China gets new Catholic bishop, as Pope Leo continues deal over appointments

By Joshua McElwee

VATICAN CITY (Reuters) -A new assistant Catholic bishop was installed on Wednesday for Fuzhou, the capital of China's southeastern Fujian province, signalling that the Vatican's accord with Beijing over Catholic bishop appointments will continue under Pope Leo.

Bishop Joseph Lin Yuntuan, 73, was appointed by Leo within the framework of a diplomatic deal originally struck in 2018 that gives Chinese officials some input into papal appointments.

Michel Chambon, an academic who has written extensively on the Chinese Church, said Wednesday's installation indicates that both parties want to continue with the accord. 

"It is a willingness to support reconciliation instead of antagonism," said Chambon, a research fellow at the Asia Research Institute in Singapore.

Some conservative Catholics have criticized the Vatican-China deal, which was negotiated under the late Pope Francis. The critics say it gives too much influence to China's ruling communists, who have kept a tight rein on religious practice since taking power in 1949.

The Vatican stresses that the pope retains final decision-making power and says the accord resolves a decades-long split between an underground church swearing loyalty to the Vatican and the state-supervised Catholic Patriotic Association.

Yuntuan had previously been ordained a bishop in the underground church in 2017. The Vatican said in a brief statement that it had "learned with satisfaction" that his role had been officially recognised by the government.

"This event constitutes another fruit of the dialogue between the Holy See and Chinese authorities and is a significant step," it said.

As part of Wednesday's ceremony, Yuntuan swore to abide by Chinese laws and to safeguard social harmony, according to a report on social media provided by the Catholic Patriotic Association.

Across China there are about 5 million Catholics in a total population of 1.4 billion, the Vatican estimates.

The Vatican and China last renewed their accord in October 2024, for a further period of four years. The text of the deal has never been published, but only described by diplomatic officials.

(Reporting by Joshua McElwee, editing by Alvise Armellini and Sharon Singleton)