Council Chosen to Prepare Next Synod

VATICAN CITY, OCT. 27, 2008 (Zenit.org).- Before the synod of bishops on the Word of God drew to a close, members were named to the council that will prepare the next synod.

The 15 members of the XII Council of the Secretary General of the Synod of Bishops have three main tasks: to assist the Pope in preparing the postsynodal apostolic exhortation, follow up on the application of the synod in the Church, and prepare the next synod of bishop on a theme that has not yet been chosen.

Twelve of the members are chosen by vote from the assembly, three to represent each continent (Asia and Oceania were considered as one continent). And three are chosen by the Pope.

The members of the council are:

-- Cardinal Francis Arinze, prefect of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Sacraments
-- Cardinal Francis George, archbishop of Chicago and president of the U.S. episcopal conference
-- Cardinal Oscar Rodríguez Maradiaga, archbishop of Tegucigalpa, Honduras, and president of the Honduran episcopal conference, as well as president of Caritas Internationalis

-- Cardinal Peter Kodwo Appiah Turkson, archbishop of Cape Coast, Ghana, and president of the Association of the Episcopal Conference of West Africa
-- Cardinal Marc Ouellet, archbishop of Quebec
-- Cardinal Joseph Zen, bishop of Hong Kong

-- Cardinal Odilo Scherer, archbishop of São Paulo, Brazil
-- Cardinal Walter Kasper, president of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity
-- Archbishop Laurent Monsengwo Pasinya of Kinshasa, Congo

-- Archbishop Thomas Menamparampil of Guwahati, India
-- Archbishop Diarmuid Martin of Dublin, Ireland
-- Archbishop Mark Coleridge of Canberra-Goulburn, Australia

-- Archbishop Gianfranco Ravasi, president of the Pontifical Council for Social Communications
-- Bishop Florentin Crihalmeanu of Cluj-Gherla, Romania
-- Bishop Luis Tagle of Imus, Philippines