OTHER PONTIFICAL ACTS

VATICAN CITY, MAR 8, 2007 (VIS) - The Holy Father:

 - Accepted the resignation from the pastoral care of the diocese of Lleida, Spain, presented by Bishop Francesc-Xavier Ciuraneta Aymi, in accordance with canon 401 para. 2 of the Code of Canon Law.

 - Appointed Bishop Antonio Jose Cavaco Carrilho, auxiliary of Porto, Portugal, as bishop of Funchal (area 800, population 282,000, Catholics 270,000, priests 104, permanent deacons 2, religious 289), Portugal. He succeeds Bishop Teodoro de Faria, whose resignation from the pastoral care of the same diocese, the Holy Father accepted, upon having reached the age limit.

 - Appointed as members of the Pontifical Council for Inter-religious Dialogue: Cardinals Ivan Dias, prefect of the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples, and Walter Kasper, president of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity; His Beatitude Nerses Bedros XIX, patriarch of Cilicia of the Armenians, Lebanon; Archbishops Paulino Lukundu Loro M.C.C.I., of Juba, Sudan; Murphy Nicholas Xavier Pakiam of Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, and Archbishop Fouad Twal, coadjutor to the patriarch of Jerusalem of the Latins; Bishops Antoine Audo S.J., of Alep, Beroea, Halab, Syria; John Bosco Panya Kritcharoen of Ratchaburi, Thailand; Bishop Warnakulasurya Wadumestrige Devasritha Valence Mendis of Chilaw, Sri Lanka; Bosco Lin Chi-nan of Tainan, Taiwan; Paul Bemile of Wa, Ghana; Rene-Marie Ehuzu C.I.M., of Abomey, Benin; Carlos Aguiar Retes of Texcoco, Mexico; Pierre Tran Dinh Tu of Phu Cuong, Vietnam; George Dodo of Zaria, Nigeria; William Francis Murphy of Rockville Centre, U.S.A.; Paul Yemboaro Ouedraogo of Fada N'Gourma, Burkina Faso; Guy Harpigny of Tournai, Belgium, and Bishop Botros Fahim Awad Hanna, curial bishop of the patriarchate of Alexandria of the Copts, Egypt.

 - Appointed Cardinal Wilfrid Fox Napier O.F.M., archbishop of Durban, South Africa, as a member of the Pontifical Council for Culture.

 - Appointed as members of the Pontifical Committee for Historical Sciences, David D'Avray, professor of medieval history at University College, London, England, and Nelson Hubert Minnich, professor of Church history at the Catholic University of America in Washington D.C., U.S.A.

 - Appointed Fr. Giovanni Paolo Zedda of the clergy of the diocese of Ales-Terralba, Italy, vicar forane and pastor of the parish of "Santa Chiara" in San Gavino Monreale, as bishop of Iglesias (area 1,678, population 145,600, Catholics 145,000, priests 89, permanent deacons 2, religious 74), Italy. The bishop-elect was born in Ingurtosu, Italy in 1947 and ordained a priest in 1971. He succeeds Bishop Tarciso Pillolla, whose resignation from the pastoral care of the same diocese, the Holy Father accepted, upon having reached the age limit.
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AUDIENCES

VATICAN CITY, MAR 8, 2007 (VIS) - The Holy Father today received in separate audiences six prelates from the Italian Episcopal Conference, on their "ad limina" visit:

    - Bishop Francesco Guido Ravinale of Asti.

    - Bishop Giuseppe Cavallotto of Cuneo and Fossano.

    - Bishop Arrigo Miglio of Ivrea.

    - Bishop Luciano Pacomio of Mondovi.

    - Bishop Piergiorgio Debernardi of Pinerolo.

    - Bishop Giuseppe Guerrini of Saluzzo.

  This evening he is scheduled to receive in audience Cardinal Ivan Dias, prefect of the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples.
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HOMAGE TO THE HOLY FATHER FOR HIS 80TH BIRTHDAY

VATICAN CITY, MAR 8, 2007 (VIS) - On March 6, in the Paul VI Hall of Rome's Pontifical Lateran University, the presentation took place of a recently published book entitled "Beauty and Identity. Europe and its Cathedrals," written by Msgr. Timothy Verdon.

  Among those participating in the event were Cardinal Jean-Louis Tauran, archivist and librarian of Holy Roman Church, Bishop Salvatore Fisichella, auxiliary of Rome and rector of the Pontifical Lateran University, and Marilena Ferrari, president of FMR, the company that has published the book.

  The volume, which intends to pay homage to Benedict XVI for the occasion of his 80th birthday (April 16), is a limited edition with a print run of just 1,000 numbered copies. On the cover is a figure of "St. Peter" by Giuseppe Ducrot. In the book, Msgr. Verdon, an expert on iconography and the history of religions, uses the images of 36 European cathedrals, churches and baptisteries to trace the history of the Church and the liturgy, and of the social life that, with the Church and through her, has developed over the last two millennia.
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POPE GIVES THANKS FOR ANNUAL PETER'S PENCE DONATION

VATICAN CITY, MAR 8, 2007 (VIS) - This morning the Pope received members of the Rome-based charity organization, the Circle of St. Peter, for their traditional annual audience during which they present him with Peter's Pence, the proceeds of collections taken up in Roman churches over the last year.

  In his address, Benedict XVI recalled that the tradition of collecting "Peter's Pence" was already in use "in the first Christian communities," and derives from "the awareness that each member of the faithful is called to support the work of evangelization, also in material terms, and at the same time to help the poor and needy."

  "Peter's Pence is collected annually in all dioceses, parishes and religious communities," said the Holy Father, "and is then brought to the heart of the Church to be redistributed according to necessity, and to the requests that reach the Pope from all over the earth."

  "May the Lord repay you and render your ecclesial service fruitful," Pope Benedict told his audience, "and may He help you to make all the initiatives of your Circle a success." In this context, the Pope recalled how for more than six years they have been "supporting the sick and their families" at the Sacred Heart Hospice. "A silent but eloquent witness of love for human life, which deserves attention and respect until its final breath."

  After thanking them for their visit, the Pope encouraged the members of the Circle of St. Peter to continue their "charitable activities and their service of attending upon and welcoming the faithful in the Vatican Basilica and during the ceremonies presided by the Pope."
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