OTHER PONTIFICAL ACTS

VATICAN CITY, DEC 12, 2005 (VIS) - The Holy Father:

 - Accepted the resignation from the office of auxiliary of the archdiocese of Caracas, Venezuela, presented by Bishop Roberto Antonio Davila Uzcategui, upon having reached the age limit.

 - Erected the new diocese of Buxar (area 11,311, population 5,781,132, Catholics 15,745, priests 22, religious 72), India, with territory taken from the archdiocese of Patna, making it a suffragan of the same metropolitan see. He appointed Fr. William D'Souza S.J., provincial superior of the Jesuit Fathers, as the first bishop of the new diocese. The bishop-elect was born in Madanthar, India in 1946 and ordained a priest in 1976.

  On Saturday, December 10, it was made public that the Holy Father appointed:

 - Fr. Martin Tetsuo Hiraga, diocesan administrator, as bishop of Sendai (area 45,951, population 7,332,000, Catholics 10,987, priests 50, religious 289), Japan. The bishop-elect was born in Hanamaki, Japan in 1945 and ordained a priest in 1974.

 - Msgr. Jose Guadalupe Torres Campos, vicar general of the diocese of Irapuato, Mexico, as auxiliary of Ciudad Juarez (area 29,639, population 2,500,000, Catholics 2,125,000, priests 118, permanent deacons 14, religious 216), Mexico. The bishop-elect was born in Leon in 1960 and ordained a priest in 1984.

 - Msgr. Juan Frausto Pallares, episcopal vicar of Leon, Mexico, as auxiliary of the same diocese (area 8,016, population 3,795,967, Catholics 3,416,000, priests 388, religious 1,496). The bishop-elect was born in Tomelopez, Mexico in 1941 and ordained a priest in 1968.

 - Archbishop Albert Malcolm Ranjith Patabendige Don, apostolic nuncio to Indonesia and East Timor, as secretary of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments.
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AUDIENCES

VATICAN CITY, DEC 12, 2005 (VIS) - The Holy Father today received in separate audiences:

 - Eleven prelates from the Conference of the Polish Episcopate on their "ad limina" visit:

    - Cardinal Jozef Glemp, archbishop of Warsaw, accompanied by Auxiliary Bishops Marian Dus, Piotr Jarecki, and Tadeusz Pikus.

    - Bishop Stanislaw Wojciech Wielgus of Plock, accompanied by Auxiliary Bishop Roman Adam Marcinkowski.

    - Bishop Slawoj Leszek Glodz of Warsaw-Praga.

    - Bishop Tadeusz Ploski, military ordinary.

    - Archbishop Wojciech Ziemba of Bialystok, accompanied by Archbishop emeritus Stanislaw Szymecki.

    - Bishop Antoni Pacyfik Dydzcz O.F.M. Cap., of Drohiczyn.

 - Cardinal Bernard Panafieu, archbishop of Marseille, France.

  On Saturday, December 10, the Holy Father received in separate audiences:

 - His Beatitude Cardinal Ignace Moussa I Daoud, prefect of the Congregation for the Oriental Churches.

 - Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re, prefect of the Congregation for Bishops.
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TELEGRAM FOR AIR DISASTER IN NIGERIA

VATICAN CITY, DEC 12, 2005 (VIS) - Cardinal Secretary of State Angelo Sodano, sent a telegram of condolence, in the Pope's name, to Bishop Alexius Obabu Mazoki of Port Harcourt, Nigeria, for Saturday's air accident in that city which claimed the lives of numerous people, the majority of them children.

  "Saddened by news of the great loss of life in the air tragedy near Port Harcourt, the Holy Father asks you kindly to convey his heartfelt condolences to the families of the victims. He commends the dead to the eternal mercies of Almighty God and invokes the divine blessings of strength and peace upon all who mourn and upon all engaged in the work of relief."
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HOLY FATHER ENCOURAGES CONSTRUCTION OF NEW CHURCHES

VATICAN CITY, DEC 11, 2005 (VIS) - After praying the Angelus with thousands of people gathered in St. Peter's Square, Benedict XVI affirmed that during Advent this year, as in previous years, the diocese of Rome will propose the initiative: "New churches for Rome."

  The Holy Father explained how the initiative aims to "raise awareness among the ecclesial community over the need to build new parish structures in neighborhoods that are still without them."

  After thanking "those who, with their generous commitment, have enabled many outlying suburbs to be provided with appropriate pastoral centers," the Pope made an appeal to people's sensibility, "because much remains to be done to ensure that the faithful of this city, which continues to grow, have appropriate places for liturgy, catechesis, and works of social and cultural animation."

  Finally, the Pope recalled that on Thursday, December 15, following Mass at 5 p.m. in the Vatican Basilica celebrated by Cardinal Camillo Ruini, vicar general for the diocese of Rome, he will meet with students at Roman universities. "I invite everyone," he said, "to join this moment of prayer in preparation for Christmas."
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REFLECTION, SOBRIETY AND JOY CHARACTERIZE CHRISTMAS

VATICAN CITY, DEC 11, 2005 (VIS) - Preparation for Christmas was the central theme of Benedict XVI's reflections before praying the Angelus with the faithful gathered in St. Peter's Square.

  "In today's consumer society," said the Pope, "this season unfortunately suffers from the 'contamination' of commercialism that risks changing its true spirit, characterized by reflection, sobriety and a joy that does not come from outside, but from within. It is, therefore, providential that the entrance door to Christmas" should be "the feast of the mother of Jesus who brings us to know, love and adore the Son of God, made man. Allow her, therefore, to accompany us ... with sincerity of heart and openness of spirit to recognize in the Child of Bethlehem the Son of God, Who came to earth for our redemption."

  "Immediately after the feast of the Immaculate Conception, many families begin to prepare their nativity scenes, as if to relive, together with Mary, those days filled with trepidation which preceded the birth of Jesus. Bringing the nativity scene into the home can be a simple but efficacious way to present and transmit the faith to children ... A nativity scene can help us understand the true secret of Christmas, because it speaks of the humility and the merciful goodness of Christ, Who 'though He was rich, yet for your sake He became poor'."

  To conclude, the Holy Father blessed, according to tradition, the figures of the Child Jesus brought by the children of Rome to St. Peter's Square to place in their own nativity scenes. "With this gesture I invoke the help of the Lord so that all Christian families may prepare to celebrate with faith the forthcoming Christmas celebrations."
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