IN MEMORIAM

VATICAN CITY, 3 MAR 2009 (VIS) - The following prelates died in recent weeks:

 - Cardinal Stephanos II Ghattas, C.M., patriarch emeritus of Alexandria of the Copts, Egypt, on 20 January at the age of 89.

 - Cardinal Stephen Kim Sou-hwan, archbishop emeritus of Seoul, Korea, on 16 February at the age of 86.

 - Cardinal Pio Laghi, prefect emeritus of the Congregation for Catholic Education and patron of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta, on 11 January at the age of 86.

 - Cardinal Paul Joseph Pham Dinh Tung, archbishop emeritus of Hanoi, Vietnam, on 22 February at the age of 89.

 - Bishop Cipriano Calderon Polo, vice-president emeritus of the Pontifical Commission for Latin America, on 4 February at the age of 81.

 - Archbishop Jean Jadot, former pro-president of the Secretariat for Non-Christians, on 21 January at the age of 99.

 - Bishop Philippe Kourouma, emeritus of N'Zerekore, Guinea, on 11 February at the age of 76.

 - Bishop Hugh Lindsay, emeritus of Hexham and Newcastle, England, on 19 January at the age of 81.

 - Bishop Edward Joseph O'Donnell, emeritus of Lafayette, U.S.A., on 1 February at the age of 77.

 - Bishop Jose de Almeida Batista Pereira, emeritus of Guaxupe, Brazil, on 31 January at the age of 91.

 - Bishop Jean Remond, former auxiliary of the "Mission de France", on 21 February at the age of 86.

 - Bishop Antonio dos Reis Rodrigues, former auxiliary of Lisbon, Portugal, on 3 February at the age of 90.

 - Bishop Michael Russell, emeritus of Waterford and Lismore, Ireland, on 12 January at the age of 88.

 - Bishop Zef Simoni, former auxiliary of Shkodre, Albania, on 21 February at the age of 80.

 - Bishop Louis Simonneaux, emeritus of Versailles, France, on 22 January at the age of 93.

 - Bishop Thomas Ambrose Tschoepe, emeritus of Dallas, U.S.A., on 24 January at the age of 93.

 - Bishop Andrew Tsien Chih-ch'un, emeritus of Hwalien, Taiwan, on 17 February at the age of 82.

 - Bishop Serafin Vasquez Elizalde, emeritus of Ciudad Guzman, Mexico, on 10 February at the age of 86.

 - Bishop Thomas Jerome Welsh, emeritus of Allentown, U.S.A., on 19 February at the age of 87.
.../DEATHS/...                            VIS 20090303 (380)

STATISTICS FOR THE CATHOLIC CHURCH IN CAMEROON, ANGOLA

VATICAN CITY, 3 MAR 2009 (VIS) - For the occasion of Benedict XVI's forthcoming apostolic trip to Cameroon and Angola, due to take place from 17 to 23 March, statistics have been published concerning the Catholic Church in those two African countries. The information, updated to 31 December 2007, comes from the Central Statistical Office of the Church.

  The Republic of Cameroon, the capital city of which is Yaounde, has a population of 18,160,000 of whom 4,842,000 (26.7 percent) are Catholic. There are 24 ecclesiastical circumscriptions, 816 parishes and 3,630 pastoral centres of other kinds. Currently, there are 31 bishops, 1,847 priests, 2,478 religious, 28 lay members of secular institutes and 18,722 catechists. Minor seminarians number 2,249 and major seminarians 1,361.

  A total of 410,964 students attend 1,530 centres of Catholic education, from kindergartens to universities. Other institutions belonging to the Church or run by priests or religious in Cameroon include 28 hospitals, 235 clinics, 11 homes for the elderly or disabled, 15 orphanages and nurseries, 40 family counselling centres and other pro-life centres, 23 centres for education and social rehabilitation, and 32 institutions of other kinds.

  The Republic of Angola, the capital city of which is Luanda, has a population of 15,473,000 of whom 8,600,000 (55.6 percent) are Catholic. There are 18 ecclesiastical circumscriptions, 307 parishes and 2,976 pastoral centres of other kinds. Currently, there are 27 bishops, 794 priests, 2,276 religious, 5 lay members of secular institutes and 30,934 catechists. Minor seminarians number 1,031 and major seminarians 1,236.

  A total of 226,798 students attend 481 centres of Catholic education, from kindergartens to universities. Other institutions belonging to the Church or run by priests or religious in Cameroon include 23 hospitals, 269 clinics, 16 homes for the elderly or disabled, 45 orphanages and nurseries, 37 family counselling centres and other pro-life centres, 28 centres for education and social rehabilitation, and 41 institutions of other kinds.
OP/STATISTICS CAMEROON ANGOLA/...            VIS 20090303 (330)