OTHER PONTIFICAL ACTS

VATICAN CITY, OCT 29, 2004 (VIS) - The Holy Father:

- Appointed Fr. Mario Alberto Molina Palma, O.A.R., pastor of St. Mary Goretti Parish in Guatemala, as bishop of Quiche (area 8,378, population 614,063, Catholics 491,250, priests 30, religious 96), Guatemala.  The bishop-elect was born in 1948 in Panama and was ordained a priest in 1975.

- Appointed Bishop Joaquin Maria Lopez de Andujar y Canolvas del Castillo, auxiliary of Getafe, Spain as bishop of Getafe (area 2,295, population 1,243,212, Catholics 1,118,890, priests 237, permanent deacons 5, religious 666).
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AUDIENCES

VATICAN CITY, OCT 29, 2004 (VIS) - The Holy Father today received in audience Archbishop Angelo Amato, S.V.D., secretary of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith.
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ACADEMY TO HOLD MEETING ON GLOBAL CHANGE, HUMAN HEALTH

VATICAN CITY, OCT 29, 2004 (VIS) - The Pontifical Academy of Sciences, under the presidency of Prof. Nicola Cabibbo, professor of theoretical physics at La Sapienza University of Rome, will hold a working group from October 31 to November 2 on Interactions Between Global Change and Human Health. The meeting will take place in the academy headquarters in the Casina Pius IV in the Vatican Gardens.

  Participants, including six pontifical academicians and 23 experts from 11 countries, will discuss topics as varied as Aerosol Effects on Environment, Climate and Health, Emerging Infectious Diseases of Wildlife - Threats to Biodiversity and Human Health, Interactions of Demographic Trends and Human Health, Climate Change and Human Rights and Indicators and Measures of Vulnerability of Human Populations: Future Generations of Models.

  The Pontifical Academy of Sciences, founded in August 1603, has 79 members, included two named on October 25, 2004, of whom 25 are Nobel Prize winners. In addition, there are 7 honorary members and 4 who are academicians "perdurante munere," that is, for the length of time that they hold a specific position, they are members of the academy. Fr. George Coyne, S.J. director of the Vatican Observatory is thus an academician as long as he holds that position. Nine members form the Academy Council and there is a permanent staff of five in the Vatican office.
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LIVING THE CHURCH'S SOCIAL DOCTRINE IN OUR DAILY LIVES

VATICAN CITY, OCT 29, 2004 (VIS) - Participants in the plenary assembly of the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace were welcomed by Pope John Paul this morning who, in his talk to them, highlighted how the social doctrine of the Church can assist Christians in their daily lives and guide them in their commitment to help make the world a place of peace, justice and solidarity.

  The Pope had special words for participants in the First World Congress of Ecclesial Offices Working for Justice and Peace, noting that they had "reflected on the most adequate forms for proclaiming the Gospel in the complex realities of our times."

  He referred to the recently published Compendium of the Social Doctrine of the Church, calling it "an instrument that can help Christians in their daily commitment to make the world more just, in the Gospel perspective of a humanism that is truly solidary." He asked that the Church's social doctrine "be made known, spread in its entirety and witnessed to with a constant and coherent pastoral action."

  "In times like ours," John Paul II added, "marked by globalization of the social question, the Church invites everyone to recognize and affirm the centrality of the human person in every milieu and in every manifestation of sociality." He underscored how the social doctrine "opens people up to the horizons of charity. In fact, this is the hour of charity, including social and political charity, that is capable of animating, with the grace of the Gospel, the human realities of work, the economy and politics, pointing out the paths of peace, justice and friendship among peoples."
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IRAN: RELIGIOUS FREEDOM FOR ALL CITIZENS

VATICAN CITY, OCT 29, 2004 (VIS) - This morning the Holy Father received the new ambassador of the Islamic Republic of Iran, Mohammad Javad Faridzade, as he presented his Letters of Credence to the Holy See.

  The Holy Father, in his speech in French, referred to Iran's concern about "the deterioration of the international situation and the threats that weigh on humanity on different levels." In order to establish a balanced international order, he said, it is necessary that States "take advantage of recognized, stable and effective instruments, like the United Nations and other international organizations. This action to promote peace also implies brave action against terrorism … in order to build a world in which everyone can be recognized as children of the same Merciful and Omnipotent God."

  "The Holy See," he continued, "will spare no effort to convince the leaders of States to always renounce violence and force and to make sure that negotiation always prevails as a means of overcoming disagreements and conflicts that emerge among nations, groups and individuals."

  John Paul II, echoing the words of the ambassador, reaffirmed the duty of believers to announce "the fundamental values expressed in religion which guarantee, through natural law, a sign of the imprint of God in man, the dignity of all persons, and which regulate the relations among men. As I have recalled many times," he added, "Catholic faithful … bear witness in favor of a culture of life that respects man from his conception to his natural death, and that guarantees the defense of his rights and basic duties. Among these fundamental rights, the right to religious freedom is in the forefront."

  "The Holy See," he emphasized, "counts on the help of the Iranian authorities in order to allow the faithful of the Catholic Church present in Iran, as well as other Christians, the freedom to profess their religion and to promote the recognition of the juridical personality of ecclesiastic institutions. … Freedom to worship is an aspect of religious freedom which must be the same for all citizens of a country."

  The Pope concluded by highlighting the need for everyone in Iran "to freely express their religious convictions, to gather with their brothers and sisters to worship God, as well as ensuring, through catechesis, the transmission of religious teaching to children and further study for young people and adults, while respecting the laws of the country."
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