SUIFU [YIBIN], Diocese of. - In the southern part of the province of Szechwan, in central-western China.
It was erected as an apostolic vicariate under the name of Southern Szechwan on 24 Jan. 1860 with territory from the vicariate of Eastern Southern Szechwan; it was divided a first time on 10 Aug. 1910 to give life to the mission of Kienchang (v. NINGYUAN) and then on 19 July 1929 for the erection of Yachow (v. KIATING), to which it ceded new territory in 1933 and in 1938. On 3 Dec. 1924 it took its present name from the city of S. On 11 Apr. 1946, with the establishment of the episcopal hierarchy in China, it was elevated to a diocese suffragan of Chungking. It has been entrusted, from the beginning, to the Society for Foreign Missions of Paris.
It has an area of approximately 50,000 sq km. As of 30 June 1947, out of a total population of approximately 7,000,000 inhabitants, Catholics numbered 13,846; foreign priests were 16 and Chinese 40; major seminarians 5, minor 15; foreign nuns 9 and Chinese 5. Among the works were 2 hospitals, 5 medicine dispensaries, 3 orphanages, 27 schools with 1531 pupils.
The present territory of S. formed part, from 1696 to 1856, of the single mission of Szechwan (v. CHENGYU) and then, from 1856 to 1860, of the mission of Eastern Southern Szechwan (v. CHUNGKING) and followed its ecclesiastical development. At the moment of its erection it counted numerous Christians, so much so that its first apostolic vicar, Msgr. Pier Maria Pichon (1860-71), founded the Seminary in order to procure missionary personnel, the lack of which prevented him from developing the evangelization. His successors Msgr. Leplay (1871-86) and Msgr. Marco Chatagnon (1887-1920), with native and foreign elements, were able to give effective impetus to missionary activity.
Bibliography4 works
Adamo Pucci