OTHER PONTIFICAL ACTS

VATICAN CITY, OCT 23, 2006 (VIS) - The Holy Father:

 - Appointed Fr. Marco Antonio Ordenes Fernandez, diocesan administrator of Iquique, Chile, as bishop of the same diocese (area 41,799, population 241,000, Catholics 125,400, priests 32, permanent deacons 11, religious 57). The bishop-elect was born in Iquique in 1964 and ordained a priest in 1996.

  On Saturday, October 21, it was made public that he:

 - Accepted the resignation from the pastoral care of the archdiocese of Arequipa, Peru, presented by Archbishop Jose Paulino Rios Reynoso, in accordance with canon 401 para. 2 of the Code of Canon Law. He is succeeded by Coadjutor Archbishop Javier del Rio Alba.

 - Erected the Chaldean eparchy of Oceania with the name of "St. Thomas the Apostle of Sydney of the Chaldeans," appointing Archbishop Djibrail Kassab of Bassorah, Iraq as the first bishop of the new eparchy, allowing him to maintain his title of archbishop "ad personam."

 - Appointed Bishop Edward Ozorowski, auxiliary of the archdiocese of Bialystok, Poland, as archbishop of the same archdiocese (area 5,550, population 421,426, Catholics 352,041, priests 435, religious 220). The archbishop-elect was born in Wolka Przedmiescie, Poland, in 1941, ordained a priest in 1964 and consecrated a bishop in 1979.

 - Appointed Fr. Jan Niemiec, rector of the major episcopal seminary of the diocese of Kamyanets-Podilskyi of the Latins, Ukraine, as auxiliary of the same diocese (area 47,100, population 4,020,000, Catholics 255,000, priests 153, religious 266). The bishop-elect was born in Rzeszow, Poland, in 1958 and ordained a priest in 1987.

 - Appointed Giuseppe Facchini, bureau chief of the Department of Technical Services of the Governorate of Vatican City State, as vice-director of the same office.
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