BENEDICT XVI NAMES 15 NEW CARDINALS

VATICAN CITY, FEB 22, 2006 (VIS) - After the general audience today, Feast of the Chair of St. Peter, Benedict XVI announced the names of 15 prelates who will be created cardinals in a concistory due to be held on March 24.

  Following the March 24 concistory, the first of his pontificate, the College of Cardinals will number 193 members of whom 120, under the age of 80, will be electors.

  In announcing the names, the Holy Father affirmed that today's feast is "a particularly appropriate day" to announce the concistory because cardinals "have the duty to help and support Peter's Successor in carrying out the apostolic task entrusted to him in the service of the Church."

  "The cardinals," Benedict XVI went on, "constitute a sort of Senate around the Pope upon which he relies in carrying out the duties associated with his ministry as 'permanent and visible source and foundation of unity of faith and communion'."

  The Holy Father also made it clear that with the new appointments he wished "to make up the number of 120 cardinal electors, as established by Pope Paul VI."

  Given below is a list of the new cardinal electors:

 - Archbishop William Joseph Levada, prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith.

 - Archbishop Franc Rode C.M., prefect of the Congregation for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life.

 - Archbishop Agostino Vallini, prefect of the Supreme Tribunal of the Apostolic Signatura.

 - Archbishop Jorge Liberato Urosa Savino of Caracas, Venezuela.

 - Archbishop Gaudencio B. Rosales of Manila, Philippines.

 - Archbishop Jean-Pierre Ricard of Bordeaux, France.

 - Archbishop Antonio Canizares Llovera of Toledo, Spain.

 - Archbishop Nicholas Cheong Jin-suk of Seoul, Korea.

- Archbishop Sean Patrick O'Malley O.F.M. Cap., of Boston, U.S.A.

 - Archbishop Stanislaw Dziwisz of Krakow, Poland.

 - Archbishop Carlo Caffarra of Bologna, Italy.

 - Bishop Joseph Zen Ze-kiun S.D.B. of Hong Kong, China

  The Pope then announced that he had also decided to elevate to the dignity of cardinal "three prelates over the age of 80, in consideration of the service they have rendered to the Church with exemplary faithfulness and admirable dedication." They are:

 - Archbishop Andrea Cordero Lanza di Montezemolo, archpriest of the Basilica of St. Paul's Outside-the-Walls.

 - Archbishop Peter Poreku Dery, emeritus of Tamale, Ghana.

 - Fr. Albert Vanhoye S.J., formerly rector of the Pontifical Biblical Institute and secretary of the Pontifical Biblical Commission.

  The new cardinals, said the Pope, "well reflect the universality of the Church. In fact, they come from various parts of the world and undertake different duties in the service of the People of God. I invite you to raise a special prayer to the Lord for them, that He may concede them the grace necessary to carry out their mission with generosity."

  In closing, the Holy Father expressed his intention to preside at a concelebration with the new Cardinals on the day following the concistory, March 25 and Solemnity of the Annunciation. "For that occasion I will invite all members of the College of Cardinals, with whom I also intend to hold a meeting of reflection and prayer on March 23," the day prior to the concistory.
AC/CONCISTORY CARDINALS/...                        VIS 20060222 (540)

POPE ENCOURAGES THE STUDY OF LATIN

VATICAN CITY, FEB 22, 2006 (VIS) - At the end of the general audience, the Pope addressed a greeting in Latin to students at the faculty of Christian and Classical Literature of the Pontifical Salesian University in Rome.

  "My predecessors rightly encouraged the study of [this] great language," said the Pope in Latin, "in order to achieve a better understanding of the sound doctrine contained in the ecclesiastical and humanistic disciplines. In the same way, we encourage the continuation of this activity, so that as many people as possible may perceive the importance of this treasure and attain it."
AG/LATIN/...                                    VIS 20060222 (110)

CHAIR OF ST. PETER: HONOR AND OBLIGATION FOR ROMAN CHURCH

VATICAN CITY, FEB 22, 2006 (VIS) - The Feast of the Chair of St. Peter, which falls today, provided the theme for Benedict XVI's catechesis during the general audience, held this morning in the Paul VI Hall.

  This is the feast, said the Pope, "with which we give thanks to God for the mission entrusted to the Apostle Peter and his Successors. The 'cathedra' is literally the seat of the bishop. ... It is the symbol of his authority and, particularly, of his 'Magisterium,' in other words of the evangelical teaching that he, as successor to the Apostles, is called to protect and transmit to the Christian community."

  The Holy Father then recalled that the first "seat" of the Church was the Cenacle, saying "it is probable that a special place was reserved for Simon Peter in that room, where Mary Mother of Jesus also prayed together with the disciples. Subsequently, Peter's seat became Antioch." From there, Providence led him to Rome "where he crowned with martyrdom his journey in the service of the Gospel. For this reason the see of Rome, which obtained the greatest honor, also received the obligation entrusted by Christ to Peter to be at the service of all particular Churches, for the edification and unity of the entire People of God."

  "To celebrate the 'Chair' of Peter means, then, giving it a strong spiritual significance, and recognizing therein a privileged sign of the love of God, the good and eternal Shepherd Who wishes to unite the whole of His Church and lead her along the way of salvation. ... As the Father of the Church St. Jerome writes: 'I follow no leader save Christ, so I consult the Chair of Peter, for this I know is the rock upon which the Church is built'."

  Benedict XVI concluded his catechesis with an invitation to pray, "especially for the ministry with which God has entrusted me. ... Call upon the Holy Spirit to support with His light and strength my daily service to the whole Church."

  The audience in the Paul VI Hall was preceded by a meeting in St. Peter's Basilica between the Pope and pilgrims and students from the Italian schools of St. Francis in the city of Lodi, and Mary Immaculate in Rome. The Holy Father told them that "today's feast, inviting us to look to the Chair of St. Peter, encourages us to nourish the individual and community life of faith, founded upon the testimony of Peter and of the other Apostles."
AG/CHAIR PETER/...                                VIS 20060222 (430)