Pope appoints Nigerian archbishop into vatican position

Pope Benedict XVI has appointed

Lebanese and Nigerian clergymen to a

Vatican department aimed at

countering growing secularisation in a

sign of attention to two problematic

regions for the Catholic Church.

The Vatican said the Archbishop of Beirut of

the Maronites, Paul Youssef Matar, and the

Archbishop of Jos, Ignatius Ayau Kaigama,

would be joining the Pontifical Council for the

New Evangelization.

Despite the raging conflict in Syria, which has

also raised tensions within Lebanon, the pope

is expected to visit Beirut on September 14-16 with a message calling for peaceful

coexistence between religions in the region.

Thousands of people have been killed in Jos in recent years in clashes between the Christian

and Muslim communities including a suicide attack on a Catholic church in March in which a

dozen people were killed.

Benedict created the pontifical council for new evangelisation in 2010.