THE Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) is calling on the Filipino faithful to pray for the appointment of bishops to nine vacant dioceses soon.
CBCP president Bishop Pablo Virgilio David asked issued the call during a recent funeral mass for Davao Archbishop emeritus Fernando Capalla.
Vacant are the dioceses of Alaminos, Baguio, Balanga, Catarman, Gumaca, Ipil, Pagadian, San Pablo, and Tarlac.
Three have vacancies because their bishops died. These are Gumaca (Bishop Victor Ocampo), Pagadian (Ronald Lunas), and Tarlac (Enrique Macaraeg).
On the other hand, the vacancies happened in Catarman and San Pablo after their bishops, Emmanuel Trance and Buenaventura Famadico, resigned.
The bishops of Alaminos (Ricardo Baccay), Baguio (Victor Bendico), Balanga (Ruperto Santos), and Ipil (Julius Tonel), meanwhile, vacated their posts after being appointed to other dioceses/archdioceses.
Vacant the longest is the Diocese of Alaminos which has been without a bishop since 2019. — Gerard Naval
