OPENING UP TO GOD DOES NOT DETACH US FROM THE WORLD

Vatican City,  (VIS) - Benedict XVI addressed a message to the participants in the Portuguese session of the Courtyard of Gentiles, which is being held in Guimaraes and Braga, Portugal, on 16 and 17 November, on the theme of "The value of life".

"Awareness of the sacredness of life … is part of the moral heritage of humankind", writes the Pope. "We are not the chance product of evolution; rather, each of us is the fruit of God's will: He loves us. … God loves every person who, therefore, is unconditionally deserving of life. 'The blood of Christ, while it reveals the grandeur of the Father's love, shows how precious man is in God's eyes, and how priceless the value of his life is'".

"However, in the modern age, man has sought to subtract himself from the creating and redeeming gaze of the Father, looking only to himself and not to divine Power. … In a building without windows, it is man who has to provide air and light; yet even in such a self-constructed world, man seeks God's 'resources', which are thereby transformed into our own products. … We must reopen the windows, look anew upon the vastness of the world, the sky and the earth, and learn to use them in the correct way. The value of life becomes evident only if God exists; therefore it would be good if non-believers could live 'as if God existed'. While they may not have 'the strength to believe', they should live on the basis of this hypothesis. … So many problems exist, but they will not be resolved unless God is placed at the centre … once more visible in the world and crucial to our lives".

"He who opens himself to God does not distance himself from the world and man, but instead finds brothers: in God, the walls that separate us are broken down, we all become brothers, each a part of the other", the Pope concludes.

CARDINAL DUKA TO TAKE POSSESSION OF HIS TITLE

Vatican City,  (VIS) - A note released today by the Office of Liturgical Celebrations of the Supreme Pontiff announces that Cardinal Dominik Duka, archbishop of Prague, Czech Republic, will take possession of the title of Santi Marcellino e Pietro in Via Labicana 1, Rome, at 7 p.m. on Sunday 25 November.

AUDIENCES

Vatican City,  (VIS) - The Holy Father today received in audience:

- Ten prelates of the Episcopal Conference of France on their "ad limina" visit:

- Archbishop Andre Lacrampe of Besancon.

- Bishop Claude Schockert of Belfort-Montbeliard.

- Bishop Jean-Louis Papin of Nancy.

- Bishop Vincent Jordy of Saint-Claude.

- Bishop Jean-Paul Mathieu of Saint-Die.

- Bishop Francois Maupu of Verdun.

- Archbishop Jean-Pierre Grallet O.F.M. of Strasbourg, accompanied by Auxiliary Bishop Vincent Dollman.

- Bishop Pierre Raffin O.P. of Metz.

- Fr. Daniel Ducasse, diocesan administrator of Pontoise.

- Archbishop Guido Pozzo, almoner of His Holiness.

OTHER PONTIFICAL ACTS

Vatican City,  (VIS) - The Holy Father appointed Fr. Nil Yuriy Lushchak O.F.M., professor of philosophy in the major seminary of Uzhorod, Ukraine, as auxiliary of the eparchy of Mukachevo of the Byzantine rite (Catholics 58,000, priests 39, permanent deacons 1, religious 72), Ukraine. The bishop-elect was born in Uzhorod in 1973 and ordained a priest in 1996. He has worked in pastoral service in various parishes within the eparchy of Mukachevo.

On Saturday 17 November it was made public that the Holy Father:

- Msgr. Henryk Ciereszko of the clergy of Bialystok, Poland, as auxiliary bishop of the same archdiocese (area 5,550, population 515,400, Catholics 455,400, priests 393, religious 202). The bishop-elect was born in Hermanowka, Poland in 1955 and ordained a priest in 1981. He obtained his doctorate from the Catholic University of Lublin and is currently a teacher in the Seminary of Bialystok, a promoter of justice at the metropolitan tribunal and a member of the presbyteral council.

- Bishop Lorenzo Ghizzoni, auxiliary of Reggio Emilia-Guastalla, Italy, as archbishop of Ravenna-Cervia (area 1,185, population 223,130, Catholics 200,000, priests 118, permanent deacons 6, religious 255), Italy. He succeeds Archbishop Giuseppe Verucchi, whose resignation from the pastoral care of the same archdiocese the Holy Father accepted, upon having reached the age limit.

- Archbishop Luigi Pezzuto, apostolic nuncio to El Salvador and Belize, as apostolic nuncio to Bosnia and Herzegovina and to Montenegro.

THE POPE RECEIVES THE PRESIDENT OF COTE D'IVOIRE

Vatican City,  (VIS) - This morning in the Vatican Apostolic Palace the Holy Father Benedict XVI received in audience Alassane Ouattara, president of the Republic of Cote d'Ivoire. The president subsequently went on to meet with Cardinal Secretary of State Tarcisio Bertone S.D.B. who was accompanied by Archbishop Dominique Mamberti, secretary for Relations with States.

The discussions emphasised the cordial relations between the Holy See and the Republic of Cote d'Ivoire, as well as the convergence of opinions on the contribution the Church makes for the good of the entire country, encouraging peace and promoting human rights, dialogue and national reconciliation, as the only way to favour unity and development. Emphasis was also given to the fruitful collaboration between Church and State in the sectors of healthcare and education, among others. The hope was expressed that the negotiations for an agreement between the Holy See and the Republic of Cote d'Ivoire would soon be concluded.

Mention was also made of various regional challenges Africa is currently facing, which are of particular concern to Mr. Ouattara in his role as president of the Economic Community of West African States.