A 2018 deal between the Vatican and the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) secured by Cardinal Pietro Parolin is once again under scrutiny as questions remain over how newly appointed Pope Leo XIV will take on the CCP.

The Parolin-brokered deal was and remains a controversial agreement between the leaders of the Catholic Church and the CCP, which has long oppressed Catholics across China. 

While the agreement was championed by the late Pope Francis and his secretary of state, Parolin — the Vatican’s top diplomat — as a step toward “normalizing” Catholicism in the communist nation, experts argue it has brought dangerous consequences for the faithful.

But in his first homily on Friday since being made leader of the Catholic Church, Pope Leo highlighted the church’s fight against rising atheism.

“There are many settings in which Jesus, although appreciated as a man, is reduced to a kind of charismatic leader or superman. This is true not only among non-believers but also among many baptized Christians, who thus end up living, at this level, in a state of practical atheism,” he said. “These are contexts where it is not easy to preach the Gospel and bear witness to its truth, where believers are mocked, opposed, despised or at best tolerated and pitied.”

The pope said, for this reason, “missionary outreach is desperately needed.”

Pope Leo warned that a “lack of faith” has led to not only a “loss of meaning in life” for many, but also “the neglect of mercy, appalling violations of human dignity, the crisis of the family and so many other wounds that afflict our society.”

Pope Francis appoints U.S.-born cardinal, prelate prefect of the Dicastery for Bishops, Robert Francis Prevost during the Ordinary Public Consistory for the Creation of new Cardinal at St. Peter’s Square in Vatican City on Sept. 30, 2023. (Vatican Media via Vatican Pool/Getty Images)

While congratulatory messages were issued by leaders of Catholic and non-Catholic nations alike, China did not issue a similar message upon the pope’s appointment on Thursday.

In a Friday press conference, when asked about the Church’s new leader, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lin Jian said, “We hope that under the leadership of the new pope, the Vatican will continue to have dialogue with China in a constructive spirit, have in-depth communication on international issues of mutual interest, jointly advance the continuous improvement of the China-Vatican relations and make contributions to world peace, stability, development and prosperity.”