Society

China's Catholic church needs bishops: CPCA

(Xinhua)
Updated: 2011-06-23 20:31

BEIJING - The spokesman for China's Catholic church said Thursday that the church faces an urgent task to select and ordain bishops in an "active and prudent" way, as more than 40 of the country's 97 dioceses are without a bishop.

Related readings: Approval of bishops 'a priority'

Selection and ordination of bishops must be based on national conditions and pastoral and evangelizing work, said Priest Yang Yu, spokesman for the Chinese Patriotic Catholic Association (CPCA) and the Bishops Conference of the Catholic Church of China (BCCCC).

Yang made the remarks following a recent meeting between leaders of the CPCA and the BCCCC, which concluded that absence of bishops has "seriously affected normal operations and church affairs at bishopless diocese."

Leaders of China's Catholic church agreed at the meeting that the church would strive to select and ordain bishops at these diocese without delay.

Priest Yang was named the first spokesperson for the CPCA and the BCCCC at the meeting.