>FU’AN, China — For nearly four centuries, a swath of farming and fishing villages on China’s southeast coast has survived as a stronghold of Catholicism, sometimes flourishing, other times withering, its fate often dependent on decisions or conflicts far away in Beijing or Europe.
>Now, a new clash is resonating in this rural region, known as Mindong. This time, it centers on talks between China and the Vatican to bridge their historical differences by settling the thorniest issue dividing them: control of the bishops and priests who run the Roman Catholic Church in China.
>The basic plan would give the Vatican a formal role, and possibly even veto power, in how clergy are appointed in China. That would be an unusual concession by Beijing, which is deeply suspicious of foreign interference.
>In return, the Vatican may force many local communities to accept clerics appointed by China’s Communist authorities rather than popular “underground” church leaders who have resisted state control for decades.
>The prospect of such an agreement has unleashed intense emotions around the globe, with critics accusing the Holy See of “selling out” loyal Catholics in China. The Vatican’s defenders, meanwhile, argue that it must compromise to prevent China’s Catholics from splintering further, especially as the government of President Xi Jinping tightens control of religion.
>But the people most affected by these proposed changes — residents in places like Mindong — say they feel a sense of powerlessness, as if awaiting a storm that they cannot control.
>…