Dearest pastors and all the faithful of the Catholic Church in China...

ROMA, June 30, 2007 – The Holy See today released the text of the letter written by Benedict XVI "to Bishops, Priests, Consecrated Persons and Lay Faithful of the Catholic Church in the People’s Republic of China."

The letter bears the date of May 27, 2007, the feast of Pentecost.

The complete text of the letter is on the Vatican website here.

And Chiesa has printed the explanatory note released by the Holy See together with the letter:

EXPLANATORY NOTE

By his "Letter to Bishops, Priests, Consecrated Persons and Lay Faithful of the Catholic Church in the People’s Republic of China", which bears the date of Pentecost Sunday, Pope Benedict XVI wishes to express his love for and his closeness to the Catholics who live in China. He does so, obviously, as Successor of Peter and Universal Pastor of the Church.

From the text two basic thoughts are clear: on the one hand, the Pope’s deep affection for the entire Catholic community in China and, on the other, his passionate fidelity to the great values of the Catholic tradition in the ecclesiological field; hence, a passion for charity and a passion for the truth. The Pope recalls the great ecclesiological principles of the Second Vatican Council and the Catholic tradition, but at the same time takes into consideration particular aspects of the life of the Church in China, setting them in an ample theological perspective. . .

Continued here.