After 14 years of vacancy, the Vatican confirms a new bishop for Wuhan | the Chronicle

Vatican to ordain priest Cui Qingqi as new bishop of Wuhan on Thursday, in China, which will thus become the sixth prelate appointed under the joint agreement signed by the Holy See and the Asian giant in 2018, while twill end with 14 years of vacant seat in this diocese.

According to Vatican sources, Cui Qinggi will become the the sixth bishop jointly appointed by China and the Vatican since the signing of the renewed agreement last year until 2022 and that it was the largest bilateral rapprochement since 1949.

The signing of the agreement in September 2018 represented the greatest bilateral rapprochement for the two states, which still do not have diplomatic relations, and put an end to more than fifty years of division in the local Church, between a faction that followed the Holy See of Rome and another loyal to the Communist Party.

Wuhan, according to official information, He had been without a bishop since 2007, when then diocesan leader Bernardino Dong Guangqing died at the age of 90.. Despite being ordained this Thursday, the official appointment of the new bishop was made late last year, the sources reported.

In 2020, when renewing the agreement for another two years, the Vatican said that “The Holy See, considering that the beginning of the application of the aforementioned agreement, of fundamental ecclesial and pastoral value, has been positive, thanks to the good communication and collaboration between the parties on the agreed question, it intends to pursue the open and constructive dialogue to encourage the life of the Catholic Church and the good of the Chinese people. “

Although the content of the agreement is kept secret, the text, of 10 pages, gives the pope the final decision on episcopal appointments, based on a treble system raised by Beijing.

Pope Francis said in press statements last week that with the agreement with China, “So far what has been achieved is at least the dialogue, and also some concrete things like the appointment of new bishops, slowly.”

“However, these are steps and outcomes that can also be questionable, both on one side and the other.”added Pope Francis then.

The signing of the agreement meant the normalization of the life of the Catholic Church in China, after years of division between prelates appointed by the Vatican and those appointed by Beijing through the so-called Patriotic Association, a church created by the Chinese government to control Catholic life in the country.

According to various estimates, Catholics in China number 10 million.