Archdiocese of Cebu

History

Magellan's arrival and antecedents

The history of the future Archdiocese of Cebu began with the arrival of Ferdinand Magellan in Cebu in 1521. The church anchored in that year by the native Cebuanos' profession of faith in Christ, baptism, the daily celebration of the Mass, and the chaplain of the expedition, Pedro Valderrama being the legitimate pastor for their spiritual needs.

In Cebu the first baptism was made (April 14, 1521); hence, Rajah Humabon and the rest of the natives became the very first Filipino Christians. In the island also was the first Mass in which Filipino converts participated. Also in the territory the first resistance against the Mohammedan advance from the south. The first Philippine Christian feast dedicated to the Sto. Niño was instituted and celebrated there. The first recorded confession and the last rites of an accused inhabitant transpired. The very first temples were erected (the Cebu Metropolitan Cathedral and Basilica del Santo Niño) in the Philippines. The first Christian marriage transpired with Isabel, the niece of Rajah Tupas and Andres, the Greek caulker of Legazpi, and their children baptized representing the first infant baptisms.

However, immediately after its inception during the aftermath of the Battle of Mactan, the Church of Cebu experienced decadence due to lack of shepherds to enforce and edify the natives on the faith. Most of the natives materially apostatized, while others clung unto the image of the Santo Niño (the first Christian icon in the Philippines given as a baptismal gift by Magellan). The unintended negligence lasted for 44 years until it was re-established in 1565 by the arrival of Miguel López de Legazpi and Fray Andrés de Urdaneta. The remnant of the Cebuano Church in 1521, as evident in the person of Rajah Tupas, was resuscitated by the Augustinians as an abbey nullius (an equivalent of a diocese) when the formal evangelization of the Philippines commenced with Urdaneta as the first prelate. The oversight of the natives was then succeeded to Fray Diego de Herrera who would later re-baptized Tupas and his servants in 1568. Adelantado Miguel Lopez de Legazpi established his government in Cebu, thus the first capital of the Philippines.

The church expanded from Cebu when the remaining missionaries led by Diego de Herrera were forced northwest temporarily due to conflict with the Portuguese and laid the foundations of the Christian community in Panay in around 1569. In 1570, the second batch of missionaries reached Cebu. The island became the ecclesiastical "seat" as it was the center for evangelization. A notable missionary was Alfonso Jimenez, who travelled and penetrated the Camarines region through the islands of Masbate, Leyte, Samar, and Burias and founded the church there. He was called the first apostle of the region.

By 1571, Herrera who was assigned as chaplain of Legazpi, from Panay advanced further north and founded the local church community in Manila. There, Legazpi transferred the seat of government though Cebu remained the spiritual capital of the country. In 1572, the Spaniards led by Juan de Salcedo marched from Manila further north with the second batch of Augustinian missionaries and pioneered the evangelization to the communities in the Ilocos (starting with Vigan) and the Cagayan regions.

Diocese of Cebu

On February 6, 1579, the Philippines' first diocese, the Diocese of Manila, was established as a suffragan diocese of the See of Mexico. On August 14, 1595, Pope Clement VIII issued four bulls to Spain: one with the incipit Super universas orbis ecclesias elevating the See of Manila to a metropolitan archdiocese; and three with the incipit Super specula militantis Ecclesiae erecting the three suffragan dioceses of Manila, which were the Diocese of Cebu, the Diocese of Nueva Cáceres, and the Diocese of Nueva Segovia. The Diocese of Cebu's first bishop was Pedro de Agurto, an Augustinian. also it extended farther to the Pacific such as the Marianas, Carolines, and Palau.

However, it lost territory repeatedly:

• on May 27, 1865, to establish then Diocese of (Santa Isabel de) Jaro (now an Archdiocese)
• on September 17, 1902, to establish Apostolic Prefecture of Mariana Islands
• on April 10, 1910, to establish Diocese of Zamboanga and Diocese of Calbayog
• on July 15, 1932, to establish Diocese of Bacolod

Archdiocese of Cebu

On April 28, 1934, Pope Pius XI promulgated an apostolic constitution with the incipit Romanorum Pontificum semper separating the dioceses of Cebu, Calbayog, Jaro, Bacolod, Zamboanga and Cagayan de Oro from the ecclesiastical province of Manila. The same constitution elevated the diocese into an archdiocese while placing all the newly separated dioceses under a new ecclesiastical province with Cebu as the new metropolitan see. The last suffragan bishop, Gabriel M. Reyes, was promoted as its first archbishop.

On November 8, 1941, it lost territory to establish Diocese of Tagbilaran as its suffragan. In the Apostolic Letter Ut Clarificetur, on the conferring the titles and privileges of the basilica, Pope Paul VI in 1965 described the Cebu's now Basilica del Santo Niño as the "Mother and Head of all Churches in the Philippines" (mater et caput... omnium ecclesiarum Insularum Philippinarum). The same Paul VI also named the basilica the "symbol of the birth and growth of Christianity in the Philippines." --

Cebu was visited by Pope John Paul II in February 1981. In his Homily for Families (February 19, 1981), the supreme pontiff called the island as the birthplace of the faith:

Finding myself in this important city known as the cradle of Christianity in the Philippines, I want to express my deep joy and profound thanksgiving to the Lord of history. The thought that for 450 years the light of the Gospel has shone with undimmed brightness in this land and on its people is cause for great rejoicing.

Between November 10, 1985, and March 1, 1986, the archdiocese held its Fourth Diocesan Synod of Cebu at the Seminaryo Mayor de San Carlos.

It hosted the 51st International Eucharistic Congress from January 24 to 31, 2016.

''Sugbuswak'': Division to three dioceses

Plans to divide the Archdiocese of Cebu was first laid during the pastoral leadership of Cardinal Julio Rosales. It was raised again on August 20, 2002, during the pastoral leadership of then-Archbishop Cardinal Ricardo Vidal.

The plan was revived again on December 31, 2022, when Archbishop Jose S. Palma announced a feasibility study on the planned division of the archdiocese. The archdiocese coined the term "Sugbuswak", derived from "Cebu" and the Cebuano word "buswak", referring to the flowering or blossoming of new dioceses. The plan calls for the erection of two new suffragan dioceses in Danao, which would cover the northern part of the civil province of Cebu; and in Carcar, covering the southern part of the province. The territory of the metropolitan archdiocese would be reduced to the central part of the province, including Cebu City and its neighboring towns, as well as the island of Mactan. The plan aims for better pastoral management in churches.

During its 126th Plenary Assembly in Kalibo, Aklan in July 2023, the Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) unanimously approved the planned division of the Archdiocese of Cebu. It also received support from the Cebuano people. Archbishop Palma presented the proposal to the Holy See on March 11, 2024, as part of his ad limina visit to Pope Francis.

In December 2024, Archbishop José S. Palma suspended indefinitely the celebration of Traditional Tridentine Mass (TLM) until further notice.

Coat of arms

The ecclesiastical arms of the Archdiocese of Cebu was redesigned by a professional Italian heraldic artist, Sig. Marco Foppoli, as commissioned by the priests-secretaries of the Office of the Archbishop in the first quarter of 2021, with the facilitation and benefaction of Msgr. Jan Thomas V. Limchua.

The re-designed coat of arms of the archdiocese consists of a simple yet traditional shield, which is the most commonly used form in ecclesiastical heraldry. In a chapé ("mantled") ployé partition, which is formed by two arched lines drawn from the center chief to the sides, the shield itself is divided into two fields: the upper field, in red (gules); and the lower field, in blue (azure).

The upper field of red represents the Niño de Cebu (Bato Balani sa Gugma, or Magnet of Love), whose very image, which at first was a gift during the first baptism five hundred years ago, has now become the symbol of the Catholic faith in Cebu.

On this same field are two lions: the first lion, in gold, is emblazoned with the coat of arms of the Kingdom of Castile; while the other, in silver, is emblazoned with the personal coat of arms of Ferdinand Magellan—these two elements were present in the original coat of arms granted to the archdiocese. Both refer to the Hispanic origin and nascent beginning of Catholicism in Cebu, the cradle of Christianity in the Philippines.

These two lions support the stylized monogram of the Holy Name of Jesus inside a stylized image of the sun—symbolizing Christ as the light of the world. It is deliberately placed at the top center of the arm, representing the titular of the archdiocese. It also recalls the life and ministry of Jesus in the words of Paul (Letter to the Philippians): "…he humbled himself, becoming obedient to death, even death on a cross. Because of this, God greatly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that [[File:Cebu Archdiocese coat of arms.svg|thumb|The coat of arms used from 2009 to 2022.]]is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bend, of those in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father." (Phil. 2:7–11)

The field of red also honors the Visayan Proto-Martyr, Pedro Calungsod.

The lower field of blue symbolizes Our Lady and her motherly mantle of love and compassion for the Cebuano faithful as also portrayed by the monogram "Auspice Maria" (Under the Protection of Mary) with a gold crown (above), a silver crescent (below), and gold gloriole (around the monogram). This imagery specifically refers to her image and title, Our Lady of Guadalupe de Cebu, through whose intercession, and by God's grace flowing from above, has saved Cebu from the cholera epidemic of 1902. On 16 July 2006, Virgen de Guadalupe de Cebu was canonically crowned by the authority of Pope Benedict XVI as patroness of the archdiocese.

The upward, arrow tip-like shape of the blue field can be understood as a reminder to the Cebuano faithful that a deep devotion to the Virgin Mary inevitably leads to a greater love for her Divine Son, Our Lord. This is reminiscent of the traditional aphorism, "Ad Jesum per Mariam" (to Jesus, through Mary).

The entire shield is surmounted by the conventional heraldic elements identifying it to be the coat of arms of an archdiocese, namely a miter, and the crossed crozier and archiepiscopal cross.

Written on a scroll, below the arms, is the Motto of the Archdiocese: "Sanctum Nomen Eius," which means "Holy is His Name," taken from Mary's Magnificat (Luke 1:49).

Ordinaries

Prelates of Cebu

• Andrés de Urdaneta (April 1565 – June 1565), considered as first prelate of the Philippines.
• Diego de Herrera (June 1565 – 1569)
• Martín de Rada (1569–1572)
• Alfonso Jimenez (1575–1577)

Bishops and archbishops

Coadjutor archbishops

Auxiliary bishops

Suffragan dioceses and bishops

The ecclesiastical province of Cebu comprises the metropolitan's own archbishopric and the following suffragan sees:

Diocesan Seminaries

• Pope John XXIII Seminary', Pope John Paul II Avenue, Barangay Luz, Cebu City Rector: Allan Delima
• San Carlos Seminary College, Pope John Paul II Avenue, Barangay Luz, Cebu City Rector: Joseph Tan
• Seminario Mayor de San Carlos, Pope John Paul II Avenue, Barangay Luz, Cebu City Rector: Mhar Balili
• Spiritual Pastoral Formation Year House, Archbishop's Residence Compound, D. Jakosalem St., Cebu City Director: Alvin Raypan

Archdiocesan Calendar

The Calendar of the Archdiocese of Cebu is based on the General Roman Calendar and the Philippine Standard Calendar. Below are the following additions and changes to the calendar.

• 3 January – Most Holy Name of Jesus, titular of the archdiocese – Solemnity
• Third Sunday of January ( date: January) – Santo Niño de Cebú – Solemnity
• 28 January – Dedication of the Cebu Metropolitan Cathedral as an Archdiocesan cathedral – Feast (Solemnity in the cathedral itself)
• 29 January – Saint Thomas Aquinas, priest and doctor of the Church – Memorial
• 11 February – Our Lady, Health of the Sick – Optional Memorial
• 1 April – Saint Pedro Calungsod, Cebuano martyr and secondary patron of the archdiocese- Feast
• 28 April – Saint Vitalis of Milan, martyr and titular of the metropolitan cathedral – Memorial (Solemnity in the Cathedral itself)
• 15 May – Saint Isidore the Laborer – Memorial
• 30 May – Saint Ferdinand III of Castile, king – Optional Memorial
• 2 August – Our Lady of the Angels of Portiuncula – Optional Memorial
• 16 August – Saint Roch – Memorial
• 19 August – Saint Ezechiel Moreno, bishop – Memorial
• 22 August – Our Lady, Queen of the Visayas, principal patroness of the Visayas Region – Feast
• 10 September – Saint Nicholas of Tolentino, priest – Optional Memorial
• 22 September – Saint Thomas of Villanova (Sto. Tomas de Villanueva), bishop – Memorial
• 24 September – Saints Cosmas and Damian, martyrs or Saint Wenceslaus, king martyrs- Optional Memorial
• 25 September – Saint Vincent de Paul, priest – Memorial
• 26 September – Saint Paul VI, pope (Elevated the Santo Niño Church into a minor basilica status) – Memorial (Feast in the basilica itself)
• 27 September – Commemoration of the Servant of God Teofilo Camomot, Cebu's former auxiliary bishop
• 28 September – Saint Lorenzo Ruiz and Companions, martyrs – Memorial
• 18 November – Dedication of the Cebu Metropolitan Cathedral as a diocesan cathedral – Feast (Solemnity in the cathedral itself)
• 12 December – Our Lady of Guadalupe, principal patroness of the archdiocese – Solemnity --

References

Notes

References

1. "Cebu (Catholic Metropolitan Archdiocese)". gcatholic.org.
2. "Most Rev. Antonia R. Rañola, D.D.". [[Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines]].
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4. "CATHOLIC ENCYCLOPEDIA: Cebu".
5. The Church of Cebu's Basilica del Santo Niño is named by the Vatican as "mother and head of all churches in the Philippines" (''mater et caput... omnium ecclesiarum Insularum Philippinarum''). See https://www.vatican.va/content/paul-vi/la/apost_letters/documents/hf_p-vi_apl_19650401_ut-clarificetur.html.
6. John Kingsley Pangan, ''Church of the Far East'' (Makati: St. Pauls, 2016),
7. (July 2014). "Cebu & Philippines".
8. Mayol, Ador Vincent. (January 25, 2023). "Cebu archdiocese, biggest in PH, to be split into 3". Philippine Daily Inquirer.
9. (17 March 2023). "Cebu (Archdiocese)". David M. Cheney.
10. "History : The Official Website of Cebu Archdiocese".
11. Carmelo D. F. Morelos, "'Go… Make Disciples!' – A Pastoral Letter on the Fourth Centenary of the Archdioceses of Manila, Cebu, Cáceres, Nueva Segovia," Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines, January 29, 1994, accessed September 6, 2014, http://cbcponline.net/v2/?p=8078
12. Antonio Pigafetta, ''Magellan's Voyage Around the World'', vol. 1, trans. James Alexander Robertson (Cleveland: The Arthur H. Clark Company, 1906), 159.
13. Antonio Pigafetta, ''Magellan's Voyage Around the World'', vol. 1, trans. James Alexander Robertson (Cleveland: The Arthur H. Clark Company, 1906), 151–155.
14. Antonio Pigafetta, ''Magellan's Voyage Around the World'', vol. 1, trans. James Alexander Robertson (Cleveland: The Arthur H. Clark Company, 1906), 157.
15. Juan de Medina, OSA, "Historia de la Orden de San Agustin de estas Islas Filipinas," in The Philippine Islands 1493–1803, vol. 23, eds. Emma H. Blair, James A. Robertson (Cleveland: The Arthur H. Clark Company, 1903), 185.
16. Résumé of Documents, 153.
17. Astrid Sala-Boza, "The Contested Site of the Finding of the Holy Child: Villa San Miguel or San Nicolas (Cebu El Viejo)," Philippine Quarterly of Culture Society 34, (2006): 232. www.jstor.org/stable/29792595; ''The Philippine Islands, 1493–1803'', vol. 2, eds. Emma Helen Blair, James Alexander Robertson (Cleveland: The Arthur H. Clark Company, 1903), 121.
18. Résumé of Documents, 140–141.
19. [https://www.gcatholic.org/dioceses/diocese/cebu0.htm gcatholic.org]
20. The Philippine Islands, 1493–1803, vol. 2, eds. Emma Helen Blair, James Alexander Robertson (Cleveland: The Arthur H. Clark Company, 1903), 33, note 5.
21. (1903). "The Philippine Islands, 1493–1803 vol. 2". The Arthur H. Clark Company.
22. Bartholomé de Letona, OSF, ''The Philippine Islands, 1493–1803'', vol. 36, eds. Emma Helen Blair, James Alexander Robertson (Cleveland: The Arthur H. Clark Company, 1906), 210.
23. (September 16, 2014). "Cebu—Cradle of the Philippine Church and Seat of Far-East Christianity".
24. "The Manila Cathedral".
25. OSA, Fr Ric Anthony Reyes. "Fray Pedro de Agurto, OSA: The first Bishop of Cebu".
26. "The Philippine Islands, 1493–1898 — Volume 12 of 55 Summary".
27. "Archdiocese of Cebu, Philippines".
28. Felipe Redondo y Sendino, ''Breve reseña de lo que fue y de lo que es la Diócesis de Cebú en las Islas Filipinas'', trans. Azucena L. Pace (Cebu City: University of San Carlos Press, 2014), Breve Reseña, 74.
29. Pope Pius XI, Apostolic Constitution separating some dioceses from the ecclesiastical province of Manila to form the new ecclesiastical province of Cebu ''[https://www.vatican.va/archive/aas/documents/AAS-27-1935-ocr.pdf#page=263 Romanorum Pontificum semper]'' (April 28, 1934), ''Acta Apostolicae Sedis'' 27 (1935), pp.263–264. PROVINCIA ECCLESIASTICA MANILANA DISMEMBRATIO ET NOVA CAEBUANA PROVINCIA ERIGITUR.
30. "Ut clarificetur, Litterae Apostlicae, Titulus ac privilegia Basilicae Minoris ecclesiae Sanctissimo Nomini Iesu Caebuae dicatae conferuntur, d. 1 m. Aprilis a. 1965, Paulus PP. VI | Paulus PP. VI".
31. "Radio message on the 4th centenary of the evangelization of the Philippines (May 2, 1965) | Paul VI".
32. "19 February 1981: Mass for families, Cebu City, Philippines | John Paul II".
33. Limpag, Max. (September 26, 2023). "Don't rush breakup of Archdiocese of Cebu, some Cebu priests say". MyCebu.ph.
34. Limpag, Max. (November 21, 2023). "Cebu clergy, lay finalize proposal to break up Archdiocese of Cebu". MyCebu.ph.
35. (3 January 2024). "'Sugbuswak' talks continue on new Cebu diocese in Danao City". GMA Regional TV.
36. Saavedra, John Rey. (February 14, 2024). "Cebuanos support Archdiocese's split". Philippine News Agency.
37. (19 February 2024). "Pope Seen to greenlight a proposal to create two new Cebu dioceses, says Archbishop Palma". Radio Veritas Asia.
38. (December 4, 2024). "Cebu Archbishop Palma suspends Traditional Latin Mass". [[Rappler]].
39. "The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Cebu updated their profile picture.". The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Cebu.
40. Bartolomé de Letona, OSF (1662), "Description of the Filipinas Islands" in [https://quod.lib.umich.edu/p/philamer/AFK2830.0001.036?rgn=main;view=fulltext ''The Philippine Islands, 1493–1803'', vol. 34], eds. Emma H. Blair and James A. Robertson (Cleveland: The Arthur H. Clark Company, 1906), 208. "The Order of St. Augustine entered the islands in the year [1]565; its first superior, and first prelate of all the islands was Fray Andres de Urdaneta – a Vascongado,40 and a son of the convent and province of Mexico; he was the apostle who unfurled the gospel banner, and he planted the faith in the island of Zebu' and others."
41. [http://www.philippinestudies.net/ojs/index.php/ps/article/view/2484/4680 Bibliography on Legazpi and Urdaneta], Isacio R. Rodriguez, Philippine Studies: Historical and Ethnographic Viewpoints(Ateneo de Manila University:1965).
42. [https://www.gutenberg.org/files/30350/30350-h/30350-h.htm#doc1662.1 ''The Philippine Islands 1493–1803''], vol. 23, eds. Emma H. Blair, James A. Robertson (Cleveland: The Arthur H. Clark Company, 1903), 209. "In April of the year 1565, there was founded in Zebu (afterward being transferred to Manila) the church and ecclesiastical community of these islands; and its ordinary jurisdiction was allotted to the superiors of the Order of St. Augustine, who were the founders and apostles of this kingdom; they held that dignity up to the year of [15]77".
43. (October 15, 2024). "Pope creates new Philippine diocese, names its first bishop". CBCP News.