Latest from the Vatican Information Service - Pope Francis Appoints

THE POPE LAUNCHES A CAMPAIGN TO HELP AFRICAN ALBINOS
Vatican City, 25 June 2014 (VIS) – Pope Francis recorded his voice last 30 November, reading several passages from the book “Ombra Bianco” (“White Shadow”) by the Italian author Cristiano Gentile, which seeks to raise public awareness of the situation experienced by albinos in Africa: a population often rejected and repudiated. The Holy Father was invited by the writer to close an international symposium on Africa organised by the Pontifical Academy of Sciences.
The reading and the Pope's testimony form part of a universal message of peace and brotherhood, addressed on this occasion to African albinos, living symbols of the absolute periphery, the “last of the last”.
Today, 25 July, sees the launch of the international awareness campaign, “Help African Albinos”, on the site www.ombrabianca.com. Any person can follow the Pope's example and lend their voice, reading in Italian, with a multilingual translation system, a phrase from the novel, thus participating in the creation of the first social audio-book ever created. It will be the audio-book read by the greatest number of people in the world and will symbolically give voice to those who have none. The international campaign has the hashtag #HelpAfricanAlbinos and will launch a petition in 6 languages on the site www.change.orgto demonstrate closeness and ask for concrete help for African albinos, which will be made possible thanks to a partnership with various NGOs, including Doctors with Africa-CUAMM.
THE SITUATION OF THE FRANCISCANS OF THE IMMACULATE AND THE LEGIONARIES OF CHRIST
Vatican City, 25 June 2014 (VIS) – The director of the Holy See Press Office, Fr. Federico Lombardi, S.J., has made public the answers received from the secretary of the Congregation for the Institutes of Consecrated Life and the Societies of Apostolic Life in relation to various questions on the Franciscans of the Immaculate and the Legionaries of Christ, published in full below:
“The Franciscans of the Immaculate: both the commissioner, Fr. Volpi, and all the seminarians of the Franciscans of the Immaculate were received by the Holy Father on 10 June at the Domus Sanctae Marthae, a gesture that demonstrates the interest with which Pope Francis follows the situation of the Franciscans of the Immaculate and his closeness to the work that the commissioner is carrying out in the name of the Congregation for the Institutes of Consecrated Life and the Societies of Apostolic Life. The Holy Father is punctually informed of all the steps as they taken. At the moment a house in Rome is being sought to accommodate the Friars, brothers of the aforementioned Institute, who attend a Pontifical university in Rome to pursue their studies.
The Legionaries: as anticipated, with the celebration of the General Chapter the Institute has returned to the competence of the Congregation for the Institutes of Consecrated Life and the Societies of Apostolic Life. This progression has ended the work of the Apostolic delegate. As a gesture of fraternal closeness, the prefect and the secretary of the dicastery will meet on 3 July at the Legionaries' central seat to comment personally on various corrections that need to be made to the text of the Constitutions presented to the dicastery, and to communicate the name of the Pontifical assistant. The corrections to the text of the Constitutions are very few in number. With regard to the assistant, the role will be assumed by a consecrated person, as anticipated, who knows the Legionaries and will be able to be of help to the general Council on legal and other themes, according to need. It is to be noted that this figure is an assistant, not a visitator, commissioner or delegate. The assistant has neither a voice nor a vote, and is merely an assessor, and was agreed upon before the general Chapter.
The governor general of the Legionaries attended the Congregation following the Chapter to meet the prefect and the secretary. On that occasion, the director general had expressed the wish to receive the prefect and secretary of the dicastery at the seat of the Legionaries. For this reason Cardinal Joao Braz de Aviz and Archbishop Jose Rodriguez Carballo will make their visit on 3 July.
THE AIF COLLABORATES WITH ARGENTINA AGAINST MONEY LAUNDERING AND THE FINANCING OF TERRORISM
Vatican City, 25 June 2014 (VIS) – The Autorita Informazione Finanziaria (AIF), the Financial Intelligence Unit of the Holy See and Vatican City State, has formalised its bilateral cooperation with Argentina, signing a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) at the Vaticanon Tuesday.
The MOU was signed in the Palazzo San Carlo by the director of the AIF, Rene Bruelhart, and the president of the Unidad de Informacion Financiera (UIF) of Argentina, Jose Sbattella.
“We're very pleased to have signed this MOU with Argentina today”, Bruelhart said. “This is an important step to further expand the network to support global efforts to fight money laundering and the financing of terrorism. We're looking forward to fruitful cooperation with Argentina, which will be beneficial to both parties”.
A Memorandum of Understanding is standard practice and formalises the cooperation and exchange of financial information to fight money laundering and combat terrorist financing across borders between the competent authorities of both countries. It is based on the model Memorandum of Understanding prepared by the Egmont Group, the global organisation of national Financial Intelligence Units, and contains clauses on reciprocity, permitted uses of information and confidentiality.
AIF became a member of the Egmont Group in July of 2013, and has already signed MOUs with the Financial Intelligence Units of more than a dozen countries, including the U.K., the United States, France, Spain, Italy and Germany.
AIF is the competent authority of the Holy See/Vatican City State to fight money laundering and the financing of terrorism. It was established in 2010.
OTHER PONTIFICAL ACTS
Vatican City, 25 June 2014 (VIS) – The Holy Father has:
- eliminated the diocese of Guiratinga, Brazil, distributing its territory between the current dioceses of Rondonopolis, Barra do Garcas and Paranatinga.
- renamed the diocese of Rondonopolis, Brazil, now Rondonopolis - Guiratinga.
- erected the diocese of Primavera do Leste – Parataninga, Brazil.
- appointed Bishop Derek John Christopher Byrne, SPS., of Guiratinga, Brazil, as first bishop of Primavera do Leste – Parataninga (area 98,056, population 170,000, Catholics 127,500, priests 24, religious 22), Brazil.
- confirmed the election of Abbot Hryhoriy Komar as auxiliary of the Ukrainian eparchy of Sambir – Drohobych, Ukraine. The bishop-elect was born in Letnya, Ukraine in 1976 and was ordained a priest in 2001. He is currently vicar general of the same diocese. He holds a licentiate in oriental theology, and has served as a teacher and collaborator in several parishes.
OTHER PONTIFICAL ACTS
Vatican City, 24 June 2014 (VIS) – The Holy Father has appointed Msgr. Skiper Bladimir Yanez Calvachi as bishop of Guaranda (area 3,336, population 206,000, Catholics 187,700, priests 34, permanent deacons 6, religious 69), Ecuador. The bishop-elect was born in Machachi, Ecuador in 1972 and was ordained a priest in 1996. He holds a licentiate in dogmatic theology from the Gregorian Pontifical University and has served in a number of pastoral and administrative roles, including priest in various parishes in the archdiocese of Quito, director of the historical archive of the archdiocese,, notary of the ecclesiastical tribunal of First Instance in Quito and chaplain of various higher colleges. He is currently judge in the ecclesiastical tribunal of First Instance in Quito, chancellor of the archdiocesan curia, editor of the archdiocesan ecclesiastical bulletin, member of the metropolitan cathedral chapter, priest of the parish of “San Juan Bautista” in Sangolqui and episcopal vicar of the zone “Valle de los Chillos y Machachi”.

THE ORIENTAL CHURCHES
Vatican City, 21 June 2014 (VIS) – His Beatitude Gregorios III, Patriarch of Antioch of the Greek Melkites, with the assent of the Synod of Bishops of the Greek-Melkite Church, has transferred:
- Archbishop Georges Bacouni, previously of the archieparchy of Tiro of the Greek Melkites in Lebanon to the archieparchy of Akka (Catholics 80,000, priests 36, religious 36, permanent deacons 4) in Israel.
- Bishop Michael Abrass B.A., previously of the patriarchal curia of Antioch of the Greek Melkites in Lebanon to the archieparchy of Tiro of the Greek Melkites (Catholics 3,050 priests 8, religious 6) in Lebanon,elevating him to the dignity of archbishop.

OTHER PONTIFICAL ACTS
Vatican City, 21 June 2014 (VIS) – The Holy Father has appointed Rev. Fr. Real Tremblay C.SS.R, president of the Pontifical Academy Theology. Fr. Trembaly is professor emeritus of Fundamental Moral Theology in the Alfonsianium Academy of Rome and ordinary member and adviser to the Pontifical Academy of Theology.


OTHER PONTIFICAL ACTS
Vatican City, 19 June 2014 (VIS) – The Holy Father has appointed Bishop Mitchell Thomas Rozanski, auxiliary of the archdiocese of Baltimore, U.S.A., as bishop of Springfield in Massachusetts (area 7,306, population 871,000, Catholics 248,800, priests 181, permanent deacons 85, religious 362), U.S.A. He succeeds Bishop Timothy Anthony McDonnell, whose resignation from the pastoral care of the same diocese upon reaching the age limit was accepted by the Holy Father.

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