A new Catholic bishop has been ordained in China, the fourth episcopal ordination in the communist-ruled nation since Pope Leo XIV’s pontificate began in May 2025. Source: UCA News.
Bishop Chang Yanfeng of the Chifeng Diocese was consecrated yesterday in Hongshan district, Chifeng City, Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region in northern China, according to a report by the state-sanctioned Bishops’ Conference of the Catholic Church in China (BCCCC).
The ordination ceremony was presided over by Bishop Meng Qinglu of the Hohhot Diocese in Inner Mongolia.
Bishop Meng Qinglu is a vice-chairman of the Chinese Catholic Patriotic Association (CCPA), a pro-government body overseeing the state-controlled Catholic Church in China.
Also present were Bishop Pei Junmin, vice-chairman of the conference, and Bishop Yao Shun of the Ulanqab Diocese.
About 400 people, including priests, nuns and laypeople, attended the ordination ceremony.
During the event, Fr Yang Yu, secretary general of the conference, read out the letter of approval for Bishop Chang.
Bishop Chang Yanfeng was born on April 4, 1984, in Weichang County, Chengde City, Hebei Province.
From 2000 to 2006, he studied theology and philosophy at the Shenyang Catholic Theological Seminary, and was ordained a priest in November 2010.
From 2007 to 2010, he pursued advanced studies at Daejeon Catholic University in South Korea, earning a Master of Arts degree in Biblical Theology. He currently serves as the director of the Chinese Catholic Patriotic Association of Chifeng City in Inner Mongolia.
He was appointed bishop of the Catholic Diocese of Chifeng on March 20, 2026.
Catholicism in Chifeng dates back to the early 19th century. The territory was part of the French Catholic Mission under the jurisdiction of the Apostolic Vicariate of Eastern Liaoning in 1840. Later, it became part of the new Apostolic Vicariate of Mongolia.
In 1883, the Mongolic Apostolic Vicariate was divided into three. Chifeng fell into the Apostolic Vicariate of Eastern Mongolia, which was renamed Jehol in 1922.
The Prefecture Apostolic of Chifeng was erected in 1931 and was elevated into a diocese in 1949.
Appointment of Catholic bishops has been a thorny issue between the Vatican and Beijing for decades since China severed diplomatic ties with the Vatican after the communist takeover in the 1950s.
The 2018 Sino-Vatican Provisional Agreement, never made officially public, reportedly allows both parties to accept or reject candidates for bishops.
The agreement was renewed several times, and in October 2024 it was renewed for another four years.
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Another Catholic bishop ordained in China (UCA News)
