VATICAN INFORMATION SERVICE
YEAR XXII - # 189
DATE 27-10-2015

Summary:
- Letter to the cardinal Secretary of State on questions related to the reform
of the Roman Curia
- Telegram of condolences for the earthquake in Afghanistan and Pakistan
- Esteem and appreciation for Patriarch Bartholomew I, awarded the Sophia
University Institute's first doctorate honoris causa
- Presentation of the 51st International Eucharistic Congress
- Other Pontifical Acts

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 Letter to the cardinal Secretary of State on questions related to the reform
of
the Roman Curia
 Vatican City, 27 October 2015 (VIS) - The Holy Father has written a letter to
Cardinal Secretary of State Pietro Parolin regarding various issues that have
arisen during the process of reforming the structures of the Roman Curia. The
following is the full text of the letter:
 "While the process of reform of various structures of the Roman Curia, to
which
the Council of Cardinals I instituted on 28 September 2013 is dedicating its
attention, is continuing in accordance with the established programme, it is
necessary to note that certain problems have emerged in the meantime, in
relation to which I intend to take prompt action.
 I wish first to state that the current period of transition is not a time of
vacatio legis. Therefore, I confirm that the Apostolic Constitution "Pastor
bonus" and subsequent amendments thereto remain in full force, along with the
General Regulations of the Roman Curia.
 Since compliance with the common rules is necessary both to guarantee the
orderly conduct of work in the Roman Curia and in the institutions connected to
the Holy See, and to ensure equitable treatment of employees and collaborators,
also in economic terms, I order that the provisions in the aforementioned
documents, as well as in the Regulations for lay staff of the Holy See and
Vatican City State and the Regulations of the independent Commission for the
evaluation of the recruitment of lay staff in the Apostolic See, be
scrupulously
observed.
 Accordingly, all staff hiring and transfers must be carried out within the
limits established by staffing plans, excluding any other criterion, with the
nulla osta of the Secretariat of State and in compliance with the prescribed
procedures, including reference to the established parameters for remuneration.
 The above, to the extent compatible with their Regulations, is valid also for
the Governorate of Vatican City State and the dependent Institutions of the
Apostolic See, although not expressly indicated in the Apostolic Constitution
Pastor bonus, with the exception of the Institute for the Works of Religion.
 I therefore request, Your Eminence, that the provisions I have mentioned be
brought to the attention of all the Superiors of the Dicasteries, the Offices
and Bodies of the Roman Curia, as well as the Commissions, Committees and
connected Institutions, as well as the Governorate, highlighting in particular
the aspects requiring special attention, and that supervision of compliance be
exercised.
 I thank you for your collaboration and, in communion of intentions and prayer,
I cordially greet you in the Lord".

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 Telegram of condolences for the earthquake in Afghanistan and Pakistan
 Vatican City, 27 October 2015 (VIS) - Cardinal Secretary of State Pietro
Parolin today sent a telegram on behalf of the Holy Father to Archbishop Ghaleb
Bader, apostolic nuncio in Pakistan, following the serious earthquake in
Afghanistan and Pakistan.
 "His Holiness Pope Francis was deeply saddened to learn of the tragic loss of
life in Afghanistan and Pakistan as a result of the earthquake in the region.
He
expresses his heartfelt solidarity with all those affected by this disaster,
and
he offers the assurance of his prayers for the dead, as well as for the injured
and those still missing. Upon all those who mourn the loss of loved ones and
upon the civil authorities and emergency personnel involved in the relief
efforts, Pope Francis invokes the divine blessings of consolation and
strength".

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 Esteem and appreciation for Patriarch Bartholomew I, awarded the Sophia
University Institute's first doctorate honoris causa
 Vatican City, 27 October 2015 (VIS) - Pope Francis has sent a message to the
cardinal archbishop of Florence, Giuseppe Bettori, Grand Chancellor of the On
the occasion of the Sophia University Institute, Loppiano, Italy, following the
conferral of a doctorate honoris causa in "Culture of Unity" to His Holiness
Bartholomew I, Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople.
 The Holy Father greets those present, expresses his closeness, and offers a
special thought for his beloved brother Bartholomew, to whom, he writes, "I
renew my sentiments of profound esteem and heartfelt appreciation, rejoicing in
the present initiative which, as well as constituting heartfelt recognition for
his commitment to the promotion of the culture of unity, contributes favourably
to the common journey our Churches take towards full and visible unity, to
which
we aspire with dedication and perseverance".
 "In the hope that the Sophia University Institute, following the charism of
the
Focolari Movement and open to the action of the Spirit, may continue to be a
place of encounter and dialogue between different cultures and religions, I
assure my prayerful remembrance and, asking for your prayers, I impart my
Blessing to all present", the Pope concludes.

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 Presentation of the 51st International Eucharistic Congress
 Vatican City, 27 October 2015 (VIS) - This morning in the Holy See Press
Office
a press conference was held to present the 51st International Eucharistic
Congress, to take place in Cebu, Philippines from 24 to 31 January 2016 on the
theme "Christ in you, our Hope of glory; the Eucharist, source and goal of
mission". The speakers were Archbishop Jose S. Palma of Cebu, Philippines,
Archbishop Piero Marini, Italy, president of the Committee for the
International
Eucharistic Congresses, and Fr. Vittore Boccardi, S.S.S., member of the same
committee.
 Archbishop Palma commented on the importance of the choice of Asia and the
Philippines to host the Congress. "In recent years, Asia is the continent that
has become one of the great engines of world growth in the economic and social
point of view", he said. "From the religious point of view, however, it is
still
a contingent that has to be evangelised; ... where the Catholic Church is a
small
minority; in spite of being the continent where Jesus was born, lived, died and
rose again. The 51st Eucharistic Congress, therefore, could become the mirror
of
the Asian Church in the sense that it will see how the Catholic Church carries
out its task of evangelisation. As with the previous Congresses,
representatives
of the different Churches and a myriad of pilgrims from all over the world will
be attending".
 The Congress, he continued, is expected to be attended by "around 20
cardinals,
50 bishops from other countries and at least 100 Filipino bishops who gather
for
the Catholic Bishops Conference Plenary Assembly in January 2016. As of October
2015, we already have 8,345 registered pilgrims representing 57 nations". In
addition, said Archbishop Palma, so far there are 600 registered host families
ready to welcome pilgrims.
 The events of the Congress will be divided into two main parts: the first, the
"Theological Symposium", will take place from 20 to 22 January, and the
"Congress Proper", from 24 to 31 January. The basic themes for reflection
during
the Theological Symposium are: "The Christian Virtue of Hope"; "Eucharist in
the
Gospel of St. John"; "Liturgy and Inculturation"; "The History of the Novus
Ordo"; "Evangelising the Secular World" and "A Catechism on the Sunday
Eucharist". During the Congress Proper, the themes will be "Christ our Hope of
Glory"; "Christian Hope"; "The Eucharist as Celebration of the Paschal
Mystery";
"The Eucharist as Mission"; "Mission as Dialogue"; "The Eucharist and Dialogue
with Cultures"; "The Eucharist and Dialogue with the Poor"; "The Eucharist and
Dialogue with other Religions" and "The Eucharist and Mary".
 Archbishop Marini, with reference to the theme of the Congress, affirmed that
"the evangelical announcement and faith in the Lord Jesus professed by the
Christian community are important and necessary for Asia, but must be presented
in accordance with the methods of dialogue, methods that have distinguished the
activity of the particular Churches of the continent in the last thirty years.
It is precisely this programme of dialogue with cultures, religious traditions
and the multitudes of the poor that forms, in an entirely natural and evident
way, the fabric of pastoral reflections contained in the basic text. The text
explains that the Eucharist is the source and culmination of the mission of the
Church and identifies the added value offered by the Eucharistic celebration
for
a mission that is committed to leavening through the enzymes of dialogue,
reconciliation, peace and future, of which Asia is in great need".
 "The Eucharistic Congresses, then, will go to Cebu to recall that the mission
is an exchange of gifts between those who announce and who receive the
evangelical message", he added. "They go to the city that is the cradle of
Christianity in the East to give and to receive, to evangelise and to be
evangelised, to speak but also to listen. In that human environment that is not
linked to the labyrinth of rationalism, the celebration of the Eucharistic
mystery is bound with the experience of poverty, suffering and affections and
continues to build communities that wish to break bread in the Kingdom of God".
 Finally, Fr. Boccardi commented that the event in Cebu, along with the World
Youth Days, World Family Day, and so on, will become "an extraordinary resource
for bearing witness, through its celebration, to how the Eucharist is not only
the source of life in the Church but also the place of its projection in the
world. Every particular Church that celebrates the Eucharist in any part of the
world, is called upon to demonstrate the maturity of giving to others, of
mutual
listening, of availability and concrete collaboration so that the community of
faithful might become the house of God and of our brothers amid the homes of
mankind. There it will be possible to live that 'dialogue of life" that is a
starting point for the joyful witness of the Gospel".

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 Other Pontifical Acts
 Vatican City, 27 October 2015 (VIS) - The Holy Father has appointed:
 - Bishop Matteo Maria Zuppi, auxiliary of Rome, as metropolitan archbishop of
Bologna (area 3,549, population 998,600, Catholics 951,462, priests 590,
permanent deacons 127, religious 1,115), Italy. He succeeds Cardinal Carlo
Caffarra, whose resignation from the pastoral care of the same archdiocese upon
reaching the age limit was accepted by the Holy Father.
 - Msgr. Corrado Lorefice as metropolitan archbishop of Palermo (area 1,366,
population 916,000, Catholics 909,000, priests 479, permanent deacons 41,
religious 1,249), Italy. The bishop-elect was born in Ispica, Italy in 1962 and
was ordained a priest in 1987. He holds a licentiate in moral theology and a
doctorate in moral theology, and has served in a number of pastoral roles in
the
diocese of Noto, Italy, including bursar and vice rector of the seminary,
lecturer in moral theology, director of the diocesan and regional centres for
vocations, director of formation of permanent deacons, director of the diocesan
catechistic office, parish administrator, and episcopal vicar for the clergy.
He
is currently parish priest and vicar forane, episcopal vicar for pastoral
ministry, and lecturer in the "San Paolo" theological faculty of Catania. He
succeeds Cardinal Paolo Romeo, whose resignation from the pastoral care of the
same archdiocese upon reaching the age limit was accepted by the Holy Father.
 - Msgr. Giacomo Morandi, vicar general of the archdiocese of Modena-Nonantola,
Italy, as under-secretary of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith.

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