Pope appoints new bishop for Oita Diocese in Japan

Japan

Father Moriyama’s appointment comes more than a year after Bishop Hamaguchi died

Pope Francis has appointed Father Sulpizio Shinzo Moriyama, secretary-general of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Japan, as the new bishop of Oita Diocese.

The appointment on April 5 came more than one year after Bishop Paul Sueo Hamaguchi, who had served the diocese since 2011, died on Dec. 28, 2020.

Oita is the capital city of Oita Prefecture on the island of Kyushu, one of the five main islands of Japan.

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Oita Diocese is one of the smallest Catholic jurisdictions in Japan with an estimated 6,030 Catholics.

However, Catholicism in Oita dates back to the 16th century thanks to Portuguese missionaries when it became part of the Diocese of Macau in China. Macau was a Portuguese colony from 1557 until 1999.

In a press statement, Oita Diocese requested prayers for the new bishop. “We thank God for giving us a new bishop. Please pray for the elected bishop,” it said.

Born on Jan. 17, 1959, Bishop-elect Moriyama obtained his baccalaureate in philosophy at Keio University in Tokyo in 1984 and in theology at St. Sulpizio Seminary in Fukuoka in 1988.

He was ordained a priest on March 21, 1988, incardinated in the Diocese of Fukuoka.

In Fukuoka, he served in various positions such as parish vicar of Daimyo Cho (1988-91) and of Kokura (1991-93); director of Fukuoka Minor Seminary (1993-95); Parish priest of Oomuta (1995-2001); parish priest of Tobata (2001-07); parish priest of Nishijin (2007-13); and parish priest of Kurume (2014-17).

He also served as president of the diocesan committee for evangelization (2015-17) and was responsible for the formation of candidates in the Inter-diocesan Seminary (2017-20).

Since 2020, he has been undersecretary and then secretary-general of the Episcopal Conference of Japan.

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