A tribute to Archbishop Jose Palma

Tomorrow will be a very special day for the Archdiocese of Cebu and the suffragan dioceses of Dumaguete, Tagbilaran, Talibon, and Maasin, as well as the future suffrage diocese of Danao and Carcar.

On March 19, 1950, two different boys were born exactly about 10 minutes apart from each other. One was a great handsome boy from Dingle, Iloilo, destined to become a pillar of the Catholic Church. The other was a poor boy from Argao and Ronda, a sinner, who happened to be myself. We were born in the same year, month, and day.

Today, a day before our common 75th birthday, I pay tribute to that blessed boy who has accomplished a lot in building Christian communities in the Cebu Archdiocese, soon to become three dioceses. I believe that Most Reverend Jose S. Palma, DD, a member of the Order of Preachers, deserves the red biretta of a Cardinal. But God has his own ways and we don’t know why.

The Cebu Archdiocese had always been led by a cardinal starting from the most colorful and durable of them all, Cardinal Julio Rosales from Calbayog, Samar, who led this archdiocese from December 17, 1949 to August 24, 1982, and the most hardworking and perhaps most esteemed, Cardinal Ricardo Vidal from Mogpog, Marinduque, who led this large archdiocese from August 24, 1982 to October 15, 2010.

Archbishop Jose Serofia Palma has already served Cebu from January 13, 2011 to present, or 14 years. Compared to the tenures of Cardinals Rosales and Vidal, this is half of Vidal's and a little more than a third of Rosales' stint. As an observer who monitors his achievements, I believe this soft-spoken Ilonggo is truly a great pastoral leader.

He is the least appreciated and most low-profile of all. I hope he won’t retire yet, and should be given an extension. It’s very difficult to fill his shoes, much less to follow in his footsteps. He works silently without fanfare. He doesn’t show off his many accomplishments and remains humble and self-effacing. I’m one of those who believe he should be made cardinal.

This archdiocese is so huge that it should "buswak" into three. It isn’t easy for a 75-year-old leader to oversee an area of more than 5,000 square kilometers serving the spiritual needs of no less than 4.7 million Catholics. Our esteemed archbishop supervises no less than 164 parishes, two mission stations, five non-parochial shrines, one minor basilica, and two national shrines.

He is in charge of the ecclesiastical province of Cebu comprising Cebu's own metropolitan archbishopric and four suffragan sees, namely the Diocese of Dumaguete and Siquijor, Maasin in Southern Leyte, Tagbilaran in southwestern Bohol, and Talibon in northeastern Bohol.

If Bohol, whose population is less than one third of Cebu's, has two dioceses, it stands to reason that Cebu should have at least three. This was also the vision and dream of both Cardinals Rosales and Vidal. But they both died before the first step was taken. Without much ado, Palma, after consultations with all sectors concerned, gave impetus to the plan on December 31, 2022.

Modesty aside, I was one of those consulted and I spent two breakfast meetings with my highly-esteemed tocayo in his residence up in the hill beside D. Jakosalem Street. The plan calls for the creation of two more suffragan dioceses: one to cover northern Cebu to be based in Danao City, and another to cover southern Cebu, to be based in Carcar City. The territory of the metropolitan archdiocese would then be reduced in size to cover the central part of Cebu to include Cebu City, Mandaue City, Talisay City, and the island of Mactan, among others.

In July of 2023, the CBCP in its plenary assembly in Kalibo, Aklan, unanimously approved the Sugbuswak plan. Palma presented the plan to the Holy See in Rome on March 11, 2024. The more than four million Catholic faithful in this archdiocese are awaiting final approval.

I pray and hope that Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle would whisper to Pope Francis, to approve two most important things dear to the Cebuanos: the Sugbuswak and the red hat for Palma. Tomorrow, I will join the good archbishop as we celebrate our 75th birthdays together.

One holy shepherd of God from Iloilo and another, a sinner from Langin, Ronda, Cebu, are praying together for peace and harmony for our province, country, and the whole of humanity. May the Lord bless our most fervent prayers and deepest dreams.