The celebration of the Jubilee of Priests in the Cebu Archdiocese, the Philippines, saw 14 newly ordained priests added to the number of clergy in one of the most densely populated ecclesiastical provinces in the country, with more than 4 million Catholics.
Cebu Archbishop Jose S. Palma presided over the ordination rites on June 25 at the Cebu Metropolitan Cathedral. Some 200 diocesan and visiting priests and the family and friends of the candidates for ordination took part in the ceremony.
In his homily before the rites, Archbishop Palma reminded the ordinandi of the message of Pope Leo XIV that a priest has to exercise his ministry “for the good of the people, and not his own good.”
“Be credible, restore the credibility of the priesthood. The people of Cebu have high respect and love for the priests. Take care of the ministry. Please treasure the gift,” Palma said in both Cebuano and English.
“We should be ministers of hope, as priests, we should be bringers of hope to the people. We are responsible to the master. We are stewards, we should use what we have according to the mind, will and direction of the master,” Palma said.
Exhorting the candidates to “always act in humility, service and love,” he assured them: “The vocation may be daunting for a newly ordained priest, but he is not alone in the journey.”
As of 2024, the Archdiocese of Cebu has 389 diocesan priests serving more than 4 million Catholics. With 14 more added to that number, the Cebu Archdiocese will have 403 diocesan priests.
Radio Veritas Asia (RVA), a media platform of the Catholic Church, aims to share Christ. RVA started in 1969 as a continental Catholic radio station to serve Asian countries in their respective local language, thus earning the tag “the Voice of Asian Christianity.” Responding to the emerging context, RVA embraced media platforms to connect with the global Asian audience via its 21 language websites and various social media platforms.
Latest News
