OTHER PONTIFICAL ACTS

Vatican City, 28 February 2013 (VIS) – Today the Holy Father:

- appointed Fr. Samuel Jofre as bishop of Villa Maria (area 28,000, population 386,000, Catholics 308,000, priests 69, religious 32), Argentina. The bishop-elect was born in Cordoba, Spain in 1957 and was ordained a priest in 1983. Since ordination, he has served in several pastoral and judicial roles, most recently as judge on the inter-diocesanal tribunal of Cordoba and pastor of Santo Cristo Parish. He succeeds Bishop Jose Angel Roval, whose resignation from the pastoral care of the Diocese of Villa Maria the Holy Father accepted, upon having reached the age limit.

- appointed Msgr. Joseph Dinh Duc Dao as auxiliary bishop of the Diocese of Xuan Loc (area 5,955, population 2,458,000, Catholics 873,440, priests 405, religious 2314), Vietnam. The bishop-elect was born in Thuc Hoa, Nam Dinh, Vietnam, in 1945 and was ordained a priest in 1971. Since ordination, he has served in several pastoral, academic, and administrative roles, most recently as consultor of the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue and rector of the Major Seminary of Xuan Loc. The Holy Father has assigned him the Titular See of Gadiaufala.

OTHER PONTIFICAL ACTS

Vatican City, 27 February 2013 (VIS) – Today the Holy Father:

- accepted the resignation presented by Auxiliary Bishop Gerard Clifford of the Archdiocese of Armagh, Ireland, in accordance with canon 401 para. 2 of the Code of Canon Law.

- accepted the resignation from the pastoral care of the Archdiocese of Liverpool, England, presented by Archbishop Patrick Altham Kelly, in accordance with canon 401 para. 2 of the Code of Canon Law.

- appointed Cardinal Stanislaw Dziwisz, archbishop of Krakow, as special envoy to the 600th anniversary of the Cathedral Basilica of Kaunas, Lithuania, which will take place on 5 May, 2013.

OTHER PONTIFICAL ACTS

Vatican City, 25 February 2013 (VIS) – Today, the Holy Father:

- accepted the resignation from the pastoral care of the Archdiocese of Saint Andrews and Edinburgh, Scotland, presented by Cardinal Keith Michael Patrick O’Brien, in accordance with canon 401 para. 1 of the Code of Canon Law.

- appointed Msgr. Franciszek Kisiel as apostolic administrator “sede vacante et ad nutum Sanctae Sedis” of the Diocese of Vitebsk, Belarus. Msgr. Kisiel was previously vicar general of that diocese. He succeeds Bishop Wladislaw Blin, whose resignation from the pastoral care of the same diocese the Holy Father accepted, in accordance with canon 401 para. 2 of the Code of Canon Law.

OTHER PONTIFICAL ACTS

Vatican City, 21 February 2013 (VIS) – Today, the Holy Father:

- appointed Bishop Ramon Alfredo Dus as archbishop of Resistencia (area 28,250, population 6000,000, Catholics 495,000, priests 62, permanent deacons 13, religious 114), Argentina. Archbishop-elect Dus, previously of the Diocese of Reconquista, Argentina, succeeds Archbishop Fabriciano Sigampa, whose resignation from the pastoral care of the same archdiocese the Holy Father accepted, upon having reached the age limit.

- appointed Fr. Marco Aurelio Gubiotti as bishop of Itabira-Favriciano (area 8,996, population 789,000, Catholics 565,000, priests 65, religious 77), Brazil. The bishop-elect was born in Ouro Fino, Minas Gerais, Brazil in 1963 and was ordained a priest in 1989. He has served in several pastoral and academic roles in the archdiocese of Pouso Alegre, Brazil, most recently as a professor of theology, pastor of Nossa Senhora de Fatima parish, and member of the archdiocesan Presbyteral Council. He succeeds Bishop Odilon Guimaraes Moreira, whose resignation from the pastoral care of the same diocese the Holy Father accepted, in accordance with canon 401 para. 2 of the Code of Canon Law.

- erected the Apostolic Vicarate of Puerto Leguizamo-Solano with territory taken from the apostolic prefectures of San Vincente-Puerto Leguizamo and Leticia, Colombia.

- appointed Fr. Joaquim Humberto Pinzon Guiza, I.M.C., as the first apostolic vicar of Puerto Leguizamo-Solano (area 64,000, population 46,000, Catholics 36,000, priests 7, religious 8), Colombia. The bishop-elect was born in Berbeo, Boyaca, Colombia, in 1969 and was ordained a priest in 1999. He has served in several missionary, academic, and administrative roles in Colombia, most recently as the Institute's regional superior in Colombia-Ecuador.

- appointed Fr. Ilario Antoniazzi as archbishop of Tunis (area 162,155, population 10,549,000, Catholics 21,000, priests 32, permanent deacons 1, religious 149), Tunisia. The archbishop-elect was born in Rai, Treviso, Italy and was ordained a priest in 1972. He has served in several pastoral roles in the Patriarchate of Jerusalem, most recently as pastor of Rameh in Galilee, Isreal.

- appointed Fr. Gabriele Marchesi as bishop of Floresta (area 15,806, population 253,000, Catholics 252,000, priests 21, religious 22), Brazil. The bishop-elect was born in Incisa Valdarno, Tuscany, Italy and was ordained a priest in 1978. He has served in several pastoral and administrative roles for the Diocese of Fiesole, Brazil, most recently as pastor of Sao Pedro Apostolo and Nossa Senhora do Rosario parishes, coordinator for Pastoral Service, and episcopal vicar.

- appointed Bishop Miguel Angel D’Annibale as bishop of Rio Gallegos (area 265,614, population 306,000, Catholics 214,000, priests 47, permanent deacons 11, religious 95), Argentina. Bishop D'Annibale, previously auxiliary of that same diocese and titular of Nasai, is a member of the Commission for the Liturgy in the Argentine Episcopal Conference.

OTHER PONTIFICAL ACTS

Vatican City, 16 February 2013 (VIS) - Today, the Holy Father appointed:

Fr. Wieslaw Krotki, O.M.I., as bishop of Churchill-Baie d'Hudson (area 2,300,000, population 32,090, Catholics 8,570, priests 10, religious 2), Canada. The bishop-elect was born in Istebna, now in the Silesia Province of southern Poland in 1964 and was ordained a priest in 1990. Immediately after ordination for the Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate in Obra, Poland, he was sent to the missions in the Great North of Canada where he has served in several roles for the order and to various missions. From 1999 to 2005 he was superior of the Oblate Delegation of Hudson Bay and, since 2001, has been a missionary to the Inuit community of Igloolik. He succeeds Bishop Reynald Rouleau, O.M.I., whose resignation from the pastoral care of the same diocese the Holy Father accepted, upon having reached the age limit.

Fr. Titus Joseph Mdoe as auxiliary bishop of Dar-es-Salaam (area 40,000, population 5,329,000, Catholics 1,618,000, priests 262, religious 712), Tanzania. The bishop-elect was born in Lushoto, Tanga, Tanzania in 1961 and was ordained a priest in 1986. He has served in several pastoral and administrative roles for the Diocese of Tanga, Tanzania, and from 2010 has been the deputy principal for Administration and Finance at Stella Maris Mtwara University College constituency of St. Augustine University in the Diocese of Mtwara, Tanzania. The Holy Father has assigned him the Titular See of Bahanna.

Archbishop Aldo Cavalli as apostolic nuncio to Malta. Archbishop Cavalli, titular of Vibo Valentia, was previously apostolic nuncio to Colombia.

OTHER PONTIFICAL ACTS

Vatican City, 8 February 2013 (VIS) – Today, the Holy Father appointed Bishop Michele Pennisi as archbishop of Monreale (area 1,509, population 233,010, Catholics 229,892, priests 134, permanent deacons 7, religious 190), Italy. Archbishop Pennisi, previously bishop of Piazza Armerina, Italy, succeeds Archbishop Salvatore Di Cristina, whose resignation from the pastoral care of the same archdiocese the Holy Father accepted, upon having reached the age limit.

OTHER PONTIFICAL ACTS

Vatican City, 2 February 2013 (VIS) – Today, the Holy Father appointed:

Bishop Joseph Effiong Ekuwem as archbishop of Calabar (area 7,754, population 1,192,031, Catholics 381,230, priests 74, religious 71), Nigeria. Archbishop Ekuwem, previously bishop of Uyo, Nigeria, succeeds Archbishop Joseph Edra Ukpo, whose resignation from the pastoral care of the same archdiocese the Holy Father accepted, upon having reached the age limit.

Bishop Jesús Juárez Párraga, S.D.B., as archbishop of Sucre (area 49,975, population 630,000, Catholics 552,00, priests 92, permanent deacons 1, religious 236), Bolivia. Archbishop Párraga, previously bishop of El Alto, Bolivia, succeeds Archbishop Jesús Gervasio Pérez Rodríguez, O.F.M., whose resignation from the pastoral care of the same archdiocese the Holy Father accepted, upon having reached the age limit.

Bishop Jean Teyrouz, I.C.P.B., as bishop of the Eparchy of Sainte-Croix-de-Paris of the Armenians (Catholics 30,200, priests 4, religious 6), France. Bishop Teyrouz, previously curial bishop of the Patriarchate of Cilicia of the Armenians, Lebanon, succeeds Bishop Gregoire Ghabroyan, I.C.P.B., whose whose resignation from the pastoral care of the same eparchy the Holy Father accepted in accordance with canon 210 para. 1–2 of the Code of Canons of the Eastern Churches.

Archbishop Michael August Blume, S.V.D., as apostolic nuncio to Uganda. Archbishop Blume, titular of Alexanum, was previously apostolic nuncio to Benin and Togo.

Fr. Percy Lorenzo Galvan Flores as prelate bishop of Corocoro (area 28,823, population 244,000, Catholics 214,000, priests 19, permanent deacons 2, religious 5), Bolivia. The bishop-elect was born in Tomas Frias, Potosi, Bolivia and was ordained a priest in 1991. He has served in several pastoral roles as well as having been rector of the San Cristobal Seminary of the Archdiocese of Sucre, Bolivia between 2001 and 2005 and vicar general of that same archdiocese between 2005 and 2007. Most recently he has been pastor of San Jose Parish, Sucre, director of the Ecclesiatical Museum, and a member of the Economic, Presbyteral, and Pastoral Councils of that archdiocese.

Msgr. Michel Aupetit as auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of Paris (area 105, population 2,233,818, Catholics 1,340,291, priests 1,353, permanent deacons 109, religious 2,831), France. The bishop-elect was born in Versailles, France in 1951 and was ordained a priest in 1995. Licensed in medicine by the faculty of Bichat-Claude Bernard Hospital―with a specialization in bioethics, which he taught for nine years at the Henri Mondor Hospital of Creteil―he practised medicine for 12 years in Paris. Since ordination he has served in several pastoral roles and, since 2006, has been the vicar general of the Archdiocese of Paris. The Holy Father has assigned him the titular see of Maxita.

Fr. Eugenio Coter as vicar apostolic of Pando (area 86,261, population 208,867, Catholics 187,981, priests 24, religious 33), Bolivia. The bishop-elect was born in Gazzaniga, Italy in 1957 and was ordained a priest in 1981. Since ordination the bishop-elect has served as pastor to several Italian and Bolivian parishes as well as having been a member of a diocesan pastoral council, an episcopal delegate for social outreach and, most recently, the spiritual director of the San Luis Seminary of the Archdiocese of Cochabamba, Bolivia. The Holy Father has assigned him the titular see of Thibiuca. He succeeds Bishop Luis Morgan Casey, whose resignation from the pastoral care of the same vicariate apostolic the Holy Father accepted, upon having reached the age limit.

OTHER PONTIFICAL ACTS

Vatican City, 31 January 2013 (VIS) – Today, the Holy Father:

- appointed Bishop Ignatius Menezes as apostolic administrator "sede vacante et ad nutum Sanctae Sedis" of the diocese of Allahabad (area 46,774, population 32,199,000, Catholics 13,263, priests 90, religious 370), India. Bishop Menezes, emeritus of Ajmer, India, succeeds Bishop Isidore Fernandes, whose resignation from the pastoral care of the diocese of Allahabad the Holy Father accepted, in accordance with canon 401 para. 2 of the Code of Canon Law.

- appointed Fr. Laurent Birfuore Dabire as bishop of Dori (area 34,766, population 950,000, Catholics 10,000, priests 19, religious 20), Burkina Faso. Bishop-elect Dabire was born in Dissin, Burkina Faso in 1965 and was ordained a priest in 1995. Previously judicial vicar and chancellor of the Diocese of Diebougou, Burkina Faso from 2005, the bishop-elect holds a doctorate in canon law and comparative law from Rome's Pontifical Lateran University and teaches law at the Unite Universitaire of Bamako, Mali.

- appointed Fr. Jonas Dembele as bishop of Kayes (area 160,000, population 1,432,000, Catholics 8,000, priests 18, religious 18), Mali. Bishop-elect Dembele, of the clergy of San, Mali was born in Sokoura, Mali in 1963, and was ordained a priest in 1992. Along with having served as pastor to several parishes in Mali since 1992, the bishop-elect was general secretary of the Diocesan Union of the Clergy of San and the National Union of the Clergy of Mali between 2002 and 2008.

- appointed Bishop Stanislas Lalanne as bishop of Pontoise (area 1,246, population 1,160,719, Catholics 844,000, priests 175, permanent deacons 28, religious 216), France. Bishop Lalanne, previously of Coutances, France, was born in Metz, France in 1948, was ordained to the priesthood in 1975, and received episcopal ordination in 2007. On the national episcopal conference her serves on the "Etudes et projets" committee and is also a consultor of the Pontifical Council for Social Communications and an advisor to the Catholic International Cooperation for Development and Solidarity (CIDSE).

- appointed Bishop Lucio Andrice Muandula of Xai-Xai, Mozambique as a member of the Pontifical Council for the Pastoral Care of Migrants and Itinerant Peoples. Bishop Muandula is president of the Mozambique Bishops' Conference. His Holiness also appointed Dr. Marco Impagliazzo as a consultor of that same pontifical council. Dr. Impagliazzo, who teaches Contemporary History at the University for Foreigners in Perugia, Italy, is president of the Community of Sant'Egidio.

The Holy Father has appointed these cardinals, created in the consistory of 24 November 2012, as members of the following dicasteries and organs of the Roman Curia:

1) to the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, Cardinal John Olorunfemi Onaiyekan, archbishop of Abuja, Nigeria;

2) to the Congregation for the Oriental Churches: Cardinal Bechara Boutros Rai, O.M.M., Patriarch of Antioch of the Maronites, Lebanon and Cardinal Baselios Cleemis Thottunkal, major archbishop of Trivandrum of the Syro-Malankars, India;

3) to the the Pontifical Commission for Latin America, Cardinal Ruben Salazar Gomez, archbishop of Bogota, Colombia;

4) to the Congregation for the Evangelisation of Peoples, Cardinal James Michael Harvey, archpriest of the Basilica of Saint Paul Outside-the-Walls, Rome, Italy.

5) to the Supreme Tribunal of the Apostolic Signatura, Cardinal Bechara Boutros Rai, O.M.M., Patriarch of Antioch of the Maronites, Lebanon;

6) to the presidency committee of the Pontifical Council for the Family: Cardinal John Olorunfemi Onaiyekan, archbishop of Abuja, Nigeria and Cardinal Luis Antonio Gokim Tagle, archbishop of Manila, Philippines;

7) to the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace, Cardinal Ruben Salazar Gomez, archbishop of Bogota, Colombia;

8) to the Pontifical Council for the Pastoral Care of Migrants and Itinerant Peoples: Cardinal Bechara Boutros Rai, O.M.M., Patriarch of Antioch of the Maronites, Lebanon and Cardinal Luis Antonio Gokim Tagle, archbishop of Manila, Philippines;

9) to the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue, Cardinal Baselios Cleemis Thottunkal, major archbishop of Trivandrum of the Syro-Malankars, India;

10) to the Pontifical Council for Social Communications, Cardinal Bechara Boutros Rai, O.M.M., Patriarch of Antioch of the Maronites, Lebanon;

11) to the Administration of the Patrimony of the Apostolic See (APSA), Cardinal James Michael Harvey, archpriest of the Basilica of Saint Paul Outside-the-Walls, Rome, Italy.

OTHER PONTIFICAL ACTS

Vatican City, 29 January 2013 (VIS) – Today, the Holy Father appointed Bishop Alexander King Sample as archbishop of the archdiocese of Portland (area 76,937, population 3,296,705, Catholics 412,725, priests 300, permanent deacons 72, religious 653), Oregon, USA. Bishop Sample, previously bishop of Marquette, Michigan, USA, was born in Kalispell, Montana, USA, in 1960, was ordained to the priesthood in 1990, and received episcopal ordination in 2006. In the national bishops' conference he currently serves on the Subcommittees on Native American Catholics and on the Catechism. He is also vice-postulator for the cause for canonisation of Venerable Frederic Baraga, first bishop of the Diocese of Marquette. He succeeds Archbishop John George Vlazny, whose resignation from the pastoral care of the same archdiocese the Holy Father accepted, upon having reached the age limit.

OTHER PONTIFICAL ACTS

Vatican City, 25 January 2013 (VIS) – Today, the Holy Father:

- accepted the resignation from the pastoral care of the diocese of Kalookan, Philippines presented by Bishop Deogracias S. Iniguez in accordance with canon 401 para. 2 of the Code of Canon Law.

- appointed Bishop Buenaventura Malayo Famadico as bishop of San Pablo (area 1,203, population 2,821,000, Catholics 2,466,000, priests 172, religious 508), Philippines. Bishop Famadico was born in 1956 in Banton, Romblon, Philippines, was ordained to the priesthood in 1983, and received episcopal ordination in 2002. He was previously bishop of Gumaca, Philippines from 2003. He succeeds Bishop Leo M. Drona, S.D.B., whose resignation from the pastoral care of the diocese of San Pablo the Holy Father accepted, in accordance with canon 401 para. 2 of the Code of Canon Law.

OTHER PONTIFICAL ACTS

Vatican City, 19 January 2013 (VIS) – Today, the Holy Father:

- elevated the apostolic exarchate for Ukrainian faithful of the Byzantine rite resident in France, to the rank of eparchy with the title "Saint Wladimir-Le-Grand de Paris des Byzantins-Ukrainiens". He appointed Bishop Borys Andrij Gudziak, previously apostolic exarch of France (Ukrainian) and titular of Carcabia, as first bishop of the new eparchy. Bishop Gudziak was born in 1960 in Syracuse, New York, USA, was ordained to the priesthood in 1998, and received episcopal ordination in 2012.

- appointed Msgr. Piotr Sawczuk as auxiliary bishop of the diocese of Siedlce (area 11,440, population 736,800, Catholics 725,800, priests 666, religious 385), Poland. The bishop-elect was born in 1962 in Puczyce, Poland and was ordained a priest in 1987. Bishop-elect Sawczuk, previously vicar general and chancellor of the curia of that same diocese, was assigned the titular see of Ottana.

- appointed Bishop Mathieu Madega Lebouakehan as bishop of Mouila (area 59,035, population 124,000, Catholics 48,500, priests 16, religious 26), Gabon. Bishop Madega Lebouakehan was born in 1960 in Mbigou, Gabon, was ordained to the priesthood in 1991, and received episcopal ordination in 2000. Previously bishop of Port-Gentil, Gabon since 2003, Bishop Madega Lebouakehan was also named apostolic administrator "sede vacante et ad nutum Sanctae Sedis" of that diocese. He succeeds Bishop Dominique Bonnet, C.S.Sp., whose resignation from the pastoral care of the diocese of Moiula the Holy Father accepted, upon having reached the age limit.

OTHER PONTIFICAL ACTS

Vatican City, 15 January 2013 (VIS) – Today the Holy Father appointed Bishop Desiderius Rwoma as bishop of Bukoba (area 8,608, population 876,350, Catholics 527,515, priests 128, religious 438),Tanzania. Bishop Rwoma, formerly bishop of Singida, Tanzania, was also named as apostolic administrator "sede vacante et ad nutum Sanctae Sedis" of the Diocese of Singida. He succeeds Bishop Nestorius Timanywa of Bukoba, whose resignation from the pastoral care of that diocese the Holy Father accepted, upon having reached the age limit.

OTHER PONTIFICAL ACTS

Vatican City, 10 January 2013 (VIS) - Today, the Holy Father:

- Appointed Bishop Oscar Cantu as bishop of the diocese of Las Cruces (area 115,166, population 532,000, Catholics 140,200, priests 81, permanent deacons 38, religious 82), USA. Bishop Cantu, previously titular of Dardano and auxiliary of San Antonio, was ordained to the priesthood in 1994 and received episcopal ordination in 2008. In the national bishops' conference he currently serves on the committees on Catholic Education, International Justice and Peace, and Protection of Children and Young People, as well as the Subcommittee on Hispanic Affairs. He succeeds Bishop Ricardo Ramirez C.S.B., whose resignation from the pastoral care of the same diocese the Holy Father accepted, upon having reached the age limit.

- Appointed Fr. Marwan Tabet, M.L., as bishop of the eparchy of Saint-Maron de Montreal of the Maronites (Catholics 85,000, priests 20, religious 15), Canada. The bishop-elect was born in Bhamdoun, Lebanon in 1961, entered the Congregation of the Lebanese Maronite Missionaries in 1980, and was ordained to the priesthood in 1986. He succeeds Bishop Joseph Khoury, whose resignation from the pastoral care of the same eparchy the Holy Father accepted in accordance with canon 210 para. 1 of the Code of Canons of the Eastern Churches.

- Appointed Fr. Brendan Leahy as bishop of the diocese of Limerick (area 2,100, population 178,800, Catholics 171,500, priests 167, religious 411), Ireland. The bishop-elect was born in Dublin, Ireland in 1960 and ordained a priest in 1986. Since 2006 he has taught Systematic Theology at St Patrick’s College Maynooth and served as a corresponding member of the Pontifical Academy of Theology. He is also the chairman of the archdiocese of Dublin's Diocesan Ecumenical Committee and the secretary of the Irish Bishops' Advisory Committee on Ecumenism.

FROM THE ORIENTAL CHURCHES

Vatican City, 10 January 2013 (VIS) - The Synod of Bishops of the Syro-Malabar Major Archiepiscopal Church, meeting at Mount St. Thomas near Kerala, India, with the prior assent of the Holy Father has canonically elected Fr. George Madathikandathil as bishop of Kothamangalam of the Syro-Malabars (area 1,840, population 787,100, Catholics 230,760, priests 282, religious 2,494), India. The bishop-elect was born in Purapuzha, India in 1956 and ordained to the priesthood in 1980. He taught Canon Law at the St. Thomas Pontifical Seminary of Vadavathor, where he also served as vice-rector and then rector. He is currently pastor of St. Mary's Church in Arakuzha. He succeeds Bishop George Punnakottil, whose resignation from the pastoral care of the same eparchy the synod accepted, in accordance with canon 210 para. 1 of the Code of Canons of the Eastern Churches.

OTHER PONTIFICAL ACTS

Vatican City, 8 January 2013 (VIS) - Today the Holy Father appointed Bishop Dennis J. Sullivan as bishop of Camden (area 6,967, population 1,443,274, Catholics 511,822, priests 294, permanent deacons 150, religious 323), USA. Bishop Sullivan, previously titular of Enera and auxiliary of the Archdiocese of New York, was ordained to the priesthood in 1971. He served as pastor of several parishes in the Archdiocese of New York before receiving episcopal ordination in 2004. He has been the vicar general of the Archdiocese of New York since 2005 and, in the bishops' conference, serves as a member of the Committee on the Protection of Children and Young People as well as the Subcommittee on Asian and Pacific Islanders. He succeeds Bishop Joseph A. Galante, whose resignation from the pastoral care of the same diocese the Holy Father accepted, in accordance with canon 401 para. 2 of the Code of Canon Law.