By Carol Glatz | CNS
Chinese Bishop Thaddeus Wang Yuesheng was ordained the bishop of Zhengzhou Jan. 25 with Pope Francis’ approval.
The new bishop, 57, was ordained by Bishop Joseph Shen Bin of Shanghai in accordance with the agreement between the Holy See and China on the appointment of bishops, the Vatican press office said.
The pope had appointed then-Father Wang to be the new bishop of Zhengzhou in the province of Henan Dec.16, 2023, according to the Vatican.
Bishop Wang was born in Zhumadian in Henan province Feb. 27, 1966, and was ordained in Hankou in 1993. He served as parish priest in Zhengzhou and parish priest in the district of Huji, according to the Vatican.
The Vatican renewed its agreement with China on the appointment of bishops in 2022 saying it is committed to “respectful dialogue” with China’s communist government and to “fostering the mission of the Catholic Church and the good of the Chinese people.”
The “provisional agreement,” forged in 2018 and renewed in 2020, was extended for another two years in 2022.
The text of the agreement has never been made public, but Vatican officials said it outlines procedures for ensuring Catholic bishops are elected by the Catholic community in China and approved by the pope before their ordinations and installations.
In the past six years, only seven bishops have been named and installed under the terms of the agreement. Bishop Wang’s appointment was the first one since 2022, according to AsiaNews.
The last appointment under the agreement was Bishop Francis Joseph Cui Qingqi who was ordained bishop of Wuhan in 2021.
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Feature photo from Sept. 3, 2023 courtesy of CNS/Vatican Media.