- Map of the Philippines showing the different ecclesiastical provinces
- Map of the Philippines showing the different apostolic vicariates
This article needs additional citations for verification .(December 2011) |
Abbreviation | CBCP |
---|---|
Formation | February 15, 1945 |
Type | Episcopal conference |
Headquarters | 470 General Luna Street |
Location |
|
Coordinates | 14°35′22″N120°58′21″E / 14.5894893°N 120.9724191°E |
Region | Philippines |
Membership | 90 active; 40 honorary[ citation needed ] (in 2022) |
Official language | |
Secretary General | Bernardo Pantin |
Pablo Virgilio David | |
Vice President | Mylo Hubert Vergara |
Treasurer | John F. Du |
Subsidiaries | Catholic Media Network |
Website | cbcponline |
The Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines [a] (CBCP) is the permanent organizational assembly of the Catholic bishops of the Philippines exercising together certain pastoral offices for the Christian faithful of their territory through apostolic plans, programs and projects suited to the circumstances of time and place in accordance with law for the promotion of the greater good offered by the Catholic Church to all people. [1] [2] [3] [4]
Standing as the national episcopal conference in the Philippines, it consists all diocesan bishops and those equivalent to bishops in church law; all coadjutor and auxiliary bishops; and all other titular bishops who exercise for the entire nation a special office assigned to them by the Apostolic See. It has 90 active and 40 honorary bishops [5] and other members. [6] The chancery is centrally located within the Intramuros district, located just behind the Manila Cathedral.
Kalookan bishop Pablo Virgilio David is the president as of December 2021 [update] .
This section is empty. You can help by adding to it. (November 2021) |
As provided in its constitution, the purposes of this episcopal conference is to promote solidarity in the Philippine Church; to engage the Philippine Church actively in the thrusts of the universal church; to assume the responsibilities as evangelizer in relation to all the people, and in particular to civil authority; and to foster relations with other Episcopal Conferences. [1]
According to this document, the purpose of the conference is to promote solidarity in the Philippine Church, formulate joint pastoral policies and programs, engage the Philippine Church as abide in the pastoral thrusts of the universal church, assume the responsibilities as evangelizer in relation to all the people and with the civil authority in particular and to foster relations with other Episcopal Conferences. [1]
Bishops are gathered as a body in pursuit of its objectives constitute the Plenary Assembly, which is the highest decision-making body of the Conference.
It is the Plenary Assembly which elects through direct vote the officers of the Conference, composed of the following: President, Vice-President, Secretary General and Treasurer. It is likewise the Plenary Assembly which elects the members of the Permanent Council, the Chairmen of the Episcopal Commissions and the heads of the agencies attached to the Conference. [7]
The Plenary Assembly meets in regular session twice a year: in January and in July. When the Plenary Assembly is not in session, the Permanent Council acts for and in behalf of the Conference.
The Permanent Council is composed of a chairman, Vice-Chairman, and ten regional representatives (five for Luzon, two for Visayas and three for Mindanao).
The President of the CBCP serves for a term of two years, and is limited to only two consecutive terms. The members of the Permanent Council, on the other hand, have a term of two years but are allowed a cumulative number of up to four terms. They may not, however, serve for more than two consecutive terms in succession.
Bishops convene as a Plenary Assembly on a regular basis only twice a year. When the Plenary Assembly is not in session, it is the Permanent Council which acts for and on behalf of all the bishops.
The Permanent Council, composed of ten elected members representing the Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao regions, acts in accordance with the Constitution and By-Laws of the CBCP, and the policies and standing decisions of the Plenary Assembly.
The Council may be convened by the President at any time for the discharge of its regular functions or for special purposes. However, when the Council cannot have a quorum, the members present, together with other CBCP members available, may also act for and in behalf of the Conference.
The Permanent Council's regular functions include ensuring that the decisions made during the Plenary Assembly are properly executed and directing the activities of the Office and other agencies of the Conference. It is also tasked to prepare the agenda for the meetings of the Plenary Assembly and examine and approve the Conference's annual budget, prior to submission and final approval of the Plenary Assembly. [8]
A crucial function of the Permanent Council is to prepare the Joint Statements or Pastoral Letters of the Hierarchy on subject matters decided on by the Plenary Assembly, and see to it that copies are sent to the members for comment and/or approval before they are officially released. [8]
The council is likewise mandated to work with the Episcopal Commissions and assign to them functions of urgent character which may not have been taken up in the Plenary Assembly and which may not be provided for in the Constitution. It also has the power to set up temporary agencies for some particular inquiry or for some limited sphere of actions. [8]
As of 2022, the episcopal conference has 90 active member cardinals, archbishops and bishops as well as 40 honorary members. [5]
The Philippines has 16 archdioceses, 51 dioceses, 7 apostolic vicariates, 5 territorial prelatures and a military ordinariate.
This section needs additional citations for verification .(May 2015) |
The episcopal conference expressed dismay (July 6, 2007) over the conduct of the May 14, 2007, midterm elections, saying "the challenge of credible, honest, meaningful and peaceful polls remains". CBCP president Lagdameo lamented that "vote-buying and other anomalies have already become systematic and even cultural." He stressed that election watchdogs, including the Parish Pastoral Council for Responsible Voting (PPCRV), noted that the problem no longer lies in the voters but the voting system itself and the irresponsibility of some election officials. PPCRV chairman Henrietta de Villa told the bishops that last May's elections merely repeated the unresolved poll fraud issues in the 2004 race between Arroyo and the late Fernando Poe Jr. Lagdameo promised that they would come up with a full assessment of the conduct of the May 14 midterm elections at the conclusion of the assembly (July 9). The CBCP is also expected to discuss other pertinent issues, including extrajudicial killings of activists and journalists as well as the implementation of the new Anti-Terror Law. [9]
Lagdameo asked the government to review the controversial anti-terror law, fearing it could be abused. The CBCP warned that the Human Security Act may be used by authorities to quell popular dissent against the government of Mrs. Arroyo. [10] The CBCP, in a press conference, further called for a change of leadership at the Commission on Elections as it noted the "continuing dominance" of political dynasties, dagdag-bawas, and poll violence. Demanding "full revamp of the Comelec", it sought for the appointment of people with "unquestioned integrity and competence, especially in systems and management" to succeed Chair Abalos and the five other members. There should also be "serious efforts to de-politicize and professionalize the bureaucracy," the CBCP said in a two-page pastoral statement read by its president Angel Lagdameo. Its call came after the vote of the 85-bishop CBCP during their two-day plenary assembly. [11] Meanwhile, Comelec Commissioner Rene Sarmiento urged the early nomination process (which must be transparent and should involve the electorate) for the four poll commissioners. The terms of office of Chair Abalos and Commissioners Tuason and Borra would end in February next year, with an existing vacancy at the Comelec. [12]
On December 17, 2007, in a statement on the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) website, Pampanga archbishop Paciano Aniceto stated that Pope Benedict XVI assured Filipinos that God and the church are still with them – in his encyclical "Spe Salvi facti sumus (In hope we are saved)." [13] Also, Manila auxiliary bishop Broderick Pabillo was appointed the new chair of the Episcopal Commission on Social Action and Peace and the National Action for Social Justice and Peace (Nassa), the CBCP's social arm, replacing Marbel bishop Dinualdo Gutierrez.[ citation needed ]
On January 7, 2008, Bishop Leonardo Medroso, chairman of the CBCP Episcopal Commission on Canon Law and bishop of Tagbilaran diocese, Bohol, issued the appeal to priests to stay away from politics, ahead of the May 2010 elections. He cited Code of Canon Law, prohibition, Canon 287, which forbids all clerics from entering politics and that priests "cannot have an active role in political parties unless the need to protect the rights of the church or to promote the common good." Three priests—Crisanto de la Cruz, Ronilo Maat Omanio and Ed Panlilio—who ran in the last elections were suspended from their pastoral duties as a result of their entry into the political arena. Only Panlilio won. [14]
On January 19, 2008, the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines (quoting from a letter of Vatican Cardinal Secretary of State Tarcisio Bertone) announced that Pope Benedict XVI "praised the courage of, and was saddened over the brutal and tragic killing of Reynaldo Roda in his ministry as head of Notre Dame School." The Pope wrote Jolo Bishop Angelito Lampon: "calls upon the perpetrators to renounce the ways of violence and to play their part in building a just and peaceful society, where all can live together in harmony." [15]
Church insiders reported that the CBCP was still ruled by conservatives, amid renewed calls for Mrs. Arroyo's resignation. Bishops therefore, failed to join these clamors, since the President "continues to wield influence over a good number of CBCP members". [16]
In 2015, the head of CBCP's Episcopal Commission on Health Care, Dan Vicente Cancino, explained that the rise of HIV/AIDS cases in the Philippines due to Filipinos believing to "distorted concept of sexuality" due to lack of "family values formation". He urged Filipinos to adhere to traditional Filipino values and live a life of prayer. [17] [18]
The Rise of HIV/AIDS cases in the Philippines, as much as Ten people per day, has been attributed to the CBCP's stance against reproductive health education and condom use. [19] [20] [21] [22] [23]
In December 2011, the CBCP reportedly urged the Philippine Senate not to pass the Bill 2814 known as "Anti-Ethnic, Racial or Religious Discrimination and Profiling Act of 2011" or "Anti-discrimination Bill". [24] CBCP legal counsel Roland Reyes stated that he believes that the bill is a precursor for the passage of a same sex marriage bill in the country. Another CBCP legal counsel, Jo Imbong, questioned protecting homosexuals because she considers homosexuality to be a choice of the individual. [25] The CBCP sees the Anti-discrimination bill as a challenge to religious freedom, [26] but the CBCP stated that it supports the bill as long as it rejects second class treatment for the LGBT community. [27]
The CBCP was embroiled in a controversy in 2011 over millions of pesos in donations from the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office at the behest of then president Gloria Macapagal Arroyo. [28] According to a Commission on Audit report in 2009, some bishops received donations for the purchase of vehicles from the PCSO. [29]
Critics claim the donations was given to ensure church support for Arroyo, who was then buffeted by scandals and repeated threats of impeachment. [28] The bishops were tagged as "Pajero bishops" as it was alleged that they received Pajero vehicles. [28]
Cardinal Orlando Quevedo, Archbishop of Cotabato, explained that they asked for donations from the government because they are from "the provinces that have some of the most difficult areas that we have." [29] He added that it is their duty to help the people from those provinces with the use of their resources and that "when we lack resources, we seek the assistance from others." [29]
The bishops were summoned during the Senate Blue Ribbon Committee investigation on the anomalies within the PCSO, with the bishops returning the vehicles donated to them. [29] The CBCP Permanent Council also conducted its own investigation regarding the controversy. [28] Senator Teofisto Guingona, chairman of the Blue Ribbon Committee, said that since the vehicles were used for secular purposes, the donation is not considered as a violation of the Constitution, but added that the issue was a "litmus test to the Constitution" since the Constitution prohibits favoring a particular religious organization. [29] Senator Juan Ponce Enrile said that the tag "Pajero bishops" were unfair since the bishops did not receive expensive vehicles and said that the PCSO leadership must be blamed for the controversy. [29]
Shay Cullen, founder of the People's Recovery Empowerment Development Assistance Foundation, accused CBCP members of covering up cases of sexual abuse and misconduct. [30] [31] [32]
In year 2002, CBCP apologized for the cases of sexual abuse and misconduct that were committed by its priests. CBCP admitted that around 200 priests have been involved in various cases of sexual misconducts, not limited only to pedophilia, for time period of 20 years. [30] [33]
According to one report, cases of pedophilia in the Philippines were settled out of courts, with the convicted members of clergy being transferred to another parishes by their Bishops. [30] Several cases of pedophilia have been reported with some still pending trial. [34] [35] [36] [37] [38] [39] [40] [30] [41]
In 1991, at the Second Plenary Council of the Philippines (PCP II), the CBCP decided to build a national center for the ongoing renewal and rehabilitation of clergy, to operate under the CBCP's Episcopal Commission on Clergy. [42] [43]
The John Mary Vianney Galilee Development and Retreat Center for Priests, a 54-room institution would be inaugurated on August 15, 2007 by Manila Archbishop Cardinal Gaudencio Rosales. [44] The center would also accommodate clergy who were "exiled" for sexual misconduct including pedophilia and siring children. [42]
Ricardo Tito Jamin Vidal (Latin: Ricardus Titus Vidal; Spanish: Ricardo Tito Vidal y Jamín; was a Filipino prelate of the Catholic Church. Made a cardinal in 1985, he was Archbishop of Cebu from 1982 to 2010.
The Da Vinci Code is a 2006 American mystery-thriller film directed by Ron Howard. The screenplay was written by Akiva Goldsman and based on Dan Brown's worldwide bestselling 2003 novel, The Da Vinci Code. It was produced by Howard with John Calley and Brian Grazer and released by Columbia Pictures in the United States on May 19, 2006.
Oscar Valero Cruz, was a Filipino prelate of the Catholic Church in the Philippines. He was the Archbishop of Lingayen–Dagupan in Pangasinan, Philippines, from 1991 until his retirement in 2009.
An ecclesial base community is a relatively autonomous Christian religious group that operates according to a particular model of community, worship, and Bible study. The 1968 Medellín, Colombia, meeting of Latin American Council of Bishops played a major role in popularizing them under the name basic ecclesial communities. These are small groups, originating in the Catholic Church in Latin America, who meet to reflect upon scripture and apply its lessons to their situation.
The Archdiocese of Zamboanga is a Catholic archdiocese in the Philippines. Its present jurisdiction includes Zamboanga City, with suffragans in Basilan, Zamboanga Sibugay, and the Apostolic Vicariate of Jolo. It became Mindanao's first diocese in 1910, and was established as the second archdiocese of Mindanao in 1958. Today, the archdiocese covers a land area of 1,648 square kilometers and has a population of 442,345, of which 81 percent are Catholics. The archdiocese includes 28 parishes and one quasi-parish, served by 57 diocesan and 18 religious priests. There are also 51 religious sisters working in the archdiocese.
Angel Nacorda Lagdameo was a Filipino bishop of the Roman Catholic Church. He was Archbishop of Jaro from 9 May 2000 until 14 February 2018.
In the Roman Catholic Church, a plenary council is any of various kinds of ecclesiastical synods, used when those summoned represent the whole number of bishops of some given territory. The word itself, derived from the Latin plenarium, hence concilium plenarium, also concilium plenum. Plenary councils have a legislative function that does not apply to other national synods.
Sócrates "Soc" Buenaventura Villegas O.P. is a Filipino prelate, and a professed member of the Dominican Order. He is the fifth and current Archbishop of Lingayen-Dagupan in Pangasinan, and is the former president of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines, from December 1, 2013 to December 1, 2017, when he finished his second and final term as president of the said conference. He was also the vice president of the episcopal conference from 2011 to 2013.
Gilbert Armea Garcera is the Roman Catholic Archbishop of the Archdiocese of Lipa in the Philippines. He succeeds Archbishop Ramon Arguelles, who earlier filed his resignation prior to his mandatory retirement age in 2017. His previous assignment was the bishop of the Diocese of Daet in Camarines Norte.
Luis Antonio Chito Gokim Tagle is a Filipino prelate of the Catholic Church currently serving as the Pro-Prefect for the Section of Evangelization of Dicastery for Evangelization since June 5, 2022, and as the President of Interdicasterial Commission for Consecrated Religious since December 8, 2019. He was the 32nd Archbishop of Manila from 2011 to 2020. Tagle is the Cardinal-Bishop of San Felice da Cantalice a Centocelle and also serves as the President of the Catholic Biblical Federation, Grand Chancellor of the Pontifical Urbaniana University, and as a member of various departments and dicasteries in the Roman Curia.
Sergio Lasam Utleg, is a prelate of the Roman Catholic Church in the Philippines. He is the former Archbishop of Tuguegarao in Tuguegarao, Philippines. On October 18, 2019, his resignation was accepted by Pope Francis, appointing Alaminos Bishop Ricardo Baccay as his successor.
Reynaldo Gonda Evangelista is a Filipino prelate and a professed member of the Franciscan Order who is the current bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Imus appointed by Pope Francis on April 8, 2013, his first appointment in the Philippines. He replaced Bishop Luis Antonio Tagle after he was installed as the Archbishop of Manila in December 2011. Evangelista was installed as the fifth Bishop of Imus on June 5, 2013. He previously served as the third Bishop of Boac in Marinduque province from December 11, 2004, until his appointment to Imus.
Alberto Jover Piamonte, D.D., JCD., was the fourth Roman Catholic Archbishop of Jaro in the Philippines. He was born in Iloilo City on 21 November 1934 and was a native of the District of Jaro, Iloilo City. After studying Philosophy and Theology at St. Vincent Ferrer Seminary, he was ordained a priest of the Archdiocese of Jaro on 22 March 1958.
Julito Buhisan Cortes is a prelate of the Catholic Church in the Philippines. He is the current Bishop of Dumaguete in Negros Oriental, Philippines since September 2013. Before his appointment to the See of Dumaguete, Cortes was the Auxiliary Bishop of Cebu from 2002 to 2013.
Ruperto Cruz Santos is a Filipino prelate of the Catholic Church. Santos is the fifth and current Bishop of Antipolo. He is the president of the Episcopal Commission for Pastoral Care for Migrants and Itinerant People (ECMI) of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines.
Julio Xavier Labayen was a Filipino prelate of the Catholic Church in the Philippines. Ordained to the priesthood in 1955 as Discalced Carmelite, he served as bishop and prelate of the Territorial Prelature of Infanta, Philippines from 1966 until 2003. He was among the first Filipino Discalced Carmelites in the 1950s. He was the first Filipino Discalced Carmelite bishop and the second bishop/prelate of Infanta.
Jose Romeo Orquejo Lazo is a Filipino Catholic clergyman who is the thirteenth ordinary of the Archdiocese of Jaro, and the sixth to have the title of archbishop. He was born on January 23, 1949, in San Jose de Buenavista, Antique to Juan P. Lazo and Fausta Orquejo, both now deceased, and was baptized on February 13 of the same year at the St. Joseph Parish of the same town.
Alejandro Dumbrigue Aclan is a Philippine-born American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church, serving as an auxiliary bishop for the Archdiocese of Los Angeles in California since 2019.
Pablo Virgilio "Ambo" Siongco David is a Filipino Catholic prelate who has served as Bishop of Kalookan since 2015. He is president of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines. He was made cardinal on 7 December 2024 by Pope Francis.
Roberto Calara Mallari is a Filipino bishop of the Catholic Church who serves as bishop of the Diocese of San Jose in the Philippines.
{{cite journal}}
: Cite journal requires |journal=
(help){{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)