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 VATICAN INFORMATION SERVICE
YEAR XXIII - N° 105
DATE 13-05-2013

Summary:
 - POPE RECEIVES PRESIDENT OF COLOMBIA: CONTINUE PEACE PROCESS NEGOTIATIONS
 - PRESENTATION OF PONTIFICAL YEARBOOK 2013
 - POPE CANONIZES MARTYRS OF OTRANTO, COLOMBIAN LAURA MONTOYA, AND MEXICAN
GUADALUPE GARCIA ZAVALA
 - REGINA COELI: BANISH VIOLENCE AND DEFEND LIFE'S SACREDNESS
 - AUDIENCES
 - OTHER PONTIFICAL ACTS

___________________________________________________________


POPE RECEIVES PRESIDENT OF COLOMBIA: CONTINUE PEACE PROCESS NEGOTIATIONS
Vatican City, 13 May 2013 (VIS) – This morning in the Vatican Apostolic
Palace, the Holy Father received in audience His excellency Mr. Juan Manuel
Santos Calderon, president of the Republic of Colombia. President Santos then
met with the
Secretary of State, Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, S.D.B., accompanied by
Archbishop Dominique Mamberti, secretary for Relations with States.
In the course of cordial conversations, the actuality of Mother Laura Montoya
Upegui, first Colombian saint and fruitful interpreter of the country's
Christian roots, who had been canonized the preceding day in St. Peter's
Square, was discussed. Also
covered was the Church's contribution in promoting a “culture of
encounter” and her works in service of the country's human and spiritual
progress, particularly for the most in need and the youth.
The challenges that the country must face were taken into consideration,
especially in regard to social inequalities. Reference to the undergoing
process of peace and the victims of conflict was not overlooked, with the
wishes that the parties involved
carry on negotiations, inspired by a sincere search for the common good and
for reconciliation. Finally, the Church's commitment in favour of life and of
families was emphasized.

___________________________________________________________


PRESENTATION OF PONTIFICAL YEARBOOK 2013
Vatican City, 13 May 2013 (VIS) – This morning, Cardinal Secretary of
State Tarcisio Bertone S.D.B., and Archbishop Angelo Becciu, substitute for
General Affairs, presented the Holy Father with the 2013 edition of the
"Annuario Pontificio"
(Pontifical Yearbook, the Holy See's annual directory), in the presence of the
officials responsible for compiling and printing the volumes. The "Annuarium
Statisticum Ecclesiae" (the Church's Statistical Yearbook), which the same
discastery is also
responsible for, was also presented.
A reading of the information given shows some changes relative to the life of
the Catholic Church in the world from 2012 to the election of Pope Francis.
In that period, it is noteworthy that there were erected: 11 new episcopal
Sees; two personal ordinariates; one apostolic vicariate; and one apostolic
prefecture. Also, one territorial prelature was elevated to the rank of
diocese and two apostolic
exarchates were elevated to the rank of eparchies.
The statistical information, which refers to the year 2011, reveals details
about the Catholic Church in the 2,979 ecclesiastical circumscriptions around
the planet. The number of Catholics in the world increased from 1.196 million
in 2010 to 1.214
million in 2011, an increase of eighteen million faithful, corresponding to a
growth of 1.5%. Over the last three years the presence of baptised Catholics
in the world has remained stable at around 17.5%.
The number of Catholics with respect to the total population varies
considerably between the continents. Their numbers have increased in Africa
(by 4.3%), which has reported a 2.3% increase of its population between 2010
and 2011. In Asia, an increase
in Catholics greater to an increase in the population was also recorded (of 2%
compared to 1.2%). In the Americas and in Europe the increase in numbers of
Catholics is equal to the population increase (.3%). In 2011, the total of
baptised Catholics had
a distribution of, by continent: the Americas (48.8%); Europe (23.5%); Africa
(16%); Asia (10.9%); and Oceania (.8%).
From 2010 to 2011, the number of bishops increased from 5,104 to 5,132, a
relative increase of .55%. The increase mainly involved Oceania (+4.6%) and
Africa (+1%) while Asia and Europe are slightly below the world average and no
variation is seen in the
Americas.
The steady increase in the number of priests which began in the year 2000 has
continued. On 31 December 2011, their numbers stood at 413,418 compared to
last year's 412,236. Nevertheless, this was not homogeneous growth. In Africa
and Asia the increase
was, respectively, +39.5% and +32% (with an increase of more than 3,000 in
2011 alone). In the Americas the situation is stationary (122,000 priests)
while, over the last decade, Europe has seen a decrease of more than 9%.
The number of permanent deacons registered a strong increase: from 29,000 in
2001 to 41,000 in 2011. Those present in North America and Europe count for
97.4% of the total.
The number of non-ordained male religious increased, slightly surpassing
55,000. Their numbers are increasing in Africa and Asia (+18.5% and +44.9%
respectively) and decreasing in the Americas (-3.6%), in Europe (-18%), and in
Oceania (-21.9%).
The is a strong decrease in the number of female religious, which currently
registers 713,000 members in contrast to 792,000 in 2001. There are fewer
female religious in Europe (-22%), Oceania (-21%), and the Americas (-17%).
Nevertheless there is
significant growth in their numbers in Africa (+28%) and in Asia (18%).
Candidates for the priesthood, diocesan and religious, have increased since
2001 (112,244) by 7.5%. In 2011 there were 120,616 registered. The strongest
increase in seminarians was in Africa (+30.9%), and Asia (+29.4%), while
Europe and the Americas
registered a decrease in their numbers of 21.7% and 1.9% respectively.

___________________________________________________________


POPE CANONIZES MARTYRS OF OTRANTO, COLOMBIAN LAURA MONTOYA, AND MEXICAN
GUADALUPE GARCIA ZAVALA
Vatican City, 12 May 2013 (VIS) – “Let us look to the new saints
in light of the Word of God that has been proclaimed,” the Pope said
during his homily at the Mass in which three new saints were canonized.
“It is a Word that has
invited us to faithfulness to Christ, even unto martyrdom. It has recalled for
us the urgency and beauty of bearing Christ and his Gospel to all. It has
spoken to us of the witness of charity, without which even martyrdom and
mission lose their
Christian savour.”
The Martyrs of Otranto were more than 800 men from the southern Italian city
who had survived the siege and invasion of Otranto only to be decapitated on
the outskirts of the city when they refused to renounce their faith and died
witnessing to the
Risen Christ. “Where did they find the strength to remain 
aithful,” the Pope asked. “Precisely from the faith, which makes
us see beyond the limits of our human sight, beyond this earthly life …
God will never leave us without
strength and serenity. While we venerate the Martyrs of Otranto, let us ask
God to sustain the many Christians who, precisely at this time, now, and in
many parts of the world, are still suffering violence, that He give them the
valour to be faithful
and to respond to evil with good.”
The second saint canonized, Mother Laura Montoya, “was an instrument of
evangelisation, first as a teacher and then as the spiritual mother of the
indigenous peoples in whom she instilled hope, embracing them with the love
she had learned from
God, bringing them to him with a pedagogical efficiency that respected their
culture and didn't put itself in opposition to it. … This first saint
born in the beautiful Colombian land teaches us to be generous with God, to
not live the faith in
isolation—as if it were possible to live the faith in an isolated
way—but to communicate it, to bear the joy of the Gospel with words and
witness of life in every sphere in which we find ourselves. … She
teaches us to see Jesus' face
reflected in others, to overcome indifference and selfishness, which corrode
Christian communities and corrode our hearts, and she teaches us to embrace
everyone without prejudice, without discrimination, and without reticence, but
wit
 h
sincere love, giving them the best of ourselves and above all sharing with
them what we have that is most precious—not our deeds or our
institutions. No! What we have that is most precious is Christ and his
Gospel.”
Saint Guadalupe Garcia Zavala, “renouncing a life of ease—and how
damaging the easy life, well-being, can be; the “embourgeoisement”
of our hearts that paralyses us—...to follow Jesus' call, who taught her
to love poverty
so that she could love the poor and the sick more. … The poor, the
abandoned, the ill, the marginalized are the flesh of Christ. Mother Lupita
touched Christ's flesh and taught us this way of acting: of not being
embarrassed, not being afraid,
not being disgusted to 'touch the flesh of Christ'! … This new Mexican
saint invites us to love as Jesus has loved us and this entails not being
locked up in oneself, in our own problems, our own ideas, our own interests,
in this little world
that causes us so much harm, but to go out and go in search of who needs
attention, understanding, and help, in order to bring them the warm nearness
of God's love through tactful gestures of sincere affection and love.”
At the end of his homily, the Pope emphasized that the new saints teach us
“faithfulness to Jesus and his Gospel, to proclaim him in word and with
our lives, witnessing to God's love with our love and with our charity towards
all.”

___________________________________________________________


REGINA COELI: BANISH VIOLENCE AND DEFEND LIFE'S SACREDNESS
Vatican City, 12 May 2013 (VIS) – At the end of the Mass for the
canonization of the new saints, the Pope greeted the official delegations from
Italy, Colombia, and Mexico, led respectively by Italian Minister of Justice
Anna Maria Cancellieri;
the President of the Republic of Colombia, Juan Manuel Santos Calderon; and
the Adjunct General Director for Religious Affairs of the Presidency of the
Republic of Mexico, Roberto Herrera Mena.
“May the Martyrs of Otranto,” he exclaimed, “help the dear
Italian people to look hopefully to the future, entrusting in the nearness of
God who never abandons us, even in difficult times.”
The he asked for the intercession of Mother Laura Montoya that the Lord may
“grant new missionary and evangelizing impetus to the Church and that,
inspired by this new saint's example of harmony and reconciliation, the
beloved children of Colombia
might continue working for the progress of peace and justice in their
country.”
“In the hands of St. Guadalupe Garcia Zavala, we place all the poor, the
sick, and those who assist them, and we entrust to her intercession the noble
Mexican nation so that, all violence and insecurity banished, it may advance
ever more along the
path of solidarity and fraternal coexistence.”
The Holy Father also noted that yesterday, Saturday 11 May, Fr. Luigi
Novarese, founder of the volunteer Centre of the Suffering and the Silent
Works of the Cross, was beatified in Rome. Fr. Novarese was “an
exemplary priest who renewed the
pastoral outreach to the sick, making them active subjects in the
Church.”
Finally, the Bishop of Rome greeted those participating in the “March
for Life” that took place today in Rome, inviting them all to
“keep everyone's attention alive to the very important topic of respect
for human life from the moment
of its conception. In this regards I would also like to note the signatures
being gathered today in many Italian parishes for the purpose of sustaining
the European citizens' initiative 'One of Us', to guarantee legal protection
to embryos, protecting
every human being from the first instant of their existence. A special moment
for those who have the defence of the sacredness of human life at heart will
be the 'Evangelium Vitae Day', which will take place here in the Vatican
within the context of the
Year of Faith, this 15-16 June.”

___________________________________________________________


AUDIENCES
Vatican City, 13 May 2013 (VIS) – Today, the Holy Father received twelve
prelates from the Puglia region of the Italian Episcopal Conference on their
"ad limina" visit:
   - Archbishop Francesco Cacucci of Bari-Bitonto,
   - Archbishop Giovanni Battista Pichierri of Trani-Barletta-Bisceglie,
   - Archbishop Donato Negro of Otranto,
   - Archbishop Francesco Pio Tamburrino, O.S.B., of Foggia-Bovino,
   - Archbishop Michele Castoro of Manfredonia-Vieste-San Giovanni Rotondo,
   - Bishop Raffaele Calabro of Andria,
   - Bishop Mario Paciello of Altamura-Gravina-Acquaviva delle Fonti,
   - Bishop Lucio Angelo Renna, O. Carm., of San Severo,
   - Bishop Felice di Molfetta of Cerignola-Ascoli Satriano,
   - Bishop Luigi Martella of Molfetta-Ruvo-Giovinazzo-Terlizzi,
   - Bishop Pietro Maria Fragnelli of Castellaneta, and
   - Bishop Domenico Cornacchia of Lucera-Troia.
On Saturday, 11 May, the Holy Father received:
   - Cardinal Marc Ouellet, P.S.S., prefect of the Congregation for Bishops,
and
   - Cardinal Antonio Maria Veglio, president of the Pontifical Council for
Pastoral Care of Migrants and Itinerant People.

___________________________________________________________


OTHER PONTIFICAL ACTS
Vatican City, 13 May 2013 (VIS) – Today, the Holy Father elevated Fr.
Victor Manuel Fernandez to the dignity of archbishop, assigning him the
Titular Archiepiscopal See of Tiburnia. The archbishop-elect was born in
Alcira Gigena, Cordoba,
Argentina in 1962 and was ordained a priest in 1986. Since ordination he has
served in several pastoral, academic, and administrative roles including,
since 2011, as rector of The Catholic University of Argentina.
On Saturday, 11 May, the Holy Father accepted the resignation from the the
office of auxiliary of the Archdiocese of Szczecin-Kamien, Poland, presented
by Bishop Marian Blazej Kruszylowicz, O.F.M. Conv., upon having reached the
age limit.

___________________________________________________________

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 VATICAN INFORMATION SERVICE 
YEAR XXIII - N° 105
DATE 13-05-2013

Summary:
 - POPE RECEIVES PRESIDENT OF
COLOMBIA: CONTINUE PEACE PROCESS
NEGOTIATIONS
 - PRESENTATION OF PONTIFICAL YEARBOOK 2013 
 - POPE
CANONIZES MARTYRS OF OTRANTO, COLOMBIAN LAURA MONTOYA, AND MEXICAN GUADALUPE
GARCIA ZAVALA
 - REGINA COELI: BANISH VIOLENCE AND DEFEND LIFE'S
SACREDNESS
 -
AUDIENCES
 - OTHER PONTIFICAL ACTS

_____________
_____________________________________________ 


POPE RECEIVES PRESIDENT OF COLOMBIA: CONTINUE PEACE PROCESS NEGOTIATIONS
Vatican City, 13 May 2013 (VIS) – This morning in the Vatican
Apostolic Palace, the Holy Father received in audience His excellency Mr. Juan
Manuel Santos Calderon, president of the Republic of Colombia. President
Santos then met with the
Secretary of State, Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, S.D.B., accompanied by
Archbishop Dominique Mamberti, secretary for Relations with States.
In the course of cordial conversations, the actuality of Mother Laura
Montoya Upegui, first Colombian saint and fruitful interpreter of the
country's Christian roots, who had been canonized the preceding day in St.
Peter's Square, was discussed. Also
covered was the Church's contribution in promoting a “culture of
encounter” and her works in service of the country's human and spiritual
progress, particularly for the most in need and the youth.
The challenges that the country must face were taken into consideration,
especially in regard to social inequalities. Reference to the undergoing
process of peace and the victims of conflict was not overlooked, with the
wishes that the parties
involved carry on negotiations, inspired by a sincere search for the common
good and for reconciliation. Finally, the Church's commitment in favour of
life and of families was emphasized.

___________________________________________________________ 


PRESENTATION OF PONTIFICAL YEARBOOK 2013 
Vatican City, 13 May 2013 (VIS) – This morning, Cardinal Secretary of
State Tarcisio Bertone S.D.B., and Archbishop Angelo Becciu, substitute for
General Affairs, presented the Holy Father with the 2013 edition of the
"Annuario Pontificio"
(Pontifical Yearbook, the Holy See's annual directory), in the presence of the
officials responsible for compiling and printing the volumes. The "Annuarium
Statisticum Ecclesiae" (the Church's Statistical Yearbook), which the same
discastery is also
responsible for, was also presented.
A reading of the information given shows some changes relative to the life
of the Catholic Church in the world from 2012 to the election of Pope
Francis.
In that period, it is noteworthy that there were erected: 11 new episcopal
Sees; two personal ordinariates; one apostolic vicariate; and one apostolic
prefecture. Also, one territorial prelature was elevated to the rank of
diocese and two apostolic
exarchates were elevated to the rank of eparchies.
The statistical information, which refers to the year 2011, reveals details
about the Catholic Church in the 2,979 ecclesiastical circumscriptions around
the planet. The number of Catholics in the world increased from 1.196 million
in 2010 to 1.214
million in 2011, an increase of eighteen million faithful, corresponding to a
growth of 1.5%. Over the last three years the presence of baptised Catholics
in the world has remained stable at around 17.5%.
The number of Catholics with respect to the total population varies
considerably between the continents. Their numbers have increased in Africa
(by 4.3%), which has reported a 2.3% increase of its population between 2010
and 2011. In Asia, an
increase in Catholics greater to an increase in the population was also
recorded (of 2% compared to 1.2%). In the Americas and in Europe the increase
in numbers of Catholics is equal to the population increase (.3%). In 2011,
the total of baptised
Catholics had a distribution of, by continent: the Americas (48.8%); Europe
(23.5%); Africa (16%); Asia (10.9%); and Oceania (.8%).
From 2010 to 2011, the number of bishops increased from 5,104 to 5,132, a
relative increase of .55%. The increase mainly involved Oceania (+4.6%) and
Africa (+1%) while Asia and Europe are slightly below the world average and no
variation is seen in
the Americas.
The steady increase in the number of priests which began in the year 2000
has continued. On 31 December 2011, their numbers stood at 413,418 compared to
last year's 412,236. Nevertheless, this was not homogeneous growth. In Africa
and Asia the
increase was, respectively, +39.5% and +32% (with an increase of more than
3,000 in 2011 alone). In the Americas the situation is stationary (122,000
priests) while, over the last decade, Europe has seen a decrease of more than
9%.
The number of permanent deacons registered a strong increase: from 29,000
in 2001 to 41,000 in 2011. Those present in North America and Europe count for
97.4% of the total.
The number of non-ordained male religious increased, slightly surpassing
55,000. Their numbers are increasing in Africa and Asia (+18.5% and +44.9%
respectively) and decreasing in the Americas (-3.6%), in Europe (-18%), and in
Oceania (-21.9%).
The is a strong decrease in the number of female religious, which currently
registers 713,000 members in contrast to 792,000 in 2001. There are fewer
female religious in Europe (-22%), Oceania (-21%), and the Americas (-17%).
Nevertheless there is
significant growth in their numbers in Africa (+28%) and in Asia (18%).
Candidates for the priesthood, diocesan and religious, have increased since
2001 (112,244) by 7.5%. In 2011 there were 120,616 registered. The strongest
increase in seminarians was in Africa (+30.9%), and Asia (+29.4%), while
Europe and the Americas
registered a decrease in their numbers of 21.7% and 1.9% respectively.

___________________________________________________________ 


POPE CANONIZES MARTYRS OF OTRANTO, COLOMBIAN LAURA MONTOYA, AND MEXICAN
GUADALUPE GARCIA ZAVALA
Vatican City, 12 May 2013 (VIS) – “Let us look to the new
saints in light of the Word of God that has been proclaimed,” the Pope
said during his homily at the Mass in which three new saints were canonized.
“It is a Word that
has invited us to faithfulness to Christ, even unto martyrdom. It has recalled
for us the urgency and beauty of bearing Christ and his Gospel to all. It has
spoken to us of the witness of charity, without which even martyrdom and
mission lose their
Christian savour.”
The Martyrs of Otranto were more than 800 men from the southern Italian
city who had survived the siege and invasion of Otranto only to be decapitated
on the outskirts of the city when they refused to renounce their faith and
died witnessing to the
Risen Christ. “Where did they find the strength to remain 
aithful,” the Pope asked. “Precisely from the faith, which makes
us see beyond the limits of our human sight, beyond this earthly life …
God will never leave us without
strength and serenity. While we venerate the Martyrs of Otranto, let us ask
God to sustain the many Christians who, precisely at this time, now, and in
many parts of the world, are still suffering violence, that He give them the
valour to be faithful
and to respond to evil with good.”
The second saint canonized, Mother Laura Montoya, “was an instrument
of evangelisation, first as a teacher and then as the spiritual mother of the
indigenous peoples in whom she instilled hope, embracing them with the love
she had learned from
God, bringing them to him with a pedagogical efficiency that respected their
culture and didn't put itself in opposition to it. … This first saint
born in the beautiful Colombian land teaches us to be generous with God, to
not live the faith in
isolation—as if it were possible to live the faith in an isolated
way—but to communicate it, to bear the joy of the Gospel with words and
witness of life in every sphere in which we find ourselves. … She
teaches us to see Jesus' face
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