Zoa named Yaoundé Auxiliary

Bishop-elect Christophe Zoa was named Auxiliary Bishop of Yaoundé, Cameroon and titular bishop of Hilta.

Manisap retired, Sirisut named Nakhon Ratchasima Bishop

Bishop Joachim Phayao Manisap retired, Bishop-elect Joseph Chusak Sirisut was named Bishop of Nakhon Ratchasima, Thailand.

Awa retired, Bushu named Buéa Bishop

Bishop Pius Suh Awa retired, Bishop Emmanuel Bushu was named Bishop of Buéa, Cameroon. Bishop Bushu had been serving as Bishop of Yagoua.

Guimond retired, Pettipas named Grouard-McLennan Archbishop

Archbishop Arthé Guimond retired and Archbishop-elect Gerard Pettipas, C.SS.R. was named Archbishop of Grouard-McLennan, Alberta, Canada.

da Silva Matthes retired, Ferrari succeeded as Franca Bishop

Bishop Diógenes da Silva Matthes retired and Bishop Caetano Ferrari, O.F.M. succeeded as Bishop of Franca, Sao Paulo, Brazil.

Technology Test on the Main Site

I'm considering some changes to the diocese pages on the main site.

Here is an example of the new style and the same page in the old style. (note: some of the links may be broken on these pages, the test is about the design of the page itself.)

The main changes are: 1) adjusted the location of the diocese's historical detail info; 2) adjusted some of the section titles; and 3) replaced the "jump to" bar with a "show" bar (the big change).

The "show" bar allows the user to pick which sections (or "all") of the page to see. This is especially useful when one is printing out the page and only needs certain sections.

A variation of this technology is also being considered for other parts of the site - so any feedback would be greatly appreciated. Please use the regular feedback form on the site.

Thanks again :-)

Housset named La Rochelle (-Saintes) Bishop

Bishop Bernard Housset was named Bishop of La Rochelle (-Saintes), France. The diocese had been vacant since then-Bishop Georges Paul Pontier was named Archbishop of Marseille in May 2006. Bishop Housset had been serving as Bishop of Montauban.

Das retired, Nayak named Berhampur Bishop

Bishop Joseph Das retired and Bishop-elect Sarat Chandra Nayak was named Bishop of Berhampur, India.

Ruzoka named Tabora Archbishop

Archbishop-designate Paul R. Ruzoka was named Archbishop of Tabora, Tanzania. The Archdiocese had been vacant since the death of Archbishop Mario Epifanio Abdallah Mgulunde in March 2006. Archbishop-designate Ruzoka had been serving as Bishop of Kigoma.

Ravasi retired, Kihara Kariuki named Marsabit Bishop

Bishop Ambrogio Ravasi, I.M.C. retired and Bishop Peter Kihara Kariuki, I.M.C. was named Bishop of Marsabit, Kenya. Bishop Kihara Kariuki had been serving as Bishop of Muranga.

Karikassery named Verapoly Auxiliary

Bishop-elect Joseph Karikassery was named Auxiliary Bishop of Verapoly, India and titular bishop of Buxentum.

Goa e Damão elevated to a Metropolitan

The Archdiocese of Goa e Damão, India was elevated to a Metropolitan Archdiocese with the Diocese of Sindhudurg as a suffragan.

Bujumbura elevated to Archdiocese

The diocese of Bujumbura, Burundi was elevated to an Archdiocese. Archbishop-designate Evariste Ngoyagoye remains the ordinary. The dioceses of Bubanza and Bururi were made suffragans of the new archdiocese.

Reorganization of the Provinces of Mexico

There was a major reorganization of the provinces within Mexico.

Four dioceses were elevated to Metropolitan Archdioceses: Tijuana, León, Tulancingo, and Tuxtla Gutiérrez. The respective ordinaries of each of these were named Archbishops.

Numerous dioceses changed Metropolitans as part of this reorganization.

The complete new structure of the Dioceses of Mexico can be found on the site.

Nketsiah named Cape Coast Auxiliary

Bishop-elect Matthias Kobena Nketsiah was named Auxiliary Bishop of Cape Coast, Ghana and titular bishop of Abaradira.

Archbishop Hakim Died

Archbishop Michel Hakim, B.S., Archbishop Emeritus of Saint-Sauveur de Montréal (Melkite), Canada, has died. He was 85 years old and had served as a priest for 59 years and a bishop for 29 years. May he rest in peace.

Machado named São Carlos Bishop

Bishop Paulo Sérgio Machado was named Bishop of São Carlos, Sao Paulo, Brazil. The diocese had been vacant since then-Bishop Joviano de Lima Júnior, S.S.S. was named Archbishop of Ribeirão Preto. Bishop Machado had been serving as Bishop of Ituiutaba.

Melo retired, Muniz Fernandes named Maceió Archbishop

Archbishop José Carlos Melo, C.M. retired and Archbishop-designate Antônio Muniz Fernandes, O. Carm. was named Archbishop of Maceió, Alagoas, Brazil. Archbishop-designate Muniz Fernandes had been serving as Bishop of Guarabira, Paraiba.

Cardinal Baum turns 80 - The End of an Era

William Wakefield Cardinal Baum has turned 80 years of age and thus loses his right to vote in a conclave. He was also the last pre-Pope John Paul II voting Cardinal.

He was elevated to the Cardinalate by Pope Paul VI in 1976. The only other one elevated by Pope Paul VI and under the age of 80 is Pope Benedict XVI, who was elevated in 1977.

There are 114 Cardinal Electors of the 187 living Cardinals. Of those, 102 were elevated by Pope John Paul II and the remaining 12 by Pope Benedict XVI.

Leichtfried named Sankt Pölten Auxiliary

Bishop-elect Anton Leichtfried was named Auxiliary Bishop of Sankt Pölten, Austria and titular bishop of Rufiniana.

Graziani named Crotone-Santa Severina Archbishop

Archbishop-designate Domenico Graziani was named Archbishop of Crotone-Santa Severina, Italy. The archdiocese had been vacant since Archbishop Andrea Mugione was named Archbishop of Benevento. Archbishop-designate Graziani had been serving as Bishop of Cassano all'Jonio.

Ekpu retired as Benin City Archbishop

Archbishop Patrick Ebosele Ekpu has retired as Archbishop of Benin City, Nigeria.

Bishop Dudley Died

Bishop Paul Vincent Dudley, Bishop Emeritus of Sioux Falls, South Dakota, USA, has died. He was just 7 days from his 80th birthday and had served as a priest for 55 years and as a bishop for 30 years. May he rest in peace.

Martin retired, McGowan Wright named Belize City-Belmopan Bishop

Bishop Osmond Peter Martin retired and Bishop Dorick McGowan Wright was named Bishop of Belize City-Belmopan, Belize. Bishop McGowan Wright had been serving as an Auxiliary Bishop of the same diocese.

Marra retired, La Piana named Messina-Lipari-Santa Lucia del Mela Archbishop

Archbishop Giovanni Marra retired and Archbishop-designate Calogero La Piana, S.D.B. was named Archbishop of Messina-Lipari-Santa Lucia del Mela, Italy. Archbishop-designate La Piana had been serving as Bishop of Mazara del Vallo.

Archbishop Mansour Died

Archbishop Jean Mansour, M.S.S.P., Auxiliary Bishop Emeritus of Antiochia {Antioch} (Melkite), Syria, has died. He was 78 and had served as a priest for 54 years and as a bishop for 26 years. May he rest in peace.

Bishop Moreno Died

Bishop Manuel Duran Moreno, Bishop Emeritus of Tucson, Arizona, USA, has died. He was 10 days from his 76th birthday and he served as a priest for 45 years and as a bishop for just under 30 years. May he rest in peace.

Bishop D'Silva Died

Bishop Joseph D'Silva, Bishop of Bellary, India, had died. He was 74 and had served as a priest for 46 years and as Bishop of Bellary for 14 years. May he rest in peace.

Bishop Zini Filho Died

Bishop Augusto José Zini Filho, Bishop of Limeira, Sao Paulo, Brazil, has died. He was 10 days from his 74th birthday and had served as a priest for 47 years and as a bishop for 12 years. May he rest in peace.

Farina, Girotti, and Stankiewicz named Titular Bishops

Bishop-elect Raffaele Farina, S.D.B. was named Titular Bishop of Opitergium while remaining Prefect of the Vatican Library.

Bishop-elect Gianfranco Girotti, O.F.M. Conv. was named Titular Bishop of Meta while remaining an Official of the Apostolic Penitentiary.

Bishop-elect Antoni Stankiewicz was named Titular Bishop of Nova Petra while remaining Dean of the Roman Rota.

Nazzaro resigned as Montevergine Abbot

Abbot Tarciscio Giovanni Nazzaro, O.S.B. resigned as Abbot of Montevergine, Italy.

Gomes Canellas retired, Kohl named Osório Bishop

Bishop Thadeu Gomes Canellas retired and Bishop-elect Jaime Pedro Kohl, P.S.D.P. was named Bishop of Osório, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil.

Urbanc named Catamarca Coadjutor

Bishop-elect Luis Urbanc was named Coadjutor Bishop of Catamarca, Argentina. Bishop Elmer Osmar Ramón Miani remains the ordinary.

Laxague named Bahía Blanca Auxiliary

Bishop-elect Pedro María Laxague was named Auxiliary Bishop of Bahía Blanca, Argentina and titular bishop of Castra Severiana.

Castaño Arbeláez named Cali Auxiliary

Bishop-elect José Alejandro Castaño Arbeláez, O.A.R. was named Auxiliary Bishop of Cali, Colombia and titular bishop of Castellum Tatroportus.

Morelos retired, Valles named Zamboanga Archbishop

Archbishop Carmelo Dominador Flores Morelos retired and Archbishop-designate Romulo Geolina Valles was named Archbishop of Zamboanga, Philippines. Archbishop-designate Valles had been serving as Bishop of Kidapawan.

Utleg named Laoag Bishop

Bishop Sergio Lasam Utleg was named Bishop of Laoag, Philippines. The diocese had been vacant since then-Bishop Ernesto Antolin Salgado was named Archbishop of Nueva Segovia in February 2005. Bishop Utleg had been serving as Bishop of Ilagan.

Archbishop Monte Died

Archbishop Nivaldo Monte, Archbishop Emeritus of Natal, Rio Grande do Norte, Brazil, has died. He was 88 and had served as a bishop for 43 years and as a priest for 64 years. May he rest in peace.

Rizzotto retired as Galveston-Houston Auxiliary

Bishop Vincent Michael Rizzotto has retired as Auxiliary Bishop of Galveston-Houston, Texas, USA.

Bishop Larkin Died

Bishop William Thomas Larkin, Bishop Emeritus of Saint Petersburg, Florida, USA, has died. He was 83 and has served as a bishop for 27 years and as a priest for 59 years. May he rest in peace.

Scatizzi retired, Bianchi named Pistoia Bishop

Bishop Simone Scatizzi retired and Bishop Mansueto Bianchi was named Bishop of Pistoia, Italy. Bishop Bianchi had been serving as Bishop of Volterra.

Gutiérrez named Bacabal Bishop

Bishop-elect Armando Martín Gutiérrez, F.A.M. was named Bishop of Bacabal, Maranho, Brazil. The diocese had been vacant since then-Bishop José Belisário da Silva, O.F.M. was named Archbishop of São Luís do Maranhão.