OTHER PONTIFICAL ACTS

VATICAN CITY, FEB 18, 2006 (VIS) - The Holy Father:

 - Appointed Kay Martin Schmalhausen Panzio S.C.V., chaplain and professor of ethics at the St. Paul Catholic University of Arequipa, Peru, as bishop prelate of Ayaviri (area 32,300, population 179,300, Catholics 175,800, priests 17, religious 28), Peru. The bishop-elect was born in Lima, Peru in 1964 and ordained a priest in 1989. He succeeds Juan Godayol Colom S.D.B., whose resignation from the pastoral care of the same territorial prelature, the Holy Father accepted, in accordance with canon 401 para. 2 of the Code of Canon Law.

 - Appointed Bishop Remi Joseph Gustave Sainte-Marie M. Afr., of Dedza, Malawi, as coadjutor bishop of Lilongwe (area 24,025, population 4,068,000, Catholics 774,760, priests 112, religious 324), Malawi.
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THE MERCY OF GOD HEALS HUMAN BEINGS

VATICAN CITY, FEB 19, 2006 (VIS) - The miraculous healing worked by Jesus at the beginning of His ministry, as narrated in the Gospel readings over these Sundays, provided the theme for Benedict XVI's remarks prior to praying the Angelus with pilgrims gathered in St. Peter's Square.

  The paralytic cured by Jesus, as recounted in today's liturgy, represents, said the Pope, the image of human beings "prevented by sin from moving freely ... and from giving the best of themselves. Indeed evil, taking root in the soul, binds man ... and little by little paralyzes him. For this reason Jesus ... first says: 'your sins are forgiven,' and only afterwards adds: 'rise, take up your pallet and go home.' ... The message is clear. Man, paralyzed by sin, has need of the mercy of God that Christ came to give him, so that, healed in his heart, all his life can again blossom."

  The Holy Father continued: "Today too, humans bear the mark of sin that prevents them from making swift progress in those values of fraternity, justice and peace that they have proposed in solemn declarations, Why? ... In historical terms, we well know that there are many causes and that the problem is a complex one; but the Word of God invites us to look with faith and, like the men who carried the paralytic, to trust that only Jesus can truly heal."

  Benedict XVI highlighted how his predecessors, "especially the beloved John Paul II," made a fundamental choice "to lead the men and women of our time to Christ the Redeemer so that ... He may heal them. I too wish to continue along this road. In particular with my first Encyclical 'Deus caritas est,' I sought to show believers and the whole world that God is the source of authentic love. Only the love of God can renew the heart of man, and only if cured at heart can paralyzed humanity once again arise and walk."

  After the Angelus, the Pope again recalled the recent catastrophic landslide that destroyed two villages in the Philippines. "I ask you," he said, "to join me in praying for the victims, their loved ones and all those affected. May the grieving families experience the consolation of the Lord's presence and rescue workers be assured of our support and concern."
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