KWEITEH, DIOCESE of. - At the eastern extremity of the civil province of Honan, in central China. Erected as an apostolic prefecture on 19 June 1928, by division of the apostolic vicariate of Kaifeng, it was entrusted to the Recollects of St Augustine of the regular province of S. Nicola da Tolentino (Navarre, Spain), who had been working there since 1924; on 18 May 1937 it was elevated to an apostolic vicariate and then to a diocese suffragan to Kaifeng on 11 Apr. 1946, with the establishment of the episcopal hierarchy in China.
It has an area of 8,000 sq. km. As of 30 June 1947, out of a total population of approximately 2,000,000 inhabitants, there were 11,245 Catholics and 830 catechumens. Besides the bishop, there were 14 Recollect priests, of whom 3 were Chinese; 12 scholastics and 2 novices of the same Order; 6 minor seminarians; and 19 sisters, of whom only 1 was foreign. There were 3 churches, 8 oratories, 125 chapels, and 11 principal stations. The works included an orphanage with 17 children and a medical dispensary. The 4 elementary schools had a total of 194 pupils, while the 8 schools of elementary instruction and prayer had 353 attendees. The mission has declined since 1937 because of the hostilities between Japan and China.
The history of Christianity in this territory Kaifeng (v.). Evangelical preaching, although attempted several times, left no lasting traces: the Christians of today date back to the beginning of this century.