” “Evangelising through culture by casting a bridge of dialogue with the non-believers. This is the "work-plan" of monsignor Gianfranco Ravasi, who has been appointed today by the Pope president of the Papal Council Culture, replacing the French cardinal Paul Poupard, who left his office having reached the retirement age. Born on October 18th 1942 in Merate, in the province of Lecco and in the diocese of Milan, Monsignor Ravasi was ordained priest in 1966 and since 1989 has been prefect of the Biblioteca Ambrosiana and associate high canon of Sant’Ambrogio. On September 29th, he will be ordained bishop by Benedict XVI in the basilica of Saint Peter’s; the ceremony will also be attended by the archbishop of Milan, cardinal Dionigi Tettamanzi. With the appointment of Ravasi, the "geography" of that line of Vatican departments will also change: the Ministry of Culture is also connected with the Ministries of the Cultural Heritage and Sacred Archaeology, which were formerly independent, each one with its own manager. «The idea explains Ravasi is to build a network of all the Vatican facilities that are related with the world of culture, in the attempt to establish more and more easily that "dialogue with the world" that had been wished for by the Second Vatican Council. In addition, this is just the purpose for which Pope John Paul II established the Papal Culture Council in 1982». (continued)” “
