CARDINAL GIUSEPPE MARIA SENSI DIES AT AGE 94

VATICAN CITY, JUL 26, 2001 (VIS) - Cardinal Giuseppe Maria Sensi died this morning in a Rome hospital at the age of 94. Born in Cosenza, Italy in 1907, he was ordained a priest on December 21, 1929 and a bishop on July 24, 1955. Pope Paul VI made him a cardinal in the consistory of May 24, 1976.

Cardinal Sensi's priestly life was dedicated to the Holy See's diplomatic service. Over the years he worked not only in the Vatican's Secretariat of State but also in the nunciatures in Bucarest, Berne, Brussels, and Prague. He was also permanent observer to UNESCO, the United Nations Education, Scientific and Cultural Organization. The cardinal served as nuncio in Costa Rica, apostolic delegate in the Holy Land, and apostolic nuncio in Ireland and Portugal.

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SCHOLASTIC ACCORD SIGNED BETWEEN HOLY SEE AND GABON

VATICAN CITY, JUL 26, 2001 (VIS) - A Scholastic Accord between the Holy See and the Republic of Gabon was signed this morning in the library of the Vatican Secretariat of State by Archbishop Jean-Louis Tauran, secretary for Relations with States and Andre Mba Obame, minister of national education of Gabon, according to a communique released this morning.

In the presence of delegations representing both parties, they signed the Accord between the Holy See and the Republic of Gabon on the Statute of Catholic Teaching, stipulated in application of Articles 4 and 15 of the Accord-Framework between the Holy See and the Republic of Gabon on Principles and on Several Juridical Dispositions Relative to their Relations and Collaboration, which had been signed in Libreville, Gabon on December 12, 1997.

Archbishop Tauran, in brief remarks in French, noted that this was the first such Accord in French-speaking Africa. He thanked "all those who participated in this negotiation on the statute for Catholic education, a delicate but necessary work for the evangelizing mission of the Church and the good of your populations, As you know, if the Holy See is decidedly committed to this domain, it is so that the Catholic Church may continue her work, long-standing and appreciated, in the service of the education and the formation of young Gabonese who are freely entrusted to her by their families."

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OTHER PONTIFICAL ACTS

VATICAN CITY, JUL 26, 2001 (VIS) - The Holy Father appointed:

- Fr. Albert LeGatt, pastor of the Cathedral of Prince-Albert, as bishop of Saskatoon (area 44,800, population 318,000, Catholics 93,859, priests 93, religious 304), Canada. The bishop-elect was born in Melfort, Canada, in 1953, and ordained to the priesthood in 1983.

- Fr. Roberto Camilleri, O.F.M., pastor of Espiritu Santo in Tegucigalpa (area 23,106, population 1,858,702, Catholics 1,519,352, priests 151, permanent deacons 1, religious 319), Honduras, as auxiliary of the same archdiocese. The bishop-elect was born in Hamrun, Malta, in 1951, and ordained to the priesthood in 1975.

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CATHOLIC CHURCH DOES NOT RECOGNIZE VALIDITY OF MORMON BAPTISM

VATICAN CITY, JUL 26, 2001 (VIS) - The Catholic Church does not recognize the validity of baptism conferred by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, whose followers are known as Mormons. This is the response, published with the approval of the Pope, of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith to a question in this regard. The response is dated June 5 and is signed by Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger and Archbishop Tarcisio Bertone, S.D.B., respectively prefect and secretary of the congregation.

A recent article published in the Vatican newspaper, "L'Osservatore Romano," explains that "the baptism of the Catholic Church and that of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints differ essentially, both in regard to faith in the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, in whose name baptism is conferred, and in regard to the reference to Christ Who instituted it."

Regarding the matter of the sacrament - water - "no problem exists. ... The Mormons practice baptism by immersion, which is one of the modes of the celebration of baptism ... which the Catholic Church also accepts."

Regarding the form of the sacrament, "the similarities with the formula used by the Catholic Church are, at first glance, evident, but in reality they are only apparent. There is not, in fact, an underlying doctrinal coincidence. There is not a true invocation of the Trinity because the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, according to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, are not three persons in which a sole divinity subsists, but three gods who form one divinity."

"According to the Catholic Church," says the article, "baptism remits not only personal sins but also original sin, and therefore children as well are baptized for the remission of sins. This remission of original sin is not accepted by the Mormon Church, which denies the existence of this sin and therefore baptizes only people who have the use of reason, who are at least eight-years old, excluding the mentally handicapped."

The article concludes: "The decision of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith is a response to a particular question regarding the doctrine on the baptism of the Mormons, and obviously does not indicate a judgement on the persons who adhere to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints."

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