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Catholic World News News Feature

Vatican welcomes new bishop for Beijing July 19, 2007

Although he was not appointed by the Holy See, the new Bishop of Beijing is "a very good and qualified individual," the Vatican Secretary of State told reporters at a July 18 news conference.

Cardinal Tarciscio Bertone said that the appointment of Father Joseph Li Shan was "a very positive sign"-- thus adding support to the belief that the appointment, made by an "independent" process and announced in Beijing, represented an informal compromise between the demands of the Vatican and those of the Chinese regime.

Father Li's name had reportedly been on a list of possible candidates that had been quietly submitted to the Vatican and roused no objections. And the AsiaNews service reported that Chinese Catholics were pleased with the appointment, noting that the bishop-elect has carefully maintained his independence from the government-controlled Catholic Patriotic Association.

Further evidence that the appointment was a delicate compromise came from the UCAN news service in Asia, which reported that no government officials were present when Catholics in Beijing selected Father Li Shan to be the next bishop of the Chinese capital. UCAN also said that his nomination was informally cleared with representatives of the "underground" Church.