Seoul: Pope Leo XIV has appointed Rev. Jermanus Kwak Jin-sang as an auxiliary bishop of the Suwon Diocese in South Korea, the Apostolic Nunciature to Seoul said Saturday.

According to Yonhap News Agency, Kwak, aged 61, was ordained as a Catholic priest in February 1993 after graduating from the College of Theology at the Catholic University of Korea. He began his pastoral ministry as an assistant priest at a parish in the Suwon diocese.

He later pursued further education, earning a master's degree in practical theology and a doctorate in systematic theology from the Catholic University of Paris.

With the latest appointment, the number of active Catholic bishops in South Korea has risen to 42, including three archbishops, 21 bishops, and 18 emeritus bishops.

The Suwon Diocese, established in 1963, is one of the 16 dioceses of the Catholic Church in South Korea.