(LifeSiteNews) — A new archbishop of Chongqing was consecrated in China on Tuesday after Pope Leo XIV appointed him on July 28 within the framework of the controversial Provisional Agreement between the Holy See and China.
Vatican News confirmed the pope approved the episcopal ordination of Andrea Ding Yang. According to a local report, this followed his previous election by the Chinese Catholic Patriotic Association (CCPA) on April 15.
Archbishop Joseph Li Shan of Beijing, chairman of the CCPA, presided at the consecration.
Chongqing had lacked a Holy See-recognized bishop since 2001.
Born in 1981 in Chongqing, Ding was ordained in 2007 and studied in Beijing, Macao, and spent one graduate year in Rome at the Pontifical University of the Holy Cross from 2014 to 2015.
Ding is reportedly the eighth bishop approved by Pope Leo and the 18th bishop ordained or recognized since the 2018 Provisional Agreement, including seven new bishops who have been ordained since Leo XIV’s election in May 2025.
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 the CCP has control. It also allegedly allows for the removal of legitimate bishops to be replaced by CCP-approved bishops.
The deal was renewed most recently in 2024 for a four-year period.
Before Leo XIV was elected, during the sede vacante period after Pope Francis’ death, two bishops were selected by the CCP, eliciting concerns that China was taking advantage of the vacancy.
The CCP’s move to appoint two bishops during this period demonstrates that Beijing does not see the role of the Holy See or the pope as important. It further points to the fact that China – rather than the Holy See – appears to be in charge in the highly secretive Sino-Vatican deal.
Cardinal Joseph Zen, emeritus bishop of Hong Kong, has repeatedly criticized the deal strongly. He described the agreement as an “incredible betrayal” of China’s Catholics and accused the Vatican of “selling out” Chinese Catholics.
Additionally, the deal has led to an increase in religious persecution that the U.S. Congressional-Executive Commission on China has documented in its annual reports.