OTHER PONTIFICAL ACTS

Vatican City, 18 November 2013 (VIS) - Today, the Holy Father appointed Bishop Franz Lackner, O.F.M., auxiliary of Graz-Seckau, Austria, as archbishop of Salzburg (area 9,715, population 713,085, Catholics 487,691, priests 297, permanent deacons 40, religious 492), Austria. He was born in Feldbach, Austria in 1956, was ordained to the priesthood in 1991, and received episcopal ordination in 2002.

On Saturday, 16 November, the Holy Father:

- appointed Msgr. Roman Pindel as bishop of Bielsko-Zywiec (area 3,000, population 766,300, Catholics 680,700, priests 634, religious 632), Poland. Bishop-elect Pindel was born in Oswiecim, Poland in 1958 and was ordained a priest in 1983. He holds a licentiate and doctorate in bible studies from the Pontifical Theological Academy of Krakow (PAT), Poland, and has served in a number of roles, including spiritual director and rector of the major seminary of Krakow, director of the chair in biblical hermeneutics and Judaism at the faculty of theology of the “John Paul II” Pontifical University, Krakow (formerly PAT), diocesan assistant for Renewal in the Holy Spirit, bishop's delegate for assistance to new religious movements, and president of the Conference of Rectors of Polish Seminaries.

- appointed Fr. Pedro Javier Torres as auxiliary bishop of Cordoba (area 19,722, population 2,115,000, Catholics 1,856,000, priests 344, permanent deacons 1, religious 967), Argentina. Bishop-elect Torres was born in Cordoba, Argentina in 1960, and was ordained a priest in 1984. He has served in a number of roles, including lecturer, formator and rector of the major seminary “N.S. De Loreto”, parish vicar of San Juan Bosco, priest in a number of parishes within the archdiocese of Cordoba, member of the Interreligious Committee for Peace, member of the College of Consultors, diocesan spokesman for the media on bioethics, ecumenism and interreligious dialogue, executive secretary for the Episcopal Commission on Ecumenism and Relations with Judaism, Islam and other religions, lecturer in priestly meetings and pastoral courses, and a preacher of spiritual rites in a number of Argentine dioceses.

- appointed Msgr. Angelo Genoni as Office Head of the Ordinary Section of the Administration of the Patrimony of the Holy See. Msgr. Genoni was previously Study Assistant in the same dicastery.