Vatican says China has unilaterally appointed bishop to Shanghai
- The move to transfer Bishop Shen Bin from Haimen to the largest Roman Catholic diocese in the country appears to violate a secret pact between the 2 states
- The bishopric of Shanghai had been vacant for 10 years since the death of the late bishop Jin Luxian
Chinese authorities have appointed a new bishop to Shanghai, the largest Roman Catholic diocese in China, the Vatican said on Tuesday, in an apparent violation of a bilateral pact between the two states.
The Holy See was informed “a few days ago” of the decision by China to transfer Bishop Shen Bin from Haimen, in Jiangsu province, to the diocese of Shanghai, the Vatican said.
It added that it had learned of his official instalment earlier on Tuesday from the media.
“For 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 its bilateral accord on the appointment of bishops by installing one in a diocese not recognised by the Holy See.
The contested, secret pact was renewed last October for the second time since 2018.
