The newly appointed Apostolic Vicar of Taytay in the Province of Palawan, Bishop Broderick S. Pabillo, is looking forward to visiting and seeing the real situation of the clergy in Taytay.
“Ang nilo-look forward ko doon ay yung makita yung mga lugar ng mga pari kasi di ko pa alam saan sila nakatira. Kaya ang idea ko bisitahin muna sila at makita ang kanilang kalagayan, tamang kalagayan nila,” Bishop Pabillo told the Archdiocese of Manila Office of Communications.
“Ako’y excited na makita sila sana excited din sila na matanggap ako doon. Sana maging bukas sila sa mga pagbisita ko,” he added.
In his message during the Pope’s Day celebration at the Manila Cathedral last June 29, 2021, Solemnity of Sts. Peter and Paul, the Auxiliary Bishop of Manila thanked the Holy Father Pope Francis for the trust given to him to lead the Apostolic Vicariate of Taytay in Palawan.
“I thank the Holy Father, Pope Francis for his trust in entrusting to my care the Apostolic Vicariate of Taytay in Palawan. It is one of the youngest ecclesiastical jurisdictions within the Metropolitan of Manila, barely 19 years old and I would say, the poorest in terms of material resources as church,” Bishop Pabillo said.
“It is also challenging in terms of the location of the Christian communities crossing mountains and seas to reach them. In a word, it is a mission territory,” he said.
According to the Vatican, “An apostolic vicariate or apostolic prefecture is a certain portion of the people of God which has not yet been established as a diocese due to special circumstances and which, to be shepherded, is entrusted to an apostolic vicar or apostolic prefect who governs it in the name of the Supreme Pontiff” while “a diocese is a portion of the people of God which is entrusted to a bishop for him to shepherd with the cooperation of the presbyterium, so that, adhering to its pastor and gathered by him in the Holy Spirit through the gospel and the Eucharist, it constitutes a particular church in which the one, holy, catholic, and apostolic Church of Christ is truly present and operative”.
The Bishop also thanked Pope Francis for the opportunity to work in a mission territory to live with the poor people.
“I thank the Holy Father that in the near twilight of my life, I am still given a chance to work in a mission territory and to live poor among the poor, the fisher folks, the subsistence farmers and the indigenous peoples,” he said.
The former Apostolic Administrator of Manila also told the Office of Communications that he will be undergoing adjustments as soon as he resumes his ministry in Taytay.
“Hindi ko pa masyadong alam kasi talagang iba ang situation. Dito ay urban, city life, doon ay rural. So, ibang iba talaga ang situation. Hindi ko lang alam kung paano ba makakatulong, nakatulong ang aking ministry dito sa ministry ko doon. I’m sure mayroon pero hindi ko pa masasabi kasi ibang iba nga ang situation kaya nga malaking adjustment para sa akin,” Bishop Pabillo said.
He also took the opportunity to thank the Archdiocese of Manila which he served for 16 years.
“I take this opportunity to thank the Archdiocese of Manila for accepting me to work with you these years. I was a stranger and you accepted me. I was indeed a stranger to Manila when I first came here in 2006. A stranger to the culture of the big cities and to the culture of Church work here in an urban setting,” he said.
“But now, I live no longer a stranger but a brother among the priest, the religious and the lay faithful. I really feel at home now with you,” he added.
Bishop Pabillo’s appointment was announced to the public by the Holy Father in the Vatican on June 29, 2021, at 12 noon, Rome time. It was announced in Manila by the Papal Nuncio at 6 in the evening during the celebration of the Pope’s Day Mass. (Jheng Prado/RCAM-AOC | Photo by Rian Salamat/RCAM-AOC)
