The statement went on to note that Wu was “elected as the bishop-designate of the Northern Fujian Diocese on Jan. 18, 2022.”
Wu was born on Dec. 7, 1964, and received his theological formation at Sheshan Seminary in Shanghai. He was ordained to the priesthood on Aug. 15, 1992, the feast of the Assumption of Mary, for the Diocese of Xiamen.
Following his ordination Wu served as a parish priest in the city of Nanping and as the head of the apostolic prefectures of Shaowu and Jian’ou.
According to a report by the Vatican Fides News Agency, in November 2021, Father Wu spoke at a seminar in support of the government’s program of religious sinicization, saying “the Catholic faith and local Chinese culture have truly achieved ‘harmony’ and mutual integration, and this ‘harmony’ represents the fulcrum and suggests the right direction for ‘sinicization’ of Catholicism.”
The announcement of Wu’s appointment comes amid an unprecedented swiftness on the part of the Holy See, as he is the third bishop appointed in mainland China in less than a week, signaling a rapprochement with the People’s Republic of China.
On Jan. 25, Father Thaddeus Wang Yuesheng was consecrated as bishop of Zhengzhou, bringing an end to a 70-year-long vacancy in the diocese to an end.
