The Apostolic Prefecture of Guilin is a Roman Catholic Prefecture that has jurisdiction over Catholics within the Guilin region of Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region in China.
Like other apostolic prefectures, it is immediately subject to the Holy See.
It was established on February 9, 1938 under the authority of American missionary priest John Angel Romaniello. Like other foreign missionaries, he was expelled from China at the time of the Korean war in the 1950s, however, he retained the legal office of prefect of Guilin in the church until the 1980s.
In 1993 a bishop was consecrated for Guilin, Bishop Benedict Cai. The consecration of Bishop Benedict was done without the expressed approval of the Holy See and would therefore be subject to a penalty of automatic excommunication unless done under a perceived threat of force or done with secret permission from the Holy See. Bishop Benedict died on August 20, 2007 at the age of 90, as of 2015 no new bishop has been consecrated yet as his replacement and the tiny catholic community in Guilin has only one priest in one church for the entire region.
Guilin has a monsoon-influenced humid subtropical climate, with short, mild winters, and long, hot, humid summers. Winter begins dry but becomes progressively wetter and cloudier. Spring is generally overcast and often rainy, while summer continues to be rainy though is the sunniest time of year. Autumn is sunny and dry. The monthly 24-hour average temperature ranges from 8.1 °C (46.6 °F) in January to 28.2 °C (82.8 °F) in July, and the annual mean is 19.12 °C (66.4 °F). The annual rainfall is just above 1,888 mm (74 in), and is delivered in bulk (~50%) from April to June, when the plum rains occur and often create the risk of flooding. With monthly percent possible sunshine ranging from 14% in March to 53% in September, the city receives 1,487 hours of bright sunshine annually.
Guilin is located in northern Guangxi, bordering Liuzhou to the west, Laibin to the southwest, Wuzhou to the south, Hezhou to the southeast, and within neighbouring Hunan, Huaihua to the northwest, Shaoyang to the north, and Yongzhou to the east. It has a total area of 27,809 square kilometres (10,737 sq mi). The topography of the area is marked by karst formations. The Li River flows through the city.
