PENGPU [BENGBU], Diocese of. - In the northern part of the province of Anhwei, in central China. It was erected as an apostolic vicariate on 21 February 1929 with 21 civil sub-prefectures taken from the apostolic vicariate of Wuhu (v.) and was entrusted to the Society of Jesus, which, for the missionary work, sends there the fathers of the regular province of Turin, who had been on the spot since 1910. On 11 April 1946, with the establishment of the episcopal hierarchy in China, it was elevated to a diocese suffragan of Anking.
It has an area of 60,000 sq. km., and in 1950 counted about 9,500,000 inhabitants, of whom Catholics numbered 64,334 with 13,270 catechumens; Protestants 6,000 and Muslims 100,000. Besides the bishop, there were 41 foreign fathers and 6 Chinese priests, of whom 2 were Jesuits; 3 major and 18 minor seminarians. Auxiliary personnel: 8 lay brothers, 59 sisters, of whom 50 were Chinese, 68 catechists, 350 teachers, 22 baptizers and 9 nurses. It further counted 26 primary and 209 secondary stations with 86 churches and 23 parishes. The works amounted to 27 medicine dispensaries, 3 orphanages and 1 foundling hospital, 32 elementary schools, 4 middle schools, 3 higher schools.
When in 1842, from the apostolic vicariate of Nanking, the first French Jesuit missionaries were sent into the civil province of Anhwei, it counted only 441 faithful, survivors of the ancient Christians. In 1891 the missionaries were 28, the residences 25, the Christian communities 138, the baptized 7,280 and the catechumens 2,431. The missionary work grew more and more and the fruits were so copious that in 1929 the single apostolic vicariate of Wuhu, comprising the entire province, gave life to the two new missions of Anking and P., and the latter was able to have 21 priests of whom 1 was Chinese, 4 lay brothers, 5 coadjutor brothers, 119 Christian communities, 34,186 Christians and 10,194 catechumens.
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Adamo Pucci