Pope Benedict to honor 47 metropolitan archbishops

Pope Benedict will honor 47 archbishops on Sunday June 29 with the imposition of the pallium, a strip of white cloth in the form of a yoke that represents their role as pastors of flocks in  large metropolitan areas or extensive geographic regions in the Catholic Church. This year will see a new form of the rite for imposing the pallium on the metropolitan archbishops, which takes place annually onthe Solemnity of Sts. Peter and Paul, Apostles. According to a note from the Vatican, "Things will remain substantially the same, but this year, following a logic of development in continuity, it has been decided simply to move the rite itself, and it will now take place before the Eucharistic celebration (Ed. note: Mass)."

The above photograph shows a pallium in the style of the Western Church.

The note said further that the modification was approved by Pope Benedict in order to make it shorter. It declared, "The list of new metropolitan archbishops will be read out immediately before the entry of the opening procession and the singing of 'Tu es Petrus', and it will not be part of the celebration. The rite of the palliums will take place as soon as the Holy Father reaches the altar." Furthermore, the rite was changed so that the Mass will not be interrupted by the lengthy list of names, "which could make attentive and focused participation in the Mass more difficult," the note said. The change was also made so that the rite of the pallium is not in any way confused with one of the Sacramental rites of the Church, which include Baptism, Confirmation, Ordination, Matrimony, and Anointing of the Sick. The pallium is not sacramental.

The pallium, which is made of white wool, is meant to symbolize the honoree's unity with the Pope of Rome, the leading pastor of the universal Church. The wearing of the pallium was once exclusive to the Pope, but over time has been given to archbishops of metropolitan sees. In contrast, all bishops of Eastern churches wear an equivalent garment - the omophor.

In the above photograph, Melkite Catholic Patriarch Gregorios III Laham (c) and Armenian Catholic Patriarch Nerses Bedros XIX Tarmoni (r) are each wearing an omophor.

Among the metropolitan archbishops to receive the pallium this year are Archbishop William Skurla of Pittsburgh PA, who leads the Byzantine Catholic eparchies in the United States. Also honored are Archbishop Charles Chaput of Philadelphia PA. Here follows a complete list:


- Cardinal Rainer Maria Woelki, archbishop of Berlin, Germany.

- Cardinal Francisco Robles Ortega, archbishop of Guadalajara, Mexico.

- Archbishop Francesco Moraglia, patriarch of Venice, Italy.

- Archbishop Alfredo Horacio Zecca of Tucuman, Argentina.

- Archbishop Mario Alberto Molina Palma O.A.R. of Los Altos, Quetzaltenango-Totonicapan, Guatemala.

- Archbishop Charles Joseph Chaput O.F.M. Cap. of Philadelphia, U.S.A.

- Archbishop Luc Cyr of Sherbrooke, Canada.

- Archbishop Salvador Pineiro Garcia-Calderon of Ayacucho or Huamanga, Peru.

- Archbishop Francesco Panfilo S.D.B. of Rabaul, Papua New Guinea.

- Archbishop Ulises Antonio Gutierrez Reyes O. de M. of Ciudad Bolivar, Venezuela.

- Archbishop Stanislaw Budzik of Lublin, Poland.

- Archbishop Wilson Tadeu Jonck S.C.I. of Florianopolis, Brazil.

- Archbishop Paul-Andre Durocher of Gatineau, Canada.

- Archbishop Luis Antonio G. Tagle of Manila, Philippines.

- Archbishop Patrick D’Rozario C.S.C. of Dhaka, Bangladesh.

- Archbishop Wiktor Pawel Skworc of Katowice, Poland.

- Archbishop Jose F. Advincula of Capiz, Philippines.

- Archbishop Filippo Santoro of Taranto, Italy.

- Archbishop Jose Francisco Rezende Dias of Niteroi, Brazil.

- Archbishop Esmeraldo Barreto de Farias of Porto Velho, Brazil.

- Archbishop Jaime Vieira Rocha of Natal, Brazil.

- Archbishop Joseph Harris C.S.Sp. of Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago.

- Archbishop Waclaw Depo of Czestochowa, Poland.

- Archbishop Ignatius Chama of Kasama, Zambia.

- Archbishop Pascal Wintzer of Poitiers, France.

- Archbishop John Moolachira of Guwahati, India.

- Archbishop William Charles Skurla of Pittsburgh of the Byzantines, U.S.A.

- Archbishop Joseph Coutts of Karachi, Pakistan.

- Archbishop Romulo Geolina Valles of Davao, Philippines.

- Archbishop Airton Jose dos Santos of Campinas, Brazil.

- Archbishop Timothy Costelloe S.D.B. of Perth, Australia.

- Archbishop Jacinto Furtado de Brito Sobrinho of Teresina, Brazil.

- Archbishop Thomas D’Souza of Calcutta, India.

- Archbishop Arrigo Miglio of Cagliari, Italy.

- Archbishop John F. Du of Palo, Philippines.

- Archbishop Paulo Mendes Peixoto of Uberaba, Brazil.

- Archbishop Christian Lepine of Montreal, Canada.

- Archbishop William Edward Lori of Baltimore, U.S.A.

- Archbishop Mark Benedict Coleridge of Brisbane, Australia.

- Archbishop Jesus Carlos Cabrero Romero of San Luis Potosi, Mexico.

- Archbishop Andrew Yeom Soo jung of Seoul, Korea.

- Archbishop Benedito Roberto C.S.Sp. of Malanje, Angola.

- Archbishop Alfred Adewale Martins of Lagos, Nigeria.

- Archbishop Samuel Joseph Aquila of Denver, U.S.A.

The following two archbishops will receive the pallium in their metropolitan sees:

- Archbishop Gabriel Justice Yaw Anokye of Kumasi, Ghana.

- Archbishop Valery Vienneau of Moncton, Canada.