OTHER PONTIFICAL ACTS

VATICAN CITY, DEC 16, 2002 (VIS) - The Holy Father, accepting the request of the French Episcopate, reorganized the French ecclesiastical provinces.

A) He erected the following provinces:

- Marseille, immediately subject to the Holy See, elevating the archdiocese to the level of metropolitan Church and assigning to it as suffragans the archdioceses of Aix and Avignon, metropolitan sees, and the dioceses of Ajaccio, Digne, Frejus-Toulon, Gap, Nice. He appointed Archbishop Bernard Panafieu as metropolitan archbishop.

- Clermont, elevating it to level of metropolitan Church and assigning to it as suffragans the dioceses of Le Puy-en-Velay, Moulins, Saint-Flour. He appointed Bishop Hippolyte Simon as metropolitan archbishop.

- Dijon, elevating it to the level of metropolitan Church and assigning it as suffragans the archdioceses of Sens, metropolitan see, and the dioceses of Autun, Nevers, and the prelature of the "Mission de France" or Pontigny. He appointed Bishop Michel Coloni as metropolitan archbishop.

- Montpellier, elevating it to the level of metropolitan Church and assigning to it as suffragans the dioceses of Carcassonne, Mende, Nimes and Perpignan-Elne. He appointed Bishop Guy Thomazeau as metropolitan archbishop.

- Poitiers, elevating it to the level of metropolitan Church and assigning to it as suffragans the dioceses of Angouleme, La Rochelle, Limoges and Tulle. He appointed Bishop Albert Rouet as metropolitan archbishop.

B) He assigned as suffragans:

- the dioceses of Aire, Agen, Bayonne and Perigueux to the metropolitan Church of Bordeaux.

- the dioceses of Annecy, Belley-Ars, Grenoble, Saint-Etienne, Valence, Viviers, and the archdiocese of Chambery, Saint-Jean-de-Maurienne and Tarentaise, metropolitan see, to the metropolitan Church of Lyon.

- the dioceses of Amiens, Beauvais, Chalons, Langres, Soissons and Troyes to the metropolitan Church of Reims.

- the dioceses of Angers, Laval, Le Mans, Lucon, Nantes, Quimper, Saint-Brieuc and Vannes to the metropolitan Church of Rennes.

- the archdioceses of Albi and Auch, metropolitan sees, and the dioceses of Cahors, Montauban, Pamiers, Rodez, Tarbes and Lourdes to the metropolitan Church of Toulouse.

- the archdiocese of Bourges, metropolitan see, and the dioceses of Blois, Chartres and Orleans to the metropolitan Church of Tours.

C) He confirmed as suffragans:

- the dioceses of Belfort-Montbeliard, Nancy, Saint-Claude, Saint-Die and Verdun to the metropolitan Church of Besancon.

- the dioceses of Arras and Lille to the metropolitan Church of Cambrai.

- the dioceses of Creteil, Evry-Corbeil-Essonnes, Meaux, Nanterre, Pontoise, Saint-Denis and Versailles to the metropolitan Church of Paris.

- the dioceses of Bayeax, Coutances, Evreux, Le Havre and Sees to the metropolitan Church of Rouen.

D) He confirmed the archdiocese of Strasbourg and the diocese of Metz as "immediate subiectae Sanctae Sedi".

On Saturday December 14, it was made public that the Holy Father:
- Accepted the resignation from the pastoral care of the diocese of Ngozi, Burundi presented by Bishop Stanislas Kaburungu, in accordance with Canon 401, para. 2, of the Code of Canon Law. Bishop Gervais Banshimiyubusa, coadjutor of the same diocese, will succeed him.

- Appointed Fr. Joachim Ntahondereye, professor of moral theology at the Major Seminary in Gitega, Burundi, as bishop of Muyinga (area 5,767, population 959,920, Catholics 525,027, priests 31, religious 122), Burundi. The bishop-elect was born in 1953 in Camzai, Burundi and was ordained in 1980.

- Appointed Msgr. Jair Ferreira Pena, Frs. Miguel Vasco Costa de Salis Amaral and Fernando Jose Monteiro Guimaraes, C.SS.R., as consultors of the Congregation of the Causes of Saints.

ECE; RE; NER; NA;...;...;...;VIS;20021216;Word: 510;

THE POPE RECEIVES CHRISTMAS CONCERT ARTISTS

VATICAN CITY, DEC 13, 2002 (VIS) - This morning John Paul II received in audience the artists who will perform tomorrow, December 14, in the traditional "Christmas in the Vatican" concert in the Paul VI Hall.

After expressing his appreciation and gratitude to all who collaborated in this event, the Pope recalled that the purpose of "this artistic date is to contribute to the efforts of the diocese of Rome toward the construction of new churches with adjacent parochial facilities in peripheral areas of the city."

"You have done so much already," he continued, "with a spirit of Christian solidarity, participating in a concrete way in the program of the new evangelization that involves all believers."

At the end, the Holy Father expressed once again his "sincere thanks" to the artists "in the name of the parish communities who will benefit from your generosity."

AC;CHRISTMAS CONCERT;...;...;VIS;20021213;Word: 160;

TO GROUP OF AMBASSADORS: PEACE IS EVERYONE'S RESPONSIBILITY

VATICAN CITY, DEC 13, 2002 (VIS) - This morning the Holy Father collectively received the Letters of Credence of nine ambassadors to the Holy See. While the Pope addressed all the diplomats in French, he gave each of them a discourse in which specific issues in their country were raised.

The new ambassadors are: Fode Maclean Dabor of Sierra Leone; Marcia Gilberts-Roberts of Jamaica; Praveen Lal Goyal of India; Albert Owusu-Sarpong of Ghana; Helga Hernes of Norway; Emmanuel Kayitana Imanzi of Ruanda and Jean-Pierre Razafy-Andriamihaingo of Madagascar.

"Peace is one the most precious goods for individuals persons, peoples, and States. ... Without peace there cannot be the true development of individuals or families, of society or the economy. Peace is everyone's responsibility, to desire peace is not a sign of weakness but a sign of strength."

After emphasizing that in order to achieve peace, order and international law must be respected, he said: "In addition, we must consider the fundamental value of common and multilateral action to resolve conflicts on different continents."

The Holy Father affirmed that "misery and injustice are the root of violence and contribute to the duration and development of local and regional conflicts. I am thinking in particular," he continued, "of those countries in which hunger increases in endemic proportions. The international community is called to do what is possible so that these afflictions are done away with little by little, especially with human and material means which help people that are in most need. Greater support to the organization of local economies would undoubtedly permit indigenous populations to be in charge of their future."

"Poverty," he added, "weighs heavily on the world today, putting political, economic and social stability in danger. .. We must recognize everyone's right to have what is necessary to live and to be able to benefit from a portion of the national wealth." In this way, the Pope made an urgent appeal to the international community "so that the double question is posed once again on the distribution of the planet's wealth and equitable technical and scientific assistance to poor countries which are the duties of rich countries. Development assistance requires formation in all spheres."

CD;LETTERS CREDENCE;...;...;VIS;20021213;Word: 370;

AUDIENCES

VATICAN CITY, DEC 13, 2002 (VIS) - The Holy Father today received in separate audiences:

- Cardinal Bernard Francis Law, archbishop of Boston, U.S.A.

- Archbishop Lorenzo Baldisseri, apostolic nuncio in Brazil.

- Archbishop Giovanni d'Aniello of Paestum, Italy, pontifical representative of the Democratic Republic of Congo.

AP;...;...;...;VIS;20021213;Word: 50;

DECLARATION ON CARDINAL BERNARD FRANCIS LAW

VATICAN CITY, DEC 13, 2002 (VIS) - Following is the declaration made by Cardinal Bernard Francis Law, archbishop of Boston, U.S.A. after his audience with John Paul II this morning:

"I am profoundly grateful to the Holy Father for having accepted my resignation as Archbishop of Boston.

"It is my fervent prayer that this action may help the Archdiocese of Boston to experience the healing, reconciliation and unity which are so desperately needed.

"To all those who have suffered from my shortcomings and mistakes I both apologize and from them beg forgiveness.

"To the bishops, priests, deacons, religious and laity, with whom I have been privileged to work in our efforts to fulfill the Church's mission, I express my deep gratitude. My gratitude extends to so many others with whom I have been associated in serving the common good; these include those from the ecumenical, Jewish, and wider interreligious communities as well as public officials and others in the civil society.

"The particular circumstances of this time suggest a quiet departure. Please keep me in your prayers."

...;DECLARATION;...;LAW;VIS;20021213;Word: 180;