a breakthrough in relations with China.”

“We are willing to improve the relationship between China and the Vatican on the basis of two principles,” declared China’s foreign ministry spokesperson Qin Gang, citing the need to break off diplomatic ties with Taiwan, and observe “non-interference” in China’s internal affairs.

“We hope under the leadership of the new pope, the Vatican can create favorable conditions for improving the relations between China and the Vatican,” the Foreign Ministry statement said.

There are some 5 million Chinese Catholics who worship in official churches, while the Vatican estimates some 10 million more belong to underground Roman Catholic churches who follow the pope’s authority.

Both are united in recognizing the pope as the spiritual leader and follow the Vatican’s teachings, though, in the absence of diplomatic ties, China’s official Patriotic Catholic Church runs its own affairs and appoints bishops and priests without the Vatican’s blessings.

“I have three wishes,” said Sister Teresa. “One, that the new pope can normalize relations with China, two, that he will visit China, and three, that our Church, all churches, will become united.”

“I have read his book and I am very impressed by his teachings,” said Father Paul. “He is quite conservative but he has very sharp and distinctive views.”

“I really hope that with his diplomatic efforts, the new pope can break the ice and end the deadlock in relations with China,” he added.

MORE FROM POPE REMEMBERED

Pope remembered Section Front

Images: Final farewell for Pope John Paul II   Images: A historic papacy   Images: Paying respects to late pontiff   Images: Mourning Pope John Paul II Pope John Paul II remembered NBC: Perhaps ‘Saint John Paul? Benedict watches movie about John Paul II Live Vote: Sainthood for John Paul? Quiz: How much do you remember? Pope remembered Section Front   Add Pope remembered headlines to your news reader: