As reported today by the Vatican Newsroom, Benedict XVI has made some changes in some ecclesiastic districts of the Balkans, Croatia and Serbia. In Serbia, he has reinstated the diocese of Srijem, so far joined to that of Djakovo (Croatia), and appointed its bishop mgr. Djuro Gasparoviæ, so far the auxiliary bishop of Djakovo and general vicar with special privileges for Srijem, who will also become a member of the International Bishops Conference of Saints Cyril and Methodius. In Croatia, after the split of the dioceses of Djakovo and Srijem, the Pope erected the Ecclesiastic Province of Djakovo-Osijek, raising the diocese to a metropolitan see. As to the name, the name of Bosna has been suppressed and that of Osijek, administrative capital of Slavonia, has been added. He has appointed suffragans those of Poega and Srijem (Serbia), which so far had belonged to the Ecclesiastic Province of Zagreb-Croatia-Slavonia. The first metropolitan archbishop is mgr. Martin Srakiæ, so far the bishop of Djakovo and Srijem. Mgr. Srakiæ is also the president of the Croatian Bishops Conference. Finally, Benedict XVI changed the name of the Ecclesiastic Province of Zagreb-Croatia-Slavonia into that of Ecclesiastic Province of Zagreb, with Zagreb the metropolitan see and Varadin and Krievci the suffragans.” ” ” “
