Pope Benedict XVI yesterday appointed Holy Cross Bishop Moses M. Costa as the new Chittagong bishop. Bishop Costa, 60, was bishop of Dinajpur at the time of his appointment. He succeeds Holy Cross Bishop Patrick D’Rozario who was appointed coadjutor Archbishop of Dhaka last November. Bishop Lawrence Subrato Howlader, who also belongs to the Holy Cross congregation, will assist Bishop Costa as his auxiliary in Chittagong. Bishop Costa is presently secretary general of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of Bangladesh and chairman of the conference’s commissions for youth and for seminaries. According to the Bangladesh Catholic Directory 2008, Chittagong diocese has 36,679 Catholics, representing 0.1 percent of the people in its territory. It has 21 Diocesan priests, 15 Religious priests, 11 brothers and 107 nuns serving in its 14 parishes, five mission centers and 33 sub-centers. BA13892.1648
