Other Pontifical Acts

Vatican City, 26 January 2015 (VIS) – The Holy Father has:

- appointed Msgr. Stefan Hesse as archbishop of Hamburg (area 32,493, population 5,797,975, Catholics 397,331, priests 248, permanent deacons 60, religious 221), Germany. The bishop-elect was born in Cologne, Germany in 1966 and was ordained a priest in 1993. He studied theology in Bonn and Regensburg, and holds a doctorate in dogmatic theology from the High School of the Pallottine Fathers in Vallendar. He has served as parish priest in a number of parishes in the archdiocese of Cologne, and is currently canon of the Metropolitan Chapter of Cologne and vicar general. He served as diocesan administrator from March to September 2014.

- restored the title of metropolitan archdiocese to Cashel and Emly, Ireland. Archbishop Kieran O'Reilly, currently metropolitan archbishop of Cashel and apostolic administrator of Emly, was appointed as metropolitan archbishop of the new ecclesiastical circumscription.

On Saturday, 24 January the Holy Father appointed Fr. Ivica Petanjak, O.F.M. Cap., as bishop of Krk (area 1,119, population 40,447, Catholics 35,499, priests 79, religious 110), Croatia. The bishop-elect was born in Drenje, Croatia in 1963, gave his perpetual vows in 1988 and was ordained a priest in 1990. He holds a bachelor's degree in theology from the faculty of theology in Zagreb, Croatia, and a doctorate in church history from the Pontifical Gregorian University, Rome. He has served in a number of pastoral roles, including deputy master of seminarians, parish vicar and hospital chaplain in Split, master of clerics, provincial minister, parish priest of the “Our Lady of Lourdes” parish in Rijeka and master of postulants. He is currently guardian of the Capuchin monastery of Osijek and provincial definitor. He succeeds Bishop Valter Zupan, whose resignation from the pastoral care of the same diocese upon reaching the age limit was accepted by the Holy Father.