LETTERS OF CREDENCE OF NEW AMBASSADOR FROM DOMINICAN REPUBLIC

VATICAN CITY, DEC 11, 2000 (VIS) - This morning, the Holy Father received the Letters of Credence of Victor A. Hidalgo Justo, the new ambassador from the Dominican Republic. The Pope recalled that, following the route of the first evangelizers, the Dominican Republic "was the first American land to welcome me at the start of my pontificate."

The Pope said that "the points in which the Church and States meet and collaborate ... concern those fields that determine full human dignity and that cultivate the values upon which an ever more just, unified and peaceful world must be built. At the present moment in history - in which many factors motivate (people) to think only in terms of immediate results, producing apprehension in people and instability in society - it is supremely important to be ever more watchful in order not to lose the most authentic and deeply-rooted values of human nature."

The Church, he added, asks everyone that society "not become, through misleading ideas, a threat" to human life. "The inviolability of human life, in the different phases of development or in whatever situation it may be, is the premise for all other human rights and represents a limit to human authority and a foundation for a responsible and tireless search for peace."

"The Church in the Dominican Republic," he concluded, "has not ceased to concern herself with the good of her people and the human progress of the country. She does so through her educational, cultural and aid institutions but, above all, by infusing a spirit of Christian hope and social commitment so that everyone may feel a responsibility in the construction of a better future."

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AUDIENCES

VATICAN CITY, DEC 11, 2000 (VIS) - The Holy Father today received in audience Vojislav Kostunica, president of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, accompanied by his entourage.

On Saturday December 9, he received in separate audiences:

- Domenico Cempella, managing director of Alitalia, accompanied by his wife and an entourage.
- Archbishop Giovanni Battista Re, prefect of the Congregation for Bishops.

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OTHER PONTIFICAL ACTS

VATICAN CITY, DEC 11, 2000 (VIS) - The Holy Father accepted the resignation from the pastoral care of the diocese of Vinh, Vietnam, presented by Bishop Pierre-Jean Tran Xuan Hap, upon having reached the age limit. He is succeeded by Coadjutor Bishop Paul-Marie Cao Dinh Thuyen.

On Saturday December 9, it was made public that he:

- Appointed Msgr. Diego Coletti of the clergy of the archdiocese of Milan, Italy, rector of Rome's Pontifical Lombard Seminary, as bishop of Livorno (area 250, population 212,753, Catholics 190,000, priests 107, permanent deacons 18, religious 522), Italy. The bishop-elect was born in Milan in 1941 and ordained a priest in 1965. He succeeds Bishop Alberto Ablondi whose resignation from the pastoral care of the same diocese the Holy Father accepted, upon having reached the age limit.

- Appointed Bishop Piergiorgio Micchiardi, auxiliary of Turin, Italy, as bishop of Acqui (area, 1,683, population 145,288, Catholics 143,360, priests 148, permanent deacons 4, religious 334), Italy. He succeeds Bishop Livio Maritano whose resignation from the pastoral care of the same diocese the Holy Father accepted, upon having reached the age limit.

- Appointed Bishop Vincenzo Savio S.D.B., auxiliary of Livorno, Italy, as bishop of Belluno-Feltre (area 3,263, population 184,602, Catholics 184,100, priests 250, permanent deacons 5, religious 312), Italy.

- Appointed Bishop Michael Wiwchar C.Ss.R., of Saskatoon of the Ukrainians of Canada, as apostolic administrator "ad nutum Sanctae Sedis" of the eparchy of St. Nicholas of Chicago of the Ukrainians, U.S.A.

- Appointed Fr. Geoffrey Hilton Jarrett of the clergy of the archdiocese of Hobart, Australia, pastor of the parish of the Sacred Heart in New Town, as coadjutor bishop of Lismore (area 28,660, population 421,216, Catholics 100,067, priests 60, religious 172), Australia. The bishop-elect was born in Kyneton, Australia, in 1937 and ordained a priest in 1970.

On Friday, December 8, it was made public that he:

- Appointed Fr. Joseph Djida, O.M.I., superior general of the Oblates of Mary Immaculate in Cameroon and Chad, as bishop of Ngaoundere (area 64,930, population 655,706, Catholics 33,591, priests 33, permanent deacons 1, religious 98), Cameroon. The bishop-elect was born in Mayo-Darle, Cameroon, in 1945 and ordained a priest in 1976. He succeeds Bishop Jean Pasquier O.M.I., whose resignation from the pastoral care of the same diocese the Holy Father accepted, upon having reached the age limit.

- Appointed Fr. Samuel Kleda of the clergy of Yagoua, Cameroon, spiritual director of the major seminary of St. Augustine in Maroua, as bishop of Batouri (area 15,981, population 177,444, Catholics 38,872, priests 11, religious 36), Cameroon. The bishop-elect was born in Golompuy, Cameroon, in 1959 and ordained a priest in 1986.
- Appointed Bishop Nestor Ngoy Katahwa of Manono, Democratic Republic of the Congo, as bishop of Kolwezi (area 103,440, population 969,526, Catholics 590,210, priests 55, religious 305), Democratic Republic of the Congo.

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POPE WELCOMES SERRA INTERNATIONAL ON JUBILEE PILGRIMAGE

VATICAN CITY, DEC 7, 2000 (VIS) - This morning in St. Peter's Basilica the Holy Father welcomed 2,500 members of Serra International, a worldwide volunteer organization of Catholics whose primary aim is to foster vocations to the priesthood and to encourage spiritual growth.

"Your baptismal calling leads you towards others," the Pope told them. "It is essentially a missionary calling, as you have learned from the example of Blessed Junipero Serra, the great evangelizer of California. Following in his footsteps, you have come to share in the heartfelt concern of Christ Himself: 'The harvest is plentiful but the laborers are few!'."

He pointed out that "amid all the complexity of the present time, now, at the dawn of a new millennium, we need to recognize the search for meaning - a real yet often silent search - which is spreading through society. There is an unexpressed sense of need for Christ. ... In order to respond to this need, the whole Church must become completely ministerial, a community of heralds and witnesses, rich in laborers for the harvest."

"Dear Serrans," remarked John Paul II, "you are committed in a special way to promoting vocations. Never forget that yours must be above all a commitment to prayer" which "moves the heart of God, ... which is a powerful key to resolving the vocations question" and "is also a school of life." He highlighted the efforts of Serra International "to spread an authentic culture of vocations."

"Within the People of God," the Pope affirmed, "there is a specific mission awaiting each one. Because the needs of the 'harvest' are so great, all the members of God's People must grow in the awareness of 'being called'.

He urged Serrans to "continue giving their contribution, in full harmony with your bishops," to be close to priests and "to meet the needs, with the charity that distinguishes you, of vocations among the poor."

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