Leo XIV Approves Bishop Unilaterally Selected by Chinese Authorities in March
The Vatican bulletin announced the consecration today and stated that Pope Leo XIV had approved Chang's candidacy on June 15.
The Vatican statement does not mention that Chang had already been elected bishop-designate in China on March 20, 2026, reports AsiaNews.it.
The episcopal see of Chifeng had been vacant for twenty years.
Career Entirely Within the State-Controlled Church
Born on April 4, 1984, in Beizhen, Liaoning Province, Chang Yanfeng belongs entirely to China's state-recognized religious structure.
He studied at Shenyang Theological Seminary from 2000 to 2006. He entered the seminary at just sixteen years old. Shenyang is the major seminary of the Chinese state religion in northeast China.
From 2007 to 2010, he was permitted to pursue graduate studies at the Catholic University of Daejeon in South Korea. Overseas theological study by mainland Chinese seminarians requires official approval and remains relatively uncommon.
After his priestly ordination, he served in parishes and at Chifeng Cathedral before becoming diocesan administrator in 2021. He is also director of the Chifeng 'Chinese Catholic Patriotic Association'.
Three weeks ago, he chaired a meeting committing the local Church to implementing the controversial 'Law on Promoting National Unity and Progress', which advances the policy of "Sinicization" at the expense of the languages and cultures of China's ethnic minorities. The issue is especially sensitive in Inner Mongolia, where ethnic Mongols make up about 18% of the population.
According to AsiaNews, an official report of the meeting stated that participants had gained "a profound understanding of the great legal significance and practical importance of this law," and pledged to integrate its principles into the Church's daily work of evangelization.
Chifeng has about 50,000 Catholics served by roughly 30 priests and 20 religious sisters.
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