Sino-Vatican diplomatic relations : the Vatican relations with both sides of the Strait (1912-1978) / Alexandre Tsung-ming Chen ; translated by Sebastian Hsien-hao Liao.

Includes bibliographical references and index

The relations between the Vatican and the two regimes each on one side of the Taiwan Strait evolve through ups and downs in close connection with geopolitical and ecclesial developments in the region. The changing relations not only triggered concern from all related parties but also prompted numerous debates in the international media. The growing attention paid to this issue from different individuals, institutions, and governments indicate that the ebb and flow of the relations among the trio actors - PRC, ROC, and the Vatican - have overflown beyond the spiritual sphere and well into the political and diplomatic domains. This situation, resultant from the nature and application of the Holy See’s diplomacy, remains an underexplored subject due to past approaches being often single-dimensioned which shied away from international politics.

Integrating the perspective of international politics and the spiritual concerns of the Church, this study focuses on the Sino-Vatican relations from 1912, the year the Republic was founded, through 1978, the year the pontificate of John-Paul I ended. In order to present a fuller and more comprehensive picture than previous studies of how the Vatican and the “Chinese” governments interacted with one another at different stages of this period as well as how other concerned governments and people reacted to contemporary developments, the author combed through official archives in various places, including the Vatican, Taiwan, France, and Belgium, and collected a plethora of material in multiple languages, including Chinese, English, French, Italian, and Latin, that would shed light on the Vatican’s foreign policy. The book aims to analyze the Vatican’s position toward the divided rule in the land called China during that period by highlighting the important topics through accessible vocabulary and unpretentious arguments in hope that it can be of interest both to the general public and scholars in other fields. This study is a rare achievement in Chinese Catholic Studies in that it has combined a global perspective and a microscopic view in investigating the complex dynamic between the Vatican and the different “Chinese” governments, thereby parsing many hitherto underexplored knotty issues.