LOS ANGELES --- St. Joseph of Carondelet Sister Rosanne Belpedio has been named director of the archdiocesan Office for Worship, effective Nov. 2.

Sister Belpedio previously served in Office for Worship as coordinator for Christian Initiation from 1995 to 2002. She has been a member of the archdiocesan Liturgical Commission since its inception in 2007, serving as chair, and has also been a consultant to the Office of Religious Education.

Sister Belpedio will lead the Office for Worship in guiding and inspiring the continuing liturgical renewal of the local Church while serving as liturgical consultant to parishes and institutions in the archdiocese, creating and overseeing liturgical formation and renewal celebrations, and coordinating the preparation of archdiocesan liturgical celebrations.

A graduate of Bishop Alemany High School in Mission Hills, Sister Belpedio received her Master of Arts in Theology from Gonzaga University, Spokane.

Fr. Thomas O'Malley, former LMU president, dies at age 79
CHESTNUT HILL, Mass. (CNS) --- Jesuit Father Thomas P. O'Malley, who served as president of two Jesuit universities and dean at another, died Nov. 4 of an apparent heart attack at age 79. His funeral Mass was scheduled for Nov. 10 at St. Ignatius Church in Chestnut Hill, followed by burial at Campion Center Cemetery in Weston.

Father O'Malley was president of John Carroll University in Cleveland (1980-88); president of Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles (1991-99); and professor in the arts and sciences honors program for the past 10 years at Boston College, where he had served in the 1970s as dean of the College of Arts and Sciences.

Jesuit Father Joseph A. Appleyard, Boston College's vice president for university mission and ministry, called Father O'Malley "one of those rare people who make your life seem richer just by being part of it."

"Although Tom O'Malley was a significant figure in the histories of three Jesuit universities," said Father Appleyard, "I suspect that what the legion of friends he left in these places will remember most, beyond any of his administrative accomplishments, is his lightly worn erudition, his deep knowledge of Scripture, his ability to light up any conversation with a good story, and of course his booming laugh," Father Appleyard added in a statement.

Born March 1, 1930, in Milton, Mass., Thomas P. O'Malley graduated from Boston College in 1951 with a degree in classics and earned a master's degree from Fordham University in New York before joining the Society of Jesus in 1953.

Between his stints as president of John Carroll and Loyola Marymount, Father O'Malley taught for a year in Nigeria and served as rector of the Jesuit community at Fairfield University in Connecticut.

"He was a larger-than-life man and a larger-than-life Jesuit," said Jesuit Father T. Frank Kennedy, rector of the Jesuit community at Boston College, in a statement. "He could converse in an intelligent way about so many different things. He was an incredible teacher and administrator."

Papal document on former Anglicans maintains some Anglican traditions
VATICAN CITY (CNS) --- Former Anglicans entering the Catholic Church can preserve their liturgical traditions, married priests in some circumstances and even a shade of their consultative decision-making processes, according to Pope Benedict XVI's document on new structures for welcoming the former Anglicans. The pope's apostolic constitution "Anglicanorum Coetibus" ("Groups of Anglicans") was published Nov. 9 at the Vatican along with specific norms governing the establishment and governance of "personal ordinariates," structures similar to dioceses, for former Anglicans who become Catholic. As previously announced by the Vatican, the text said there could be exemptions to the church's celibacy rule to allow married former Anglican priests to be ordained as Catholic priests. However, it emphasized that this would be done on a "case-by-case basis." An accompanying Vatican statement said the possibility of having some married clergy under this special arrangement "does not signify any change in the church's discipline of clerical celibacy." The ordinariates will be established by the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith in consultation with the national bishops' conference where the ordinariate is to be based, the constitution said.

Primate hopes for quick action from Traditional Anglican Communion
OTTAWA (CNS) --- The primate of the Traditional Anglican Communion said he hopes churches take action to enter into full communion with the Catholic Church before Easter. Archbishop John Hepworth said he reacted "with overwhelming joy" to the apostolic constitution published Nov. 9 establishing the structure for Anglicans to be in full communion with the Catholic Church. The archbishop described the constitution as "generous at every turn" in its description of the Anglican heritage, its dogmatic provisions and its pastoral language. "We've been asked to show the rich heritage to the whole church, not just to ourselves," he said in an interview from Australia. The Traditional Anglican Communion includes Anglican churches that have left the much larger Anglican Communion over the ordination of women and sexually active homosexuals as priests. The Traditional Anglican Communion is among the largest group of Anglicans likely to embrace the Vatican's action to welcome them into full communion with the church.

Immigrants can make important contributions to society, pope says
VATICAN CITY (CNS) --- People should not look upon immigrants as problems, but as fellow brothers and sisters who can be valuable contributors to society, Pope Benedict XVI said. The migration of peoples represents a chance "to highlight the unity of the human family and the value of welcoming, hospitality and love for one's neighbor," he said Nov. 9. The pope spoke during an audience with participants of the Sixth World Congress on the Pastoral Care of Migrants and Refugees taking place Nov. 9-12 at the Vatican. The pope underlined the dramatic difficulties many migrants face in their efforts to survive or improve living conditions for themselves and their families. "The economic crisis, with the enormous growth in unemployment, diminishes the possibilities of employment and increases the number of those who aren't able to find even unsteady work," he said. The economic divide between industrialized and poor countries continues to grow, he said, and many people have no choice but to leave their homeland in search of a living --- even if it means accepting inhuman working conditions and experiencing great difficulties fitting in someplace new with different language, culture and rules. Many immigrants today are fleeing "humanly unacceptable" living conditions, but they are not finding "the reception they hoped for elsewhere," said the pope.

Salvadorans mourn 130 who died in flooding; agencies assessing need
SAN SALVADOR (CNS) --- Salvadorans began observing three days of national mourning Nov. 10 for the 130 people who died in floods and landslides caused by Hurricane Ida. The storm, occurring Nov. 6-8 during what normally is the start of the dry season, left thousands homeless and in shelters. Large areas of the country remained without power as the mourning period began. President Mauricio Funes declared a national emergency as the government and aid agencies rushed to provide food, water, clothing and other assistance to victims around the capital of San Salvador and the central province of San Vicente. More than 13,000 Salvadorans who lost their homes were in shelters Nov. 10. In Nicaragua, relief workers were hindered in their efforts to get supplies to remote communities affected by the storm by washed-out bridges and roads. The Nicaraguan government estimated that at least 8,000 people were displaced by the storm. Catholic Relief Services and other aid agencies were assessing how best to respond in the neighboring Central American countries.