China's state-controlled Catholic church installed a cleric well regarded by the Vatican as bishop of Beijing yesterday in a move that officials say should help ease their tense relations.
Joseph Li Shan (李山) was appointed to the influential post in China's capital at a ceremony at the city's 400-year-old Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception.
Attending were several hundred priests, nuns, officials and ordinary Chinese Catholics who were given invitations by the Beijing diocese.
Dozens of uniformed police officers were positioned around the church, controlling access and keeping foreign journalists from entering the cathedral. Despite the security, the ceremony drew little public attention.
The ceremony began with a procession of seminarians, nuns, priests and the bishop. Proceedings were broadcast to those outside via loudspeaker and closed-circuit television.
During the ceremony, the 42-year-old Li took a traditional oath of service to the church that also added a nod to government authority. He promised to "lead all the priests, seminarians and nuns of this diocese in adhering to the nation's constitution, maintaining national unification and social stability."
Li replaces Bishop Fu Tieshan (
When Li was named as Fu's replacement in July, Vatican officials praised him, though Beijing did not consult Rome before his appointment.
While the Vatican did not comment on Li's installation, in recent days church officials have said that it was done with Vatican approval.
Liu Bainian (劉柏年), the vice chairman of the Chinese Patriotic Catholic Association, the party-controlled body that oversees the church, said he "was not too clear" about the Vatican's stance toward Li.
But Liu said, such priests "should be encouraged, not condemned" and added: "We know that the pope loves China."
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