23: Benedict XVI receives bishops of the Syriac Catholic Church, led by His Beatitude Ignace Youssif III Younan, elected as patriarch of Antioch of the Syrians by the Synod of Bishops of the Syriac Catholic Church, meeting in Rome January 18 - 20.
23: Publication of the Holy Father's Message for the 43rd World Day of Social Communications, to be celebrated on May 24 on the theme: "New Technologies, New Relationships: Promoting a culture of Respect, Dialogue and Friendship."
24: Holy Father receives prelates from the Chaldean Church at the end of their "ad limina" visit. During the audience the bishops give the Pope a cape used by Archbishop Faraj Rahho of Mosul and a stole belonging to Fr. Ragheed Aziz Ganni, both killed in Iraq over recent months.
26: Benedict XVI receives the Letters of Credence of Stanislas Lefebvre de Laboulaye, the new French ambassador to the Holy See.
29: Holy Father receives prelates from the Conference of Catholic Bishops of the Russian Federation at the end of their "ad limina" visit.
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2: Holy Father receives the Letters of Credence of Janos Balassa, the new ambassador of Hungary to the Holy See.
2: Pope receives bishops from the Episcopal Conference of Turkey at the end of their "ad limina" visit.
3: Presentation of the Holy Father's 2009 Lenten Message, on the theme: "He fasted for forty days and forty nights, and afterwards he was hungry."
7: Publication of the Holy Father's Message for the seventeenth World Day of the Sick, which is celebrated every year on February 11, Feast of Our Lady of Lourdes.
9: Pope receives the Letters of Credence of Luiz Felipe de Seixas Correa, the new ambassador of Brazil to the Holy See.
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12: Benedict XVI receives the Letters of Credence of Timothy Anthony Fischer, the new ambassador of Australia to the Holy See.
12: Benedict XVI attends a concert commemorating the 80th anniversary of the foundation of Vatican City State. Our Lady's Choral Society and the RTE Concert Orchestra, both from Dublin, Ireland, play the "Messiah" by Georg Friedrich Handel.
14: Benedict XVI receives prelates from the Catholic Bishops' Conference of Nigeria at the end of their "ad limina" visit.
16: Cardinal Stephen Kim Sou-hwan, archbishop emeritus of Seoul, Korea, dies at the age of 86.
19: Benedict XVI receives in audience Gordon Brown, prime minister of the United Kingdom.
22: Cardinal Paul Joseph Pham Dinh Tung, archbishop emeritus of Hanoi, Vietnam, dies at the age of 89.