With regard to the second theme, the Pope underlined that in Genesis man is   
   called not only to cultivate the land, but also to take care of it. These two   
   aspects "are closely linked: every agriculturalist is well aware of how   
   difficult it has become to cultivate the land in a time of accelerated climate   
   change and increasingly widespread extreme meteorological events. How can we   
   continue to produce good food for the lives of all when climate stability is   
   at risk, when the air, water and the earth itself lose their purity as a   
   result of pollution? We are truly realising the importance of timely action to   
   safeguard Creation; it is urgent that nations succeed in collaborating for   
   this fundamental purpose. The challenge is to achieve a form of agriculture   
   with a low environmental impact. How can we ensure we safeguard the earth as   
   well as cultivating it? Indeed, only in this way will future generations be   
   able to continue to inhabit and cultivate our earth".   
    The Holy Father concluded with an invitation to "rediscover love for the   
   earth as the 'mother', as St. Francis would say, from which we come and to   
   which we are constantly called upon to return. And this leads to a proposal:   
   to protect the earth, to make an alliance with her, so that she many continue   
   to be, as God intends, the source of life for the entire human family".   
      
   ___________________________________________________________   
      
    Members and substitutes from the Episcopal Conferences for the 14th Ordinary   
   General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops   
    Vatican City, 31 January 2015 (VIS) - The Holy Father has ratified the   
   appointment of the following prelates as members and substitutes, elected by   
   their respective Episcopal Conferences, for the 14th Ordinary General Assembly   
   of the Synod of Bishops, which will take place in the Vatican from 4 to 25   
   October 2015 on the theme "The vocation and mission of the family in the   
   Church and in the contemporary world":   
    AFRICA   
    BURUNDI   
    Member: Bishop Gervais Bashimiyubusa, of Ngozi, president of the Episcopal   
   Conference.   
    Substitute: Bishop Joachim Ntahondereye of Muyinga.   
    ETHIOPIA and ERITREA   
    Member: Bishop Tsegaye Keneni Derera, apostolic vicar of Soddo, Ethiopia.   
    Substitute: Bishop Markos Gebremedhin, C.M., apostolic vicar of Jimma-Bonga,   
   Ethiopia.   
    GHANA   
    Member: Archbishop Gabriel Charles Palmer-Buckle, of Accra.   
    Substitute: Bishop Anthony Kwami Adanuty of Keta-katsi.   
    KENYA   
    Members: Cardinal John Njue, archbishop of Nairobi, president of the   
   Episcopal Conference.   
    Bishop James Maria Wainaina Kungu of Muranga.   
    Substitute: Bishop Emanuel Barbara, O.F.M. Cap. of Malindi.   
    MADAGASCAR   
    Member: Bishop Desire Tsarahazana of Toamasina, president of the Episcopal   
   Conference.   
    Substitute: Bishop Jean de Dieu Raoelison, auxiliary of Antananarivo.   
    RWANDA   
    Member: Bishop Antoine Kambanda of Kibungo.   
    Substitute: Bishop Smaragde Mbonyintege of Kabgayi, president of the   
   Episcopal Conference.   
    AMERICA   
    ARGENTINA   
    Members: Bishop Pedro María Laxague, auxiliary of Bahia Blanca.   
    Archbishop Jose Maria Arancedo of Santa Fe de la Vera Cruz, president of the   
   Episcopal Conference.   
    Cardinal Mario Aurelio Poli, archbishop of Buenos Aires.   
    Substitutes: Archbishop Andres Stanovnik, O.F.M. Cap. of Corrientes.   
    Archbishop Hector Ruben Aguer of La Plata.   
    CHILE   
    Members: Bishop Bernardo Miguel Bastres Florence, S.D.B. of Punta Arenas.   
    Cardinal Ricardo Ezzati Andrello, S.D.B., archbishop of Santiago de Chile,   
   president of the Episcopal Conference.   
    Substitute: Bishop Cristian Contreras Villarroel of Melipilla, general   
   secretary of the Episcopal Conference.   
    CUBA   
    Member: Archbishop Juan de la Caridad Garcia Rodriguez of Camaguey.   
    Substitute: Bishop Marcelo Arturo Gonzalez Amador of Santa Clara.   
    ECUADOR   
    Members: Archbishop Antonio Arregui Yarza of Guayaquil.   
    Archbishop Luis Gerardo Cabrera Herrera, O.F.M. of Cuenca.   
    Substitutes: Bishop Julio Parrilla Diaz of Riobamba.   
    Bishop Marcos Aurelio Perez Caicedo of Babahoyo, vice president of the   
   Episcopal Conference.   
    HONDURAS   
    Member: Bishop Luis Sole Fa, C.M. of Trujillo.   
    Substitute: Bishop Angel Garachana Perez, C.M.F. of San Pedro Sula.   
    MEXICO   
    Members: Bishop Rodrigo Aguilar Martinez of Tehuacan.   
    Cardinal Norberto Rivera Carrera, archbishop of Mexico.   
    Bishop Francisco Javier Chavolla Ramos of Toluca.   
    Cardinal Francisco Robles Ortega, archbishop of Guadalajara, president of the   
   Episcopal Conference.   
    Substitutes: Bishop Alfonso Gerardo Miranda Guardiola, auxiliary of Monterrey.   
    Bishop Jose Francisco Gonzalez Gonzalez of Campeche.   
    UNITED STATES OF AMERICA   
    Members: Archbishop Joseph Edward Kurtz of Louisville, president of the   
   Episcopal Conference.   
    Archbishop Charles Joseph Chaput, O.F.M. Cap. of Philadelphia.   
    Cardinal Daniel N. Di Nardo, archbishop of Galveston-Houston, vice president   
   of the Episcopal Conference.   
    Archbishop Jose Horacio Gomez of Los Angeles.   
    Substitutes: Bishop Blase J. Cupich of Spokane.   
    Archbishop Salvatore Joseph Cordileone of San Francisco.   
    URUGUAY   
    Member: Bishop Jaime Rafael Fuentes Martin of Minas.   
    Substitute:Bishop Rodolfo Pedro Wirz Kraemer of Maldonado-Punta del Este,   
   president of the Episcopal Conference.   
    ASIA   
    PAKISTAN   
    Member: Bishop Joseph Arshad of Faisalabad.   
    Substitute: Archbishop Sebastian Francis Shaw of Lahore.   
    VIETNAM   
    Members: Archbishop Paul Bui Van Doc of Thanh-Pho Ho Chi Minh, Hochiminh   
   Ville, president of the Episcopal Conference.   
    Bishop Joseph Dinh Duc Dao, auxiliary of Xuan Loc.   
    Substitute: Bishop Pierre Nguyen Van Kham of My Tho.   
    EUROPA   
    ALBANIA   
    Member: Bishop George Frendo, O.P. Auxiliary of Tirane-Durres.   
    Substitute: Bishop Ottavio Vitale, R.C.I. of Lezhe, Lesh.   
    AUSTRIA   
    Member: Bishop Benno Elbs of Feldkirch.   
    Substitute: Bishop Kalus Kung of Sankt Polten.   
    BOSNIA and HERZEGOVINA   
    Member: Bishop Tomo Vuksic, military ordinary of Bosnia and Herzegovina.   
    Substitute: Bishop Marko Semren, O.F.M. auxiliary of Banja Luka.   
    FRANCE   
    Members: Archbishop Georges Pontier of Marseille, president of the Episcopal   
   Conference.   
    Cardinal Andre Vingt-Trois, archbishop Paris.   
    Bishop Jean-Luc Brunin of Le Havre.   
    Bishop Jean-Paul James of Nantes.   
    Substitutes: Bishop Olivier de Germay of Ajaccio.   
    Bishop Bruno Feillet, auxiliary of Reims.   
    GREAT BRITAIN (ENGLAND AND WALES)   
    Members: Cardinal Vincent Gerard Nichols, archbishop of Westminster,   
   president of the Episcopal Conference.   
    Bishop Peter John Haworth Doyle of Northampton.   
    Substitute: Bishop Philip Anthony Egan of Portsmouth.   
    GREECE   
    Member: Bishop Fragkiskos Papamanolis, O.F.M. Cap. emeritus of Syros,   
   president of the Episcopal Conference.   
    Substitute: Archbishop Nikolaos Foskolos, emeritus of Athenai.   
    IRELAND   
    Members: Archbishop Diarmuid Martin of Dublin.   
    Archbishop Eamon Martin of Armagh, president of the Episcopal Conference.   
    Substitute: Archbishop Kieran O'Reilly, S.M.A. of Cashel.   
    LITHUANIA   
    Members: Cardinal Audrys Jouzas Backis, archbishop emeritus of Vilnius.   
    Substitute: Bishop Rimantas Norvila of Vilkaviskis.   
    NETHERLANDS   
    Member: Cardinal Willem Jacobus Eijk, archbishop of Utrecht.   
    Substitute: Bishop Johannes Wilhelmus Maria Liesen of Breda.   
    SPAIN   
    Members: Cardinal Ricardo Blazquez Perez, archbishop of Valladolid, president   
   of the Episcopal Conference.   
    Bishop Mario Iceta Gavicagogeascoa of Bilbao.   
    Archbishop Carlos Osoro Sierra of Madrid.   
    Substitute: Bishop Juan Antonio Reig Pla of Alcala de Henares.   
    OCEANIA   
    AUSTRALIA   
    Members: Bishop Daniel Eugene Hurley of Darwin.   
    Archbishop Mark Benedict Coleridge of Brisbane.   
    Substitute: Archbishop Philip Edward Wilson of Adelaide.   
    NEW ZEALAND   
    Member: Bishop Charles Edward Drennan of Palmerston North.   
    Substitute: Cardinal John Atcherley Dew, archbishop of Wellington, president   
   of the Episcopal Conference.   
      
   ___________________________________________________________   
      
    Assembly on "Women's cultures"   
    Vatican City, 2 February 2015 (VIS) - A press conference was held in the Holy   
   See Press Office this morning to present the Plenary Assembly of the   
   Pontifical Council for Culture on the theme "Women's Cultures: between   
   equality and difference", which will be held in Rome from 4 to 7 February. The   
   speakers were Cardinal Gianfranco Ravasi, president of the Pontifical Council   
   for Culture; Anna Maria Tarantola, president of RAI (Radiotelevisione   
   Italiana); Monica Maggioni, director of RAI News, and Nancy Brilli, actor.   
    The Assembly will be divided into four sessions in which the following themes   
   will be considered: "Between equality and difference: the quest for   
   equilibrium", "Generativity as a symbolic code", "The female body: between   
   culture and biology" and "Women and religion: flight or new forms of   
   participation in the life of the Church?". The Congress will be attended only   
   by members and consultors of the Pontifical Council by pontifical appointment,   
   with the exception of the session on Wednesday 4 February, when there will be   
   a moment of public participation at the Teatro Argentina in Rome. For a period   
   of 50 minutes there will be a series of videos, brief interviews, readings and   
   images, and live music. Entry will be free, subject to capacity.   
      
   ___________________________________________________________   
      
    Audiences   
    Vatican City, 2 February 2015 (VIS) - Today, the Holy Father received in   
   audience:   
    - Cardinal Agostino Vallini, vicar general of His Holiness for the diocese of   
   Rome;   
    - Cardinal Christoph Schonborn, archbishop of Vienna, Austria;   
    - Eleven prelates of the Lithuanian Bishops' Conference, on their "ad limina"   
   visit:   
    -Archbishop Sigitas Tamkevicius of Kaunas, with his auxiliary, Bishop   
   Kestutis Kevalas;   
    - Bishop Eugenijus Bartulis of Siauliai;   
    - Bishop Jonas Boruta of Telsia, with his auxiliary, Bishop Linas   
   Vodopjanovas;   
    - Bishop Rimantas Norvila of Vilkaviskis;   
    - Archbishop Gintaras Grusas of Vilnius, with his auxiliary, Bishop Arunas   
   Poniskaitis and the archbishop emeritus, Cardinal Audrys Juozas Backis;   
    - Bishop Jonas Ivanauskas of Kaisiadoris; and   
    - Bishop Lionginas Virbalas of Panevezys.   
    On Saturday, 31 January the Holy Father received in audience:   
    - Cardinal Marc Ouellet, P.S.S., prefect of the Congregation for Bishops;   
    - Cardinal Willem Jacobus Eijk, archbishop of Utrecht, Netherlands;   
    - Archbishop Yaser Rasmi Hanna Al-Ayyash of Petra and Philadelphia of the   
   Greek-Melkites, Jordan;   
    - Don Notker Wolf, abbot primate of the Benedictine Confederation of   
   Congregations;   
    - Cardinal George Pell, prefect of the Secretariat for the Economy.   
      
   ___________________________________________________________   
      
    Other Pontifical Acts   
    Vatican City, 2 February 2015 (VIS) - The Holy Father has appointed:   
    - Msgr. Francisco Eduardo Cervantes Merino as bishop of Orizaba (area 2,012,   
   population 663,000, Catholics 589,000, priests 89, religious 136), Mexico. The   
   bishop-elect was born in Ocatan Merino Palafox, Mexico in 1953, and was   
   ordained a priest in 1979. He holds a licentiate in pastoral theology from the   
   Pontifical Lateran University, Rome, and a licentiate in educational   
   psychology from the Normal Superior School of Mexico. He has held a number of   
   pastoral roles in the diocese of Tuxpan, including parish vicar, parish priest   
   of the "Corpus Christi" parish, professor at the diocesan seminary, diocesan   
   coordinator of youth pastoral ministry, and member of the presbyteral council.   
   He is currently parish priest of the Cathedral and vicar for pastoral ministry.   
    - Msgr. Liberatus Sangu as bishop of Shinyanga (area 50,000, population   
   2,440,000, Catholics 745,000, priests 55, religious 58), Tanzania. The   
   bishop-elect was born in Mwazye, Tanzania in 1963 and ordained a priest in   
   1994. He studied sacramental theology at the St. Anselm Pontifical Athenaeum   
   in Rome, and has held a number of pastoral and administrative roles, including   
   formator in the minor seminary of Kaengesa, Sumbawanga; parish priest in   
   Matai; director for vocations; formator at the preparatory seminary and head   
   of youth pastoral ministry, and parish priest "ad tempus" in Sopa. He   
   currently serves as an official of the Congregation for the Evangelisation of   
   Peoples.   
    - Fr. Alphonsus Cullinan as bishop of Waterford and Lismore (area 2,542,   
   population 157,358, Catholics 146,215, priests 134, religious 353), Ireland.   
   The bishop-elect was born in County Clare in 1959 and was ordained a priest in   
   1994. He taught in schools in Castleconnell, Limerick and Valladolid, Spain   
   for ten years before preparing for the priesthood in the national seminary at   
   Maynooth. He studied moral theology at the Alphonsianum Academy, Rome, where   
   he obtained a doctorate in Christian anthropology and utilitarianism. He has   
   served as parish vicar at St. Munchin, chaplain of the Mid-Western Regional   
   Hospital in Limerick, and chaplain at the Limerick Institute of Technology. He   
   is currently parish priest in the parish of Rathkeale, Limerick.   
    On Saturday, 31 January the Holy Father appointed:   
    - Bishop Adelio Dell'Oro as bishop of Karaganda (area 711,208, population   
   3,590,000, Catholics 31,300, priests 18, religious 41), Kazakhstan, conserving   
   "donec aliter provideatur" the role of apostolic administrator of Atyrau,   
   Kazakhstan.   
    - Fr. Pietro Bovati, S.J., secretary of the Pontifical Biblical Commission,   
   as consultor of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith.   
      
   ___________________________________________________________   
      
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   www.visnews.org and www.vatican.va   
      
   Copyright (VIS):  the news contained in the services of the Vatican   
   Information Service may be reproduced wholly or partially by quoting   
   the source:  V. I. S. - Vatican Information Service.   
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