China officially recognizes formerly ‘underground’ bishop, Vatican says

Vatican City, Aug 27, 2024 / 13:00 pm

The Vatican announced Tuesday its “satisfaction” that China has officially recognized Bishop Melchior Shi Hongzhen as bishop of Tianjin.   

“This provision is a positive fruit of the dialogue established over the years between the Holy See and the Chinese government,” reads a Holy See statement released Aug. 27.

According to Reuters, 95-year-old Shi had once been placed under house arrest after refusing to join the church officially backed by the Chinese government.

Shi was ordained a priest in the Catholic Church on July 4, 1954, and consecrated coadjutor bishop of Tianjin on June 15, 1982. He was ordained bishop of the Diocese of Tianjin on June 8, 2019.

According to the Holy See statement, 56,000 Catholic faithful — distributed across 21 parishes served by 62 priests — belong to the Diocese of Tianjin.

Under Pope Francis, the Holy See has expanded dialogue with China and engaged in talks regarding provisional agreements on the appointment of bishops in the Asian nation.

The controversial Sino-Vatican Agreement, first signed in 2018, which has never been made public, is said to stipulate that the Catholic Church is allowed to have bishops in communion with Rome who are at the same time recognized by Chinese authorities in the country. It was renewed in 2020 and 2022.

In 2021, the Holy See sent a delegation led by a member of the then-Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples (now known as the Dicastery for Evangelization), Archbishop Claudio Maria Celli, to meet with Chinese authorities and negotiate the two-year renewal of the Sino-Vatican Agreement before it expires. 

Negotiations between the Vatican and China resumed Aug. 28–Sept. 2, 2022, when a Holy See delegation was sent to meet with local authorities in Tianjin.

During the Tianjin visit, the delegation also visited the formerly “underground” Shi, signaling the pope’s concern for the Catholic faithful in the communist country.