Philippines: Eco-Missionary Priest Fr. Agcaracar Appointed Bishop of San Jose, Nueva Ecija, the Country’s Rice Bowl

Pope Leo XIV has appointed Fr. Samuel Naceno Agcaracar of the Society of the Divine Word (SVD) as the new bishop of the Diocese of San Jose in Nueva Ecija, the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) announced on November 21. The post had been vacant for nearly eight months following the transfer of Bishop Roberto Mallari to the Diocese of Tarlac.

Agcaracar, 55, currently serves as Rector of the Divine Word Seminary in Tagaytay and provincial admonitor of the SVD Philippine Central Province. He is also the founder and executive director of the SVD Laudato Si’ Farm, an integrated, community-led agricultural project that transformed six idle hectares of Tagaytay land into a model of sustainable food production.

The farm, opened to the public in 2021, now draws 4,000 to 5,000 visitors every weekend and employs over 100 locals. It practices organic agriculture, operates a rainwater harvesting system, and is preparing for a full transition to solar power. For Agcaracar, the initiative reflects both environmental stewardship and pastoral care.

“People come here not just to eat,” he said in an earlier interview. “They come to breathe.”

Born in Claveria, Cagayan, Agcaracar began as a teacher and catechist in his home parish before entering the Society of the Divine Word. He completed his philosophy studies at Christ the King Seminary in Quezon City and theology at the Divine Word School of Theology in Tagaytay. Ordained in 2007, he later served as high school director of the Divine Word College of Calapan in Oriental Mindoro. He holds a doctorate in missiology from the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome.

Under his leadership, the Laudato Si’ Farm has become a living demonstration of Pope Francis’ call to care for the earth. Divided into productive zones for fishponds, livestock, greenhouses, and vegetable plots, the farm also serves as a learning space for families, students, and visitors who plant, harvest, and observe farming up close. Workers have formed their own cooperative, and a training center, funded by German partners, is underway to teach financial literacy and agri-entrepreneurship.

“This project offers common ground for government, civic organizations, and the Church to come together for the good of the environment,” Agcaracar said.

Asked about his priorities for the Diocese of San Jose during a brief conversation today, Agcaracar said he intends to “listen first to the faithful,” adding that strengthening families will be central to his ministry.

He hopes to continue his advocacy for environmental stewardship in the country’s rice bowl.

“Maybe it’s God’s way of sending me to Nueva Ecija,” he said.

Details of his episcopal ordination and installation have yet to be announced. The Diocese of San Jose is one of two dioceses in Nueva Ecija, alongside the Diocese of Cabanatuan.