The Vatican in Transition: China, Religion, and the Legacy of Pope Francis

The death of Pope Francis came at a delicate moment in the Vatican's relationship with China. Since 2018, the Holy See has pursued a cautious and often controversial diplomatic engagement with Beijing to maintain the Church's relevance in China while navigating the Chinese Communist Party's strict control over religion. This approach has unfolded against a backdrop of repression of underground clergy and growing pressure from Beijing for the Vatican to sever ties with Taiwan . For observers, this period offers insight into how a global religious institution operates within a system in which space for religion and civil society is tightly constrained. With the new pope's first hundred days behind him, long-standing questions about religious freedom , geopolitical recognition, and the boundaries of engagement remain central, and may take on new dimensions under his leadership. In a conversation recorded on August 17, Ian Johnson, Francesco Sisci , and Karrie Koessel discuss the key issues currently shaping China–Vatican relations and how they may evolve under the new pope. About this program

You can listen to The Vatican in Transition: China, Religion, and the Legacy of Pope Francis online on Radio and Podcast. Open the player on this page to stream the available audio.

The Vatican in Transition: China, Religion, and the Legacy of Pope Francis is an episode from NCUSCR Interviews by National Committee on U.S.-China Relations.

This episode is 32:53 long.

This episode was published on Dec 15, 2025.

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