2ND LD: Beijing, Vatican agree on appointment of Shanghai bishop.

HONG KONG, June 29 Kyodo

(EDS: UPDATING)

A new auxiliary bishop of Shanghai ordained by the Chinese government to assist the ailing incumbent bishop has received approval from the Vatican, an online Catholic news publication reported.

Giuseppe Xing Wenzhi, 42, who was ordained auxiliary bishop of Shanghai on Tuesday, will serve concurrently with Bishop Aloysius Jin Luxian, 89, AsiaNews said Tuesday.

AsiaNews said Bishop Xing publicly claimed he has received nomination by the Vatican.

But the Chinese Patriotic Catholic Association said since China and Vatican do no have diplomatic ties, it does need approval from the Holy See over the appointment of bishops, according to the Commercial Radio.

Nevertheless, it is understood within the Catholic communities that in most appointment cases, there is consensus between the two parties although it is seldom publicized.

Vatican's most senior representative of the Hong Kong diocese, Bishop Joseph Zen said that in the past Beijing always prohibited publicizing such cases when bishops were appointed by the Vatican and were allowed to be ordained in China.

''But this time, it's allowed to be made public so I think it's a breakthrough. It signifies the openness of the government,'' he said Wednesday.

''I think it's very good...even for diplomatic relations between China and the Vatican,'' the bishop said.

Currently, over 90 percent of bishops named by Beijing have received approval from the Vatican, Beatrice Leung, a nun and internationals relations professor at Wenzao Ursuline College of Languages in Kaohsiung told Kyodo News.

AsiaNews said the move indicates that the Chinese government hopes to find a way of healing the rift between the underground and the official church in China.

Ties between China and the Vatican were ruptured in 1951 when Beijing expelled the Vatican's ambassador.

It also called the joint nomination ''a victory'' for Catholic Chinese as bishops nominated by Beijing rather than the Vatican have been marginalized and scorned by Christian communities in China.

According to the South China Morning Post, Bishop Xing is described as ''soft-spoken'' and ''humble.'' He recently returned from the United States after more than a year of study to improve his English and prepare him to take over.

Bishop Jin, who was imprisoned for 27 years for his beliefs, has earned a reputation for standing up to Shanghai's religious authorities, SCMP said.

In China, all churches have to be registered with the government.

Many choose not to register as they want to stay autonomous of state control. But clergies and attendants of underground churches often face arrest and detention by authorities.

Hopes for China and the Vatican to mend their ties have been rekindled under new Pope Benedict XVI.

According to the estimates of religious groups, the number of Catholics in China has swelled to 12 million from 3 million in the 1980s. The official figure announced by China is 5.3 million.

Prompted by a sharp rise in the number of religious converts in the 1980s, which is seen as a threat to the Communist Party, China ordered the diocese to hand over its administrative power in 1989, including the appointment of bishops.