News Vatican Information Services

04/06/2006

SUMMARY:

- Pope Receives Nobel Prize Winner Shimon Peres
- Telegram for the Death of Former Secretary to Paul VI
- Migration Can Generate Employment and Other Benefits
- Audiences
- Other Pontifical Acts

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POPE RECEIVES NOBEL PRIZE WINNER SHIMON PERES

VATICAN CITY, APR 6, 2006 (VIS) - Holy See Press Office Director Joaquin Navarro-Valls released the following declaration to journalists late this morning:

"This morning Shimon Peres, former prime minister of the State of Israel and Nobel Peace Prize winner, visited His Holiness Benedict XVI. He then went on to meet Cardinal Secretary of State Angelo Sodano, in the presence of Oded Ben-Hur, Israeli ambassador to the Holy See, and Msgr. Pietro Parolin, under-secretary of the Section for Relations with States.

"In the course of the discussions opinions were exchanged concerning the problem of peace in the Holy Land while respecting United Nations Resolutions and the agreements concluded to date. In this context, there was a unanimous condemnation of all forms of terrorism, whatever pretexts used to try and justify it.

"Relations between the State of Israel and the Holy See were also examined, in the light of the agreements signed in 1993 and 1997, as were relations between the Israeli authorities and the Christian communities resident in the country.

"At the end of the meeting, Shimon Peres, invited the Supreme Pontiff to visit Israel."
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TELEGRAM FOR THE DEATH OF FORMER SECRETARY TO PAUL VI

VATICAN CITY, APR 6, 2006 (VIS) - The Pope sent a telegram of condolence to Cardinal Dionigi Tettamanzi, archbishop of Milan, Italy, for the death yesterday at the age of 82 of Archbishop Pasquale Macchi, prelate emeritus of Loreto, Italy and former personal secretary to Pope Paul VI.

Benedict XVI recalls "the profound spirituality and generous episcopal commitment that characterized the ministry of the lamented prelate," and asks the Lord "to welcome him in eternal joy as a good and faithful servant, rewarding his constant dedication to spreading the Gospel and his devotion to the Most Holy Virgin Mary."

Cardinal Tettamanzi will preside at Archbishop Macchi's funeral - due to be held in the Duomo of Milan at 10.30 a.m. on Saturday April 8 - which will be attended, in the name of the Holy Father, by Cardinal Attilio Nicora, president of the Administration of the Patrimony of the Apostolic See.
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MIGRATION CAN GENERATE EMPLOYMENT AND OTHER BENEFITS

VATICAN CITY, APR 6, 2006 (VIS) - Archbishop Celestino Migliore, Holy See permanent observer to the United Nations, participated yesterday in the 39th session of the Commission on Population and Development.

"The work of the commission includes" said the archbishop in his English-language speech, "the examination of trends and impacts upon population and development like HIV, unknown 60 years ago, and the migration of peoples, with their respective consequences."

Sometimes, he added, the phenomenon of migration "is painted as a threat and is manipulated for short term political gain, at the expense of the most natural rights of all human beings - the right to life, to citizenship, to work and to development."

"For receiving countries, the net economic impact of international migration is said to be generally positive. Although the presence of international migrants may have a small adverse effect on the wages of non-migrants or may raise unemployment when wages are rigid, such effects are usually small at the national level. Over the medium and long term, migration can even generate employment and produce net fiscal gains."

The apostolic nuncio also highlighted how "the emigration of skilled personnel can be detrimental to the development prospects of countries of origin, especially small developing countries losing high proportions of skilled citizens. However, skilled migrants who maintain ties with their countries of origin may stimulate the transfer of technology and capital."

He added: "Due to low fertility, net migration counts for three quarters of the population growth in developed countries and, by 2030, migration may account for all population growth in those countries. ... The social impact of migration on receiving countries with shrinking birth rates, now needs to be better understood."

Archbishop Migliore concluded by highlighting the "growing awareness that immigration cannot be the single solution to demographic and labor problems of receiving countries."
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AUDIENCES

VATICAN CITY, APR 6, 2006 (VIS) - The Holy Father today received in separate audiences:

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

- Cardinal Renato Raffaele Martino, president of the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace, and of the Pontifical Council for the Pastoral Care of Migrants and Itinerant Peoples.

- Archbishop Nikola Eterovic, secretary general of the Synod of Bishops.

- Cardinal Jean-Louis Tauran, archivist and librarian of Holy Roman Church, accompanied by an entourage.
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OTHER PONTIFICAL ACTS

VATICAN CITY, APR 6, 2006 (VIS) - The Holy Father:

- Appointed Fr. Dieter Scholz S.J., director of a formation center in Harare, Zimbabwe, as bishop of Chinhoyi (area 56,000, population 1,679,101, Catholics 84,290, priests 28, religious 94), Zimbabwe. The bishop-elect was born in Berlin, Germany in 1938 and ordained a priest in 1969.

- Appointed Fr. John Baptist Lee Keh-mean, rector of the interdiocesan seminary at Hsinchuang, Taiwan, as bishop of Hsinchu (area 4,750, population 3,225,165, Catholics 52,090, priests 102, religious 165), Taiwan. The bishop-elect was born in Tainan Hsein, Taiwan in 1958 and ordained a priest in 1990.

- Appointed Fr. Fernando Chomali Garib, pastor and moderator of the Curia of the archdiocese of Santiago de Chile, Chile, as auxiliary of the same archdiocese (area 9,132, population 5,411,320, Catholics 3,755,456, priests 816, permanent deacons 228, religious 3,344). The bishop-elect was born in Santiago de Chile in 1957 and ordained a priest in 1991.

- Confirmed Bishop Giuseppe Betori as secretary general of the Italian Episcopal Conference for the next five-year period.
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News Vatican Information Services

04/05/2006

SUMMARY:

- The Church of Love Is Also the Church of Truth
- Peace for The Basque Country, Memory of John Paul II
- Meeting of World Youth Day Leaders
- Other Pontifical Acts

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THE CHURCH OF LOVE IS ALSO THE CHURCH OF TRUTH

VATICAN CITY, APR 5, 2006 (VIS) - Service to communion within the Church was the theme of Benedict XVI's catechesis during his general audience, held this morning in St. Peter's Square in the presence of 30,000 people.

"The source of the communion of the disciples, both with one another and with God, is the Spirit that pours the love of God into our hearts," the Pope began. "Where the Church is, there is the Spirit of God, and where the Spirit is, there is the Church and all grace," he added, quoting the words of St. Irenaeus. "This intimate link with the Spirit does not eliminate our humanity with all its weaknesses, as the community of disciples is well aware." Proof of this is "constituted above all by the contrasts concerning the truth of faith and the subsequent lacerations of communion."

"That the early Church was also aware of these potential tensions within the experience of communion is clear from the First Letter of John. No voice in the New Testament rises with greater force to highlight the reality and the duty of fraternal love between Christians; yet the same voice addresses itself with drastic severity to the adversaries who were members of the community but are so no longer. The Church of love is also the Church of truth, primarily understood as being faithfulness to the Gospel that Christ entrusted to His followers."

Communion, the Pope explained, "arises from a faith inspired by apostolic preaching, it is nourished by the breaking of bread and by prayer, and it is expressed in fraternal charity and in service. ... The Apostles and their successors are thus the custodians and authoritative witnesses of the deposit of faith entrusted to the Church, just as they are also ministers of the charity revealed and donated by the Lord Jesus. In this way, theirs is above all a service of love; and the charity they live and promote is inseparable from the truth they defend and transmit. Truth and love are two faces of the same gift that comes from God and that, thanks to the apostolic ministry, is safeguarded within the Church, reaching down to our own time."
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PEACE FOR THE BASQUE COUNTRY, MEMORY OF JOHN PAUL II

VATICAN CITY, APR 5, 2006 (VIS) - At the end of the general audience, the Pope addressed some words to Spanish pilgrims, recalling that April 7 marks the 500th anniversary of the birth of St. Francis Xavier, "the great Jesuit missionary who preached the Gospel in the lands of Asia, opening many doors to Christ."

The Holy Father added: "I unite myself with that celebration, thanking the Lord for this great gift to His Church. ... In contemplating the figure of St. Francis Xavier we feel called to pray for those who dedicate their lives to the evangelizing mission, proclaiming the beauty of the salvific message of Jesus.

"At the same time," he continued, "I invite you to pray that, through the intercession of this saint, everyone may intensify efforts to consolidate the horizons of peace that seem to be opening in the Basque Country and in all Spain, and to overcome the obstacles that may arise on this long journey."

The Holy Father also greeted Polish pilgrims present at the audience. "With you," he said, "I give thanks to God for the pontificate of my great predecessor, John Paul II. May his spiritual presence and the heritage of his teaching strengthen us in the faith and help us on the journey towards the meeting with Christ!"
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MEETING OF WORLD YOUTH DAY LEADERS

VATICAN CITY, APR 5, 2006 (VIS) - The first international meeting of leaders and organizers of World Youth Days will be held at Sassone Di Ciampino near Rome from April 7 to 9.

According to a communique made public yesterday afternoon, the meeting, organized by the Pontifical Council for the Laity, will be attended by delegates from 85 countries and by representatives from 45 communities, associations and Catholic youth movements.

On the first day, Cardinal Joachim Meisner, archbishop of Cologne, Germany, will consider last August's WYD, which was held in Cologne, analyzing its results on his archdiocese and on youth pastoral care throughout Germany, as well as organizational and logistical challenges.

The next day, Cardinal George Pell, archbishop of Sydney, Australia, will speak on the challenges and expectations of the Australian Church with a view to World Youth Day 2008, due to be held in Sydney.

On April 9, Palm Sunday and 21st World Youth Day, the delegates and representatives will participate in the Mass celebrated by Benedict XVI in St. Peter's Square. At the end of the Eucharistic celebration, a group of young people from Germany will hand over the WYD Cross to a group of young Australians.

Before reaching Australia, the Cross will undertake a long journey, beginning on April 10 when it will travel from Rome to Dakar, Senegal where it will remain over Easter. It will subsequently be taken to over 20 African countries, concluding its travels on that continent in February 2007.

From February 2007, the communique concludes, the Cross will begin another journey taking it to many Pacific Ocean islands, before arriving in Sydney for World Youth Day in July 2008.
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OTHER PONTIFICAL ACTS

VATICAN CITY, APR 5, 2006 (VIS) - The Holy Father:

- Appointed Bishop Joviano de Lima Junior S.S.S., of Sao Carlos, Brazil, as metropolitan archbishop of Ribeirao Preto (area 8,897, population 942,306, Catholics 756,000, priests 124, permanent deacons 15, religious 207), Brazil. The archbishop-elect was born in Uberaba, Brazil in 1942, he was ordained a priest in 1969 and consecrated a bishop in 1995. He succeeds Archbishop Arnaldo Ribeiro, whose resignation from the pastoral care of the same archdiocese, the Holy Father accepted, upon having reached the age limit.

- Accepted the resignation of Bishop Attila Mikloshazy S.J. from the office of spiritual assistant to Hungarian emigrants, upon having reached the age limit.
NER:RE/.../DE LIMA:RIBEIRO:MIKLOSHAZY VIS 060405 (120)

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