HONG KONG (UCAN): A fifth bishop of the unofficial Church in China, Bishop Paul Ma Cunguo of Shuozhou was officially installed at a public ceremony in Shanxi province on July 9, making him fifth to be recognised by Chinese Catholic Patriotic Association (CCPA) since the Vatican and China signed a provisional agreement in September 2018 on the appointment of bishops.
The ceremony for the 49-year-old Bishop Ma, took place at the Cathedral of Shuozhou and was celebrated by Bishop Meng Ningyou of Taiyuan, director of the provincial CCPA. Father Yang Yu, deputy secretary-general of the Bishops’ Conference of the Catholic Church in China (BCCCC), read out the conference’s approval.
Bishop Wu Junwei of Yuncheng, director of the provincial Church Affairs Committee (CAC), and Bishop Ding Lingbin of Changzhi, deputy director and secretary-general of the provincial CAC and provincial CCPA, attended the ceremony.
However, the ceremony was a low-profile affair. One participant, who requested anonymity, said that the ceremony was attended by about 20 priests and 100 people from the diocese, representatives of the CCPA and BCCCC, and leaders from city, district departments, the provincial CAC and CPA and plainclothes police.
The reduced number of participants was attributed to restrictions linked to the Covid-19 coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) pandemic. Only those who tested negative for the virus the day before the liturgy could attend, the participant said.
Media reports quoting officials said that the Vatican was not fully informed about the developments. Bishop Ma said that he was not aware of the details because his information was limited due to pandemic restrictions. However, the bishop said the two provincial councils of the CAC and CPA decided the date and liturgy of the ceremony.
An Italian newspaper interviewed Bishop Ma in March 2015, who said he had “high hopes” for Sino-Vatican talks “as a dialogue with the government also helps promote ecumenism in the Church.”
Social media circulated a copy of Bishop Ma’s oath, which differed from those made by the previous four bishops installed by the official Church, in that it contained no insistence on working for “an independent, self-governing Church” in China.
It said the bishop would abide by God’s command, fulfill his pastoral duties as a bishop and proclaim the gospel faithfully. He will be faithful to the one holy Catholic and apostolic Church, and be committed to building up the Church, the body of Christ and contributing to evangelisation.
The oath also asked diocesan priests to abide by the country’s constitution and laws, uphold the unity of the nation and social harmony, love the country and the Church, and contribute to the “realisation of the Chinese dream.”
Bishop Ma was born in 1971 and graduated from Shanxi seminary. He was ordained a priest in 1996. He was appointed coadjutor bishop of Shuozhou in 2004 at the age of 33. In 2007, when his predecessor died, he automatically became the bishop of Shuozhou.
Bishop Ma told UCA News that he had no opinion regarding his transistion from the unofficial to official church. When asked why he wanted to join the official Church, he said: “It’s not easy to do some of the work without going open.”
