ANGELUS REFLECTIONS ON FEAST OF CHRIST THE KING

VATICAN CITY, NOV 24, 2002 (VIS) - At noon today Pope John Paul appeared at the window of his study overlooking St. Peter's Square for his traditional Sunday address and to pray the Angelus with the pilgrims gathered in the square.

The Pope noted that "today we celebrate the solemnity of Christ the King," and said the fact that this feast occurs on the last Sunday of the liturgical year "shows that Jesus Christ is the Lord of time and in Him is fulfilled the entire plan of creation and redemption." He added that Jesus of Nazareth, in fulfilling this mission, "does not come to reign as the king of this world but to establish, so to speak, the divine power of Love in the heart of man, of history and of the cosmos."

"Vatican Council II," stated the Holy Father, "proclaimed in a strong and clear way to the contemporary world the lordship of Christ, and its message was taken up again in the Great Jubilee of the Year 2000. Humanity in the third millennium also needs to discover that Christ is its Savior. It is this announcement that Christians must bring with renewed courage to the world of today."

After praying the Angelus, John Paul II remarked that "today, the diocese of Rome celebrates Seminary Day. While I assure seminarians and those who help form them of my constant prayer, I thank the parish communities, families and individual faithful who generously support the diocesan seminary. Let us pray that numerous and holy vocations to the priesthood will not be lacking in Rome."
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THE POPE CONFIRMS CARDINAL SODANO AS SECRETARY OF STATE

VATICAN CITY, NOV 23, 2002 (VIS) - Made public today was a letter from the Pope to Cardinal Angelo Sodano, in which he expresses his "personal recognition for the great help that for years you have offered me daily as close collaborator in the demanding role of Secretary of State." The letter, dated November 20, coincides with Cardinal Sodano's 75th birthday.

"Even though you turn 75 on November 23," writes the Holy Father, "I ask you to continue in the office that you hold, putting your uncommon qualities at the disposition of the Pope."

The Pope concludes: "Knowing the love of the Church and spirit of obedience that have always inspired your conduct, I trust that I may continue to count on your enlightened collaboration, dear brother, as secretary of State, and in this endeavor, I assure you that I will not cease asking the Lord in prayer for all necessary help and aid for you."

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ARCHBISHOP FOLEY AT MEETING ON SPIRITUALITY AND THE MEDIA

VATICAN CITY, NOV 24, 2002 (VIS) - Archbishop John P. Foley, president of the Pontifical Council for Social Communications, delivered a homily today at a Mass in Ravello, Italy, for participants in a three-day meeting on spirituality in movies, television and literature. He also addressed the meeting, which was organized by RAI, Italy's state-owned radio and television.

"When I think of spirituality," said the archbishop, "I return in my mind to the aim of life, asking myself the most timely questions: Why am I here? Who made me? What must I do with my life? For those who think only in material terms, productions which make one reflect can change one's life; for those who think in religious terms, such productions can enrich their spiritual life. ... Movie and television productions do not preach; they are an occasion for everyone to arrive at understanding the aims of life and to identify ourselves with those seeking to reach self-awareness."

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OTHER PONTIFICAL ACTS

VATICAN CITY, NOV 25, 2002 (VIS) - The Holy Father:

- Appointed Fr. Rene-Marie Ehuzu, C.J.M., pastor of the Cathedral of Cotonou, Benin, as Bishop of Aboemy (area 4,724, population 600,000, Catholics 225,000, priests 48, religious 69), Benin. The bishop-elect was born in 1944 in Cotonou, Benin and was ordained a priest in 1972. He succeeds Bishop Lucien Monsi-Agboka whose resignation from the pastoral care of the same diocese the Holy Father accepted upon having reached the age limit.

- Appointed Msgr. Pierre Nguyen Van Tot, charge d'affaires of the nunciature in Benin and Togo, as apostolic nuncio in the same countries, with the dignity of archbishop. The archbishop-elect was born in 1949 in Thu dau mot, Vietnam and was ordained a priest in 1974.

On Saturday November 23, it was made public that the Holy Father:
- Appointed Archbishop Michael Louis Fitzgerald, president of the Pontifical Council for Inter-religious Dialogue, as a member of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity.

- Appointed Professor Krzysztof Skubiszewski of Poland as an ordinary member of the Pontifical Academy of the Social Sciences.

- Appointed Giuseppina Roselli, "scriptor" of the Vatican Secret Archives, as archivist.

- Appointed Bishop Vladimir Filo, auxiliary of Bratislava-Trnava, Slovakia, as coadjutor bishop of Roznava (population 7,000, population 342,159, Catholics 173,644, priests 1120, religious 155, permanent deacons 2), Slovakia.

- Accepted the resignation from the pastoral care of the archdiocese of Salzburg, Austria presented by Archbishop Georg Eder, in accordance with Canon 401, para. 2, of the Code of Canon Law.

- Appointed Fr. Cornelius Schilder, M.H.M., provincial of the Mill Hill Missionaries for Uganda and Kenya, as bishop of Ngong (area 39,847, population 942,395, Catholics 72,960, priests 61, religious 122), Kenya. The bishop-elect was born in 1941 in Westwoud, Holland and was ordained a priest in 1968. He succeeds Bishop Colin Cameron Davies, M.H.M., whose resignation from the pastoral care of the same diocese the Holy Father accepted having reached the age limit.

- Appointed Bishop Jose Paala Salazar, O.P., of the Prelature of Batanes, the Philippines, as auxiliary of the diocese of Butuan (area 11,555, population 1,199,251, Catholics 991,497, priests 91, religious 134), the Philippines.

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ANNUAL MESSAGE FOR THE END OF RAMADAN

VATICAN CITY, NOV 22, 2002 (VIS) - Today the annual Message from the Pontifical Council for Inter-religious Dialogue to Muslims at the end of Ramadan 'Id Al-Fitr 1423 A.H./2002 A.D. was made public. The message, whose theme is "Christians and Muslims and the Ways to Peace," was published in French, English, Italian and Arabic and was signed by Archbishop Michael L. Fitzgerald, president of the council.

"You are well aware, dear friends, how acute the question of peace has become in our world today. Situations where war prevails are like an open wound in the heart of humanity, above all those conflicts which have been going on for many years, whether in the Middle East, in Africa or in Asia. In several countries such conflicts result in numerous innocent victims, leading the population to despair of peace returning to their land in the near future."

After emphasizing that "the origin of the causes of conflict is often to be located in hearts which refuse to be open to God," the archbishop writes: "While the ultimate causes of wars are well known, we need above all to explore together the ways to peace."

"As believers in the One God we see it as our duty to strive to bring about peace. Christians and Muslims, we believe that peace is above all a gift from God. This is why our two communities pray for peace; it is something they are always called to do."

The president of the pontifical council affirms that "in bringing about peace and maintaining it, religions have an important role to play, one which these days more than ever is being recognized by civil society and by Governments. In this respect, education is a domain in which religions can make a particular contribution. We are indeed convinced that the ways of peace include education, for through it one can learn to recognize one's own identity and that of the other. ... Education for peace also involves recognition and acceptance of diversity, just as it includes learning about crisis management, in order to prevent crises from degenerating into conflicts. We are happy to see that in several countries there is increased collaboration in this field among Muslims and Christians, especially as regards the equitable revision of text-books for schools."

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