OTHER PONTIFICAL ACTS

VATICAN CITY, JUL 13, 2002 (VIS) - The Holy Father:

- Appointed Bishop Hugo Barrantes Urena of Puntarenas, Costa Rica, as metropolitan archbishop of San Jose de Costa Rica (area 3,758, population 2,761,910, Catholics 2,347,623, priests 376, religious 721), Costa Rica. He succeeds Archbishop Roman Arrieta Villalobos whose resignation from the pastoral care of the same archdiocese the Holy Father accepted upon having reached the age limit.

- Appointed Fr. Vittorino Girardi, M.C.C.I., professor at the Catholic University of Costa Rica, as bishop of Tilaran (area 11,736, population 347,000, Catholics 338,000, priests 57, religious 44), Costa Rica. The bishop-elect was born in 1938 in Lendinaria, Italy and was ordained a priest in 1963. He succeeds Bishop Hector Morera Vega whose resignation from the pastoral care of the same diocese the Holy Father accepted upon having reached the age limit.

- Accepted the resignation from the office of auxiliary of the archdiocese of San Jose de Costa Rica, Costa Rica, presented by Bishop Antonio Troyo Calderon upon having reached the age limit.

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