VATICAN-CHINA Rome and Beijing renew the Agreement on the appointment of bishops for another four years

The extension was officially announced until October 2028, when ten years will have passed since the signing of the first agreement. The duration is extended, but the text remains provisional and secret, while a third of Chinese dioceses remain vacant. As anticipated, a coadjutor bishop for the diocese of Beijing will be ordained on October 25.

Vatican City () – The duration of the mandate increases from two to four years, but the Agreement between the Holy See and China on the appointment of bishops remains provisional and secret. As expected, today – when the second two-year renewal that was signed in October 2022 expires – a new extension of the agreement was announced. The Vatican Press Office issued a brief statement clarifying that “given the consensus reached for a fruitful application” and “after appropriate consultations and evaluations”, the validity of the Agreement is extended for another four years, until December 22. October 2028, when ten years will have passed since the first signature. “The Vatican side – the note concludes – remains determined to continue the respectful and constructive dialogue with the Chinese side, for the development of bilateral relations with a view to the good of the Catholic Church in the country and of all the Chinese people.”

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian also spoke this morning about the renewal of the Agreement during the usual daily press briefing. “The results obtained in the application have been praised by both parties – he commented in response to a question from the government newspaper. ChinaDaily -. “The two sides will maintain contacts and talks in a constructive spirit and continue to make progress to improve China-Vatican relations.”

The Chinese government would have wanted the Agreement to be permanent, while the Holy See insisted on its provisional nature and the need to better clarify some points. Finally, the transition from two to four years has turned out to be a compromise solution. It must also be remembered that in the last two years the Agreement had an obvious crisis when the People’s Republic of China caused a rupture in April 2023 by transferring Bishop Shen Bin to Shanghai. That rupture was corrected three months later with the confirmation of the appointment by Pope Francis, accompanied by an interview by Secretary of State Pietro Parolin to the Vatican media in which he asked Beijing for a “sincere dialogue.” After that crisis, the situation improved in the last year and as a result, in January 2024, three new bishops were appointed, while two bishops from the People’s Republic of China are participating in the work of the Synodal Assembly in Rome.

So far a total of nine bishops have been appointed in these six years under the Agreement, although more than 30 dioceses (a third of the total) are vacant in China. In the same period, eight “underground” bishops were officially recognized by Beijing, but there are also others who are still prevented from exercising their ministry by the authorities because they refuse to register with Party-controlled bodies.

However, as we announced in a few days ago, in the next few hours an important appointment is expected: for Friday, October 25, the diocese of Beijing has announced the ordination of Bishop Matteo Zhen Xuebin, 54 years old, who will join with the right of succession to Bishop Giuseppe Li Shan. He has held the position since 2007 and is also president of the Patriotic Association of Chinese Catholics. Although it has not yet been announced, the appointment of Bishop Zhen Xuebin will be carried out according to the Agreement (most likely the Holy See will publish it on the day of ordination, as has happened so far with all new Chinese bishops) and, therefore, it will constitute a very important step for the Catholic Church in China.

Photo: Francis with one of the Chinese bishops, Bishop Giuseppe Yang Yongqiang, at the Synod (VaticanNews photo)