OTHER PONTIFICAL ACTS

VATICAN CITY, SEP 24, 2002 (VIS) - The Holy Father appointed Fr. Rutilo Munoz Zamora, vicar for ministries of the diocese of Veracruz, Mexico, as bishop of the diocese of Coatzacoalcos (area 10,500, population 1,039,562, Catholics 849,469, priests 50, permanent deacons 4, religious 90), Mexico. Fr. Munoz was born in 1951 in Tulictic, Mexico, and was ordained a priest in 1977. He succeeds Bishop Carlos Talavera Ramirez whose resignation the Holy Father accepted upon having reached the age limit.

NER; RE;...;...;MUNOZ; TALAVERA ;VIS;20020924;Word: 80;

AUDIENCES

VATICAN CITY, SEP 24, 2002 (VIS) - The Holy Father today received in separate audiences:

- Eight prelates from the National Conference of Bishops of Brazil (Northeast 2) on their "ad limina" visit:
- Archbishop Jose Cardoso Sobrinho, O. Carm., of Olinda and Recife, accompanied by his auxiliary, Bishop Fernando Antonio Saburido, O.S.B.
- Archbishop Jose Carlos Melo, C.M., of Maceio, accompanied by Archbishop Edvaldo Goncalves Amaral, emeritus.
- Bishop Jose Freire de Oliveira Neto of Mossoro.
- Bishop Jorge Tobias de Freitas of Nazare.
- Bishop Paulo Cardoso da Silva, O. Carm., of Petrolina.
- Bishop Fernando Iorio Rodrigues of Palmeiras dos Indios.
- Colonel Pius Segmuller, captain commander of the Pontifical Swiss Guards, accompanied by his family, on his farewell visit.
- Cardinal Dionigi Tettamanzi, archbishop of Milan, Italy.

AL; AP;...;...;...;VIS;20020924;Word: 110;

THEME OF WORLD DAY OF COMMUNICATIONS 2003

VATICAN CITY, SEP 24, 2002 (VIS) - The Pontifical Council for Social Communications announced today that the theme chosen by John Paul II for the World Day of Communications 2003 is "The Communications Media at the Service of Authentic Peace in the light of 'Pacem in Terris'."

Archbishop John P. Foley, president of the dicastery, affirmed that the "theme chosen by the Holy Father reflects the importance of the media in promoting authentic peace, based on truth, justice and love, as Blessed John XXIII indicated in his famous encyclical letter of 1963, 'Pacem in Terris'."

The World Day of Communications is the only celebration of universal reach expressly desired by Vatican Council II in the document "Inter Mirifica" of 1963. It is celebrated in most countries on the Sunday before Pentecost at the suggestion of bishops from all over the world. In 2003, it falls on June 1st.

The Holy Father's message is traditionally published on January 24, the feast day of St. Francis de Sales, patron of journalists, to allow the episcopal conferences and diocesan organizations to prepare material for national and local celebrations of this event.

CON-CS;WORLD DAY OF COMMUNICATIONS;...;...;VIS;20020924;Word: 200;

POPE: DISTINCTION BETWEEN COMMON AND MINISTERIAL PRIESTHOOD

VATICAN CITY, SEP 21, 2002 (VIS) - This morning John Paul II received prelates from the National Conference of Bishops of Brazil (Western Regions 1 & 2) who just completed their "ad limina" visit.

In his speech, the Pope spoke about the collaboration of the lay faithful in diocesan life, especially in the sacred ministry of priests.

The Holy Father recalled the purpose of the Church in fulfilling in the world "the saving mission of Christ ... through the action of its members, within the limits of the function that each one exercises in the Mystical Body of Christ."
"Among the objectives of liturgical reform, established by Vatican Council II," he said, "was the need for all faithful to participate in liturgical ceremonies. ... In reality, however, in the years after the Council, with the purpose that this idea be implemented, 'confusion as to the functions of the priestly ministry and that of laity' spread erratically. ... These serious practical abuses were grounded frequently in doctrinal errors, especially concerning the nature of the liturgy, the common priesthood of Christians, the vocation and mission of lay people and the ordered ministry of priests."

After affirming that the liturgy is an "activity for all the faithful," the Pope emphasized that "by baptism all the faithful participate in Christ's priesthood; it is what is known as the 'common priesthood of the faithful,' while the 'priestly ministry' is characteristic of those who receive the Sacrament of Orders."

"To disregard the basic difference and the mutual ordination between priestly ministry and the common priesthood of the faithful," he continued, "has immediate repercussions in liturgical celebrations." In this sense, he reminded the pilgrims of the "scarce observance of certain laws and ecclesiastical norms, the arbitrary interpretation of the concept of 'replacement' and the lay tendency to be 'clerical'."

John Paul II indicated that "the lay faithful can exercise certain duties and functions in collaboration with the pastoral service, when they are expressly asked by their respective holy pastors."

The Holy Father ended by referring to the topic of the restoration of the permanent diaconate for married men, "which is an important enrichment for the mission of the Church after the Council. ... The collaboration which the permanent diaconate provides to the Church, especially where there is a shortage of priests, is without a doubt a great benefit for the life of the Church. ... Certainly, the service of the permanent diaconate is and will always be limited to the prescriptions of the law, since full ministerial power corresponds to priests to exercise; in this way, the risk of ambiguity which can confuse the faithful, especially in liturgical celebrations, is avoided."

AL;...;...;BRAZIL;VIS;20020923;Word: 450;

CARDINAL NGUYEN VAN THUAN, HEROIC HERALD OF THE GOSPEL

VATICAN CITY, SEP 20, 2002 (VIS) - The Pope presided this afternoon in St. Peter's Basilica at the funeral of Vietnamese Cardinal Francois-Xavier Nguyen Van Thuan who died on Tuesday at age 74. The Eucharistic liturgy was celebrated by Cardinal Angelo Sodano, secretary of state, together with other cardinals. A delegation from the Vietnamese Church, headed by the president of the Espicopal Conference, Bishop Paul Nguyen Van Hoa, also participated in the mass.

In his homily the Holy Father recalled that when the cardinal preached spiritual exercises to the Roman Curia in 2000, he recounted that, during the thirteen years he spent in prison, "he understood that the foundation of Christian life is 'to choose God alone,' abandoning oneself completely into his fatherly hands. We are called, he added in light of his personal experience, to announce to everyone the 'Gospel of hope.' And he specified that only with the radicalness of sacrifice can this vocation be fulfilled, even in the midst of harsher trials."

John Paul II said that "while we say goodbye for the last time to this heroic herald of the Gospel of Christ, we give thanks to the Lord for having given us in him a brilliant example of Christian coherence to the point of martyrdom. ... His secret was total faith in God, nourished by prayer and the suffering he accepted with love. In prison, he celebrated the Eucharist every day with three drops of wine and one drop of water in the palm of his hand. This was his altar, his cathedral. The Body of Christ was his 'medicine'."

"In his spiritual testament," concluded the Pope, "after having asked for forgiveness, the cardinal assures us that he continues to love everyone. 'I am serene as I leave', he affirms, and I do not have contempt for anyone. I offer up all the suffering that I have endured to Immaculate Mary and St. Joseph. The testament ends with a triple recommendation: 'Love the Holy Virgin and trust in St. Joseph, be faithful to the Church, be united and charitable to all.' This was, in short, his life."

HML;FUNERAL;...;NGUYEN VAN THUAN;VIS;20020923;Word: 370;