are all children of God! Do we remember that in Baptism we have received the   
   'seal' of our Heavenly Father and became His children? ... Here is the root of   
   the vocation to holiness. The saints we remember today are indeed those who   
   lived in the grace of their Baptism, who kept the 'seal' intact, behaving as   
   children of God, seeking to imitate Jesus; and now they have reached their goal   
   because they finally 'see God as he really is'".   
    Their second characteristic is that they are "examples to imitate. ... Not   
   only   
   those who are canonised, but, so to speak, the saints 'next door' who, with the   
   grace of God, made the effort to practice the Gospel in the ordinariness of   
   their life. ... To imitate their gestures of love and mercy is rather like   
   perpetuating their presence in this world. Indeed, those evangelical gestures   
   are the only ones that resist the destruction of death: an act of tenderness, a   
   generous help, time spent listening, a visit, a good word, a smile. ... To our   
   eyes these gestures might seem insignificant, but in God's eyes they are   
   eternal, because love and compassion are stronger than death".   
      
   ___________________________________________________________   
      
    Francis to open the Holy Door of the cathedral of Bangui   
    Vatican City, 1 November 2015 (VIS) - After today's Marian Angelus prayer, the   
   Pope referred to the delicate situation in the Central African Republic   
   following the painful events of recent days, and launched an appeal to the   
   parties involved to put an end to this cycle of violence. "I am spiritually   
   close to the Combonian Fathers of the parish of Our Lady of Fatima in Bangui,   
   which is welcoming many displaced people. I express my solidarity with the   
   Church, other religious confessions and the entire nation, so sorely tried, as   
   they make every effort to overcome divisions and to re-embark on the path of   
   peace".   
    "To show the prayerful closeness of all the Church to this afflicted and   
   tormented nation, and to exhort all Central Africans increasingly to be   
   witnesses of mercy and reconciliation, I intend to open the Holy Door of the   
   Cathedral of Bangui on Sunday 29 November, during the apostolic trip I hope to   
   make to this nation".   
      
   ___________________________________________________________   
      
    Pope's telegram of condolences for the victims of the Sinai air crash   
    Vatican City, 1 November 2015 (VIS) - Cardinal Secretary of State Pietro   
   Parolin has sent a telegram of condolences to the president of the Russian   
   Federation Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin on behalf of the Holy Father, following   
   the crash of a Russian airliner in the Egyptian Sinai peninsula yesterday, 31   
   October, causing over 200 deaths.   
    In the text, the Pope expresses his sadness at learning of the tragic event,   
   and conveys his condolences to the president and the Russian people. He assures   
   his prayers for all the deceased and for those who mourn their loss, and   
   invokes   
   the strength and peace of Almighty God upon the nation and all those involved   
   in   
   the recovery efforts.   
      
   ___________________________________________________________   
      
    Audience with the president of Macedonia   
    Vatican City, 31 October 2015 (VIS) - This morning the Holy Father Francis   
   received in audience in the Vatican Apostolic Palace His Excellency Mr. Gjorge   
   Ivanov, president of the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, who   
   subsequently   
   met with His Eminence Cardinal Secretary of State Pietro Parolin, accompanied   
   by   
   Archbishop Paul Richard Gallagher, secretary for Relations with States.   
    During the discussions, which took place in a cordial atmosphere, the Parties   
   expressed their satisfaction at the existing good bilateral relations, and   
   their   
   hope for the realisation of the country's aspirations and increasing efforts to   
   join the European Union.   
    Attention then turned to various themes of international politics in the   
   current global context, also in relation to persistent difficulties of an   
   economic and social nature, and the need for joint efforts to offer assistance   
   to the great number of refugees arriving in the region.   
    Finally, the Parties recognised the importance of further encouraging the   
   co-existence of and dialogue between the various ethnic and religious groups in   
   the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia.   
      
   ___________________________________________________________   
      
    The Pope to business leaders: increase an entrepreneurial spirit of   
   subsidiarity   
    Vatican City, 31 October 2015 (VIS) - This morning in the Paul VI Hall, the   
   Pope received seven thousand members of the Christian Union of Business   
   Executives (UCID), a group of Catholic entrepreneurs who seek to be agents of   
   development for the common good, inspired above all by the Social Doctrine of   
   the Church. The UCID, which is an ecclesial association recognised by bishops,   
   grants great importance to Christian formation and carries out its apostolate   
   in   
   the field of work and enterprise.   
    In his address, the Holy Father exhorts the members of UCID to live their   
   entrepreneurial vocation in the spirit of the lay mission, emphasising that   
   businesses and their managing offices can become "places of sanctification"   
   through common commitment to building fraternal relations between   
   entrepreneurs,   
   managers and workers, promoting co-responsibility and collaboration in mutual   
   interest. "It is fundamental to pay special attention to the quality of the   
   working life of employees, who are the most precious resource of a business,   
   and   
   in particular to favour harmonisation between work and family life", he added.   
   "I think especially of female workers: the challenge is to protect both their   
   right to fully recognised work and and their vocation to maternity and presence   
   within the family". Another important aspect, Francis remarked, is the   
   "responsibility of businesses in the defence and care of creation and the   
   realisation of progress that is 'healthier, more human, more social, more   
   integral'".   
    The call to be missionaries of the social dimension of the Gospel in the world   
   of work, the economy and enterprise implies "openness and evangelical closeness   
   to the many situations of poverty and fragility", encouraging programmes for   
   development and assistance. However, it is not enough to provide charitable   
   aid,   
   the Pope adds. "It is necessary to guide economic activity in an evangelical   
   sense, that is, at the service of the person and the common good. From this   
   point of view you are called upon to cooperate to promote the growth of an   
   entrepreneurial spirit of subsidiarity, to face ethical and market challenges   
   together, and above all the challenge of creating good work opportunities".   
    "The business is an asset of common interest. While it may be a private asset,   
   managed privately, for the simple fact that it pursues aims of general interest   
   and relevance, such as economic development, innovation and employment, it must   
   be protected as an asset in its own right. This protection must be provided   
   firstly by the institutions, but also by entrepreneurs, economics, financial   
   bodies and banks, and all those involved must act with competence, honesty and   
   a   
   sense of responsibility. The economy and business need ethics in order to   
   function correctly; and not merely any ethical code, but rather one that places   
   the person and the community at the forefront", the Holy Father concluded.   
      
   ___________________________________________________________   
      
    Cardinal Zenon Grocholewski, Pope's special envoy to the 500th anniversary of   
   the arrival of the sacred image of the Madonna at Lask   
    Vatican City, 31 October 2015 (VIS) - In a letter published today, written in   
   Latin and dated 12 October, the Holy Father appoints Cardinal Zenon   
   Grocholewski, prefect emeritus of the Congregation for Catholic Education, as   
   his special envoy to the closing celebration of the 500th anniversary of the   
   arrival from Rome of the sacred image of the "Madonna of Lask" in the sanctuary   
   of the same name in the archdiocese of Lodz, Poland, to take place on Sunday 8   
   November.   
    The mission accompanying the cardinal will be composed of Msgr. Tadeusz   
   Ciupinski, canon of the Collegiate Chapter in Lask, and Msgr. Zbigniew Tracz,   
   canon of the Cathedral Chapter in Lodz.   
      
   ___________________________________________________________   
      
    The Pope ordains the new auxiliary bishop of Rome in the Basilica of St. John   
   Lateran   
    Vatican City, 3 November 2015 (VIS) - The Office of Liturgical Celebrations of   
   the Supreme Pontiff today announced that on Monday 9 November at 5 p.m. in the   
   papal Basilica of St. John Lateran the Pope will confer episcopal ordination to   
   Msgr. Angelo De Donatis of the clergy of the diocese of Rome. Appointed as   
   auxiliary bishop of Rome on 14 September 2015, Msgr. De Donatis was born in   
   1954   
   in Casarano, Italy.   
      
   ___________________________________________________________   
      
    Audiences   
    Vatican City, 31 October 2015 (VIS) - Today, the Holy Father received in   
   separate audiences:   
    - Cardinal Gerhard Ludwig Muller, prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine   
   of the Faith;   
    - Cardinal Marc Ouellet, prefect of the Congregation for Bishops.   
      
   ___________________________________________________________   
      
    Other Pontifical Acts   
    Vatican City, 3 November 2015 (VIS) - The Holy Father has appointed:   
    - Bishop Pedro Maria Laxague, auxiliary of Bahia Blanca, Argentina, as bishop   
   of Zarate-Campana (area 5,924, population 728,000, Catholics 660,000, priests   
   88, permanent deacons 13, religious 178), Argentina. He succeeds Bishop Oscar   
   Domingo Sarlinga, whose resignation in accordance with canon 401 para. 2 of the   
   Code of Canon Law was accepted by the Holy Father.   
    - appointed Fr. Carlos Azpiroz Costa, O.P., as coadjutor archbishop of Bahia   
   Blanca (area 82,625, population 757,000, Catholics 647,000, priests 83,   
   permanent deacons 18, religious 202), Argentina. Fr. Azpiroz Costa, O.P., was   
   born in Buenos Aires, Argentina, in 1956, gave his religious vows in 1984 and   
   was ordained a priest in 1987. He holds a bachelor's degree in philosophy from   
   the University of the North "Santo Tomas de Aquino" (UNSTA) in the Argentine   
   Dominican province, a bachelor's degree in theology from the Pontifical   
   Argentine Catholic University, and a doctorate in canon law from the University   
   of St. Thomas Aquinas (Angelicum), Rome. He has served in a number of roles   
   within his order, most notably as Master General, and as a lecturer at the   
   University FASTA of Mar del Plata, Argentina. He is currently superior of the   
   Dominican community of Mar del Plata.   
    On Saturday, 31 October, the Holy Father:   
    - appointed Fr. Abel Szocska, O.S.B.M., as apostolic administrator sede   
   vacante   
   of the eparchy of Nyiregyhaza, Hungary, for Catholis of Byzantine rite, without   
   episcopal rank. Fr. Szocska was born in Vinohradiu, Nagyszolos, Ukraine in   
   1972,   
   gave his religious vows in 2001 and was ordained a priest in the same year. He   
   is currently provincial superior of the Basilian Fathers in Hungary, pastor of   
   the parish of Mariapocs, and protosyncellus of the eparchy of Miskolc.   
    - gave his assent to the canonical election by the Synod of Bishops of the   
   Maronite Church of Fr. Joseph Tobji as archbishop of Aleppo of the Maronites,   
   Syria. The bishop-elect was born in 1971 and was ordained a priest in 1996. He   
   holds a licentiate in canon law from the Pontifical Urbanian University and has   
   served as chaplain and parish priest, and as promoter of justice and defender   
   of   
   the bond in a number of ecclesiastical tribunals. He is currently secretary of   
   the Assembly of Catholic Bishops.   
    - accepted the resignation from the office of auxiliary of the diocese of   
   Elblag, Poland, presented by Bishop Jozef Wysocki upon reaching the age limit.   
      
   ___________________________________________________________   
      
   For more information and to search for documents refer to the site:   
   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.   
   http://www.vatican.va/news_services/press/vis/vis_en.html   
      
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    * Origin: Sursum Corda! BBS=Huntsville AL=bbs.sursum-corda.com (1:396/45)