This is huge. The Holy Father has been invited by the Chinese Patriotic Catholic Church to visit China. The “patriotic” Church is technically in schism with the Holy See and controlled by the Chinese government – in other words it doesn’t officially recognize the Pope.

The fact that they are inviting the Holy Father for a visit, may be a sign that a reconciliation is imminent. I once heard Cardinal McCarrick say that almost all of the “patriotic” Catholic bishops have secretly sent messages to either John Paul II or Benedict XVI confessing their submission to the Holy See. This will be interesting to watch.

ROME – The Beijing bishop appointed by China’s state-controlled Catholic Church said in an interview Wednesday that he hopes Pope Benedict XVI will visit his country and that relations with the Vatican are improving.

“We strongly hope that Benedict XVI will make a trip to China,” Joseph Li Shan told Italy’s RAI state TV. “Relations with the Vatican are constantly improving. We can say that there are big developments.”

Full story from Yahoo.