The Bishop of Hong Kong is the head of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Hong Kong, who is responsible for looking after its spiritual and administrative needs. The Diocese of Hong Kong is nominally part of the ecclesiastical province of Canton and thus is a suffragan of that archdiocese. However, it has been exempt in practice since 1951, when the People's Republic of China severed diplomatic relations with the Holy See. As a Crown colony of the United Kingdom at the time, Hong Kong was unaffected by this and relations with the Vatican continued unabated. Consequently, the bishop of Hong Kong answers "directly to the Holy See". The current bishop is Stephen Chow.
The diocese began as the Apostolic Prefecture of Hong Kong, which was created on 22 April 1841. Theodore Joset was appointed its first ordinary, and under his reign, the city's first Catholic church was built on Wellington Street. On 2 September 1890, the prefecture was elevated to the status of apostolic vicariate. It was raised to the level of diocese on 11 April 1946, as part of the establishment of the ecclesiastical hierarchy in China under the papal bull Quotidie Nos by Pope Pius XII.
Nine men have been Bishop of Hong Kong; another six were heads of its antecedent jurisdictions. Four bishops – John Baptist Wu, Joseph Zen, John Tong Hon, and Chow – were elevated to the College of Cardinals. Francis Hsu, the ninth ordinary of the diocese, was the first ethnically Chinese bishop of Hong Kong. Tong, whose episcopacy spanned from 2009 to 2017, was the first bishop born in Hong Kong. Wu had the longest tenure as Bishop of Hong Kong, serving for 27 years from 1975 to 2002, while his immediate predecessor Peter Lei held the position for seven months (1973–1974), marking the shortest episcopacy.
List of ordinaries +KeyDenotes bishop who was elevated to the College of CardinalsMEMPIMEPontifical Institute for Foreign MissionsOFMOrder of Friars Minor (Franciscan Order)SDBSalesians of Don BoscoSJSociety of Jesus
Apostolic Prefects of Hong Kong +Apostolic PrefectsFromUntilIncumbentNotesRef(s)18411842Appointed on 22 April 1841. Arrived in Hong Kong on 3 March 1842. Died on 5 August 1842.18501855, Appointed on 24 August 1850. Resigned on 20 June 1855. Died on 17 March 1866.18551867Appointed on 20 June 1855. Died on 10 March 1867.18681874, Appointed on 27 December 1868.
Apostolic Vicars of Hong Kong +Apostolic VicarsFromUntilIncumbentNotesRef(s)18741894, Became the first Apostolic Vicar of Hong Kong on 4 October 1874. Died on 27 September 1894.18951904, Appointed on 11 January 1895. Returned to Italy on 4 August 1904. Died on 26 December 1904.19051924, Appointed on 12 July 1905. Died on 20 February 1924.19261946, Appointed on 8 March 1926.
Bishops of Hong Kong +BishopsFromUntilIncumbentNotesRef(s)19461951, Became the first Bishop of Hong Kong on 11 April 1946. Installed on 31 October 1948. Died on 3 September 1951.19511968, Coadjutor bishop from 1949 to 1951. Installed on 26 October 1952, after his release from prison in mainland China. Resigned on 30 November 1968. Died on 14 February 1983.19691973Auxiliary bishop from 1967 to 1968. Apostolic administrator from 1968 to 1969. First Chinese bishop of the diocese. Died on 23 May 1973.19731974Auxiliary bishop from 1971 to 1973. Appointed on 21 December 1973. Died on 23 July 1974.19752002Appointed on 5 April 1975. Elevated to cardinal on 28 June 1988. Died on 23 September 2002.20022009, Coadjutor bishop from 1996 to 2002. Elevated to cardinal on 24 March 2006. Retired on 15 April 2009, after reaching the mandatory retirement age of 75.20092017Auxiliary bishop from 1996 to 2008. Coadjutor bishop from 2008 to 2009. First bishop born in Hong Kong. Elevated to cardinal on 18 February 2012. Retired on 1 August 2017, after reaching the mandatory retirement age of 75. Apostolic administrator from 2019 to 2021 following the death of his successor, Michael Yeung.20172019Auxiliary bishop from 2014 to 2016. Coadjutor bishop from 2016 to 2017. Died on 3 January 2019.2021present, Appointed on 17 May 2021. Elevated to cardinal on 30 September 2023.
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