Vatican says China unilaterally named Shanghai bishop

The announcement comes months after the Vatican accused China of violating its agreement on the appointment of bishops.

The Vatican has said Chinese authorities have appointed a new bishop for Shanghai, China’s largest Roman Catholic diocese, in an apparent violation of a bilateral pact between the two states.

The Holy See was informed “a few days ago” of China’s decision to transfer Bishop Shen Bin of Haimen, in Jiangsu province, to the diocese of Shanghai, the Vatican reported Tuesday.

He added that he had found out about his official delivery that same day through the media.

“At the moment, I have nothing to say about the Holy See’s assessment of the matter,” spokesman Matteo Bruni said.

The announcement came just four months after the Vatican accused China of violating their bilateral agreement on the appointment of bishops by installing one in a diocese not recognized by the Holy See.

The contested secret pact was renewed last October for the second time since 2018.

The deal was an attempt to ease a long-standing divide in mainland China between an underground flock loyal to the Pope and an official, state-backed church.

For the first time since the 1950s, both sides recognized the Pope as the supreme leader of the Roman Catholic Church.

There was no immediate response from the Chinese embassy in Rome to the Vatican’s statement on Tuesday.

Not recognized by the Vatican

AsiaNews, a Catholic news agency, said Shen was appointed by the Chinese Council of Bishops, which he heads.

It is not recognized by the Vatican and is controlled by the Chinese Communist Party.

On its website, the Diocese of Shanghai said about 200 people attended Shen’s inauguration ceremony.

“Bishop Shen Bin said that he will continue to carry forward the fine tradition of patriotism and love of the Catholic Church in Shanghai (and) adhere to the principle of independence and self-government,” he said.

The Shanghai bishopric was vacant for 10 years since the death of the late Bishop Jin Luxian in April 2013.

The Holy See has said the city’s auxiliary bishop, Ma Daqin, should run the diocese, but he has been under house arrest since 2012 when he publicly rejected the Chinese Catholic Patriotic Association, the communist body that governed the local church.

Only six new bishops have been appointed since an agreement was reached in 2018 between the vatican and china. His opponents have said that this proves that he is not producing the desired effects. They have also pointed to the increasing restrictions on religious freedoms in China for Christians and other minorities.