China and the Holy See draw closer

The Holy See is to recognise bishops appointed by the Chinese government.

It has been a long diplomatic road and something to which Pope Francis and his predecessors have given much time and  energy.

But what about all those Catholics who worked and survived in the underground church in China?

How must they be feeling today?

What will the retired archbishop in Hong Kong think and say? He has already spoken his mind.

It is a tangled web.

There are 10 million Catholics in China.

In Vilnius yesterday Pope Francis spoke courageously and strongly against populist politicians who are closing  their doors to migrants.

What will Germany's AfD say and how will the Bavarian government respond? There are elections in Bavaria in October where the AfD are expected to hoover up votes.

Germany's SPD and the Vatican on the one side. That's an interesting scenario.