Pope Leo approves his seventh bishop for Chinese Communist 'Catholic' church - LifeSite
Mon Aug 31, 2026 - 12:56 pm EDT
(LifeSiteNews) — A bishop of Datong was consecrated in China today with the approval of Pope Leo XIV under the controversial Vatican-China deal.
Pope Leo XIV appointed Paolo Liu Honggang Bishop of Datong in Shanxi, China, on August 10, “following the approval of his candidacy under the framework of the Provisional Agreement between the Holy See and the People’s Republic of China,” Vatican News reported on Monday morning.
This means that Honggang was made a bishop within the state-controlled, so-called “Catholic” church in China.
Honggang is the seventh bishop in China whom Leo has thus far appointed under the China-Vatican deal.
The officially secret Sino-Vatican deal, signed in 2018, is believed to recognize the state-approved church in China and allows the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) to appoint bishops. The pope apparently maintains veto power, although in practice …