Philippines Celebrates Pope Leo’s Election; Past Visits Recalled

The predominantly Catholic Philippines rejoiced and expressed warm welcome for the election of Pope Leo XIV, with some Filipinos recounting that the new pontiff had visited the country at the turn of the millennium. 

Archbishop Socrates Villegas of the Archdiocese of Lingayen-Dagupan said the new pope is the faithful’s “answered prayer,” since he was given by God “to increase our faith in His promise, ‘I will be with you until the end of time.’ ” 

“Let us look beyond races and nationalities. Let us rise above labels of liberals and conservatives. He is our pope. We owe him our obedience as we would obey Christ. Let us unite,” Villegas said in a statement.

He also praised the new pope’s chosen name, saying that the last pontiff who carried such name “left a legacy of linking the work of the Gospel with social engagement and transformation insisting on the sacred dignity of the human person.”

Antipolo Bishop Ruperto Cruz Santos, meanwhile, urged the faithful to pray that Pope Leo XIV will lead with wisdom, bear challenges with courage and persevere through the grace of God. 

Caritas Philippines, the humanitarian, development and advocacy arm of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP), said Pope Leo’s moral courage and concern for the vulnerable “offer renewed hope in this critical moment for humanity and the planet.”

CBCP vice president and Pasig Bishop Mylo Hubert Vergara urged the faithful to pray for the new pope, that he may lead the Catholics in their pilgrimage of faith “as one Church, united in love and hope.”

“As we bid farewell with sorrow and gratitude to Pope Francis, whose witness of mercy, simplicity and love for the poor has inspired the world, we now embrace Pope Leo XIV with filial affection and prayerful hope. May the Lord grant him strength, wisdom and a heart like Christ’s as he takes up the cross of service to the Church and the world,” he said.

Fray Dante Morabe Bendoy, prior provincial of the Philippine Augustinian Province, described Robert Prevost’s election as the first Augustinian pope as a “historic milestone” in which they take pride and joy. 

He said Augustinians recall Prevost’s visits to the Philippines, as then prior general, where he went to their convent and seminaries in Manila, Makati and Bulacan.

“We cherish the memories of his warm presence, the mass he celebrated with us, his humility and the photos we shared. I would say these moments remind us of his genuine pastoral heart and his deep commitment to our order and to the Church,” Bendoy said.

For his part, Dumaguete Bishop Julito Cortes praised the new pope’s “dedication to social justice, interfaith dialogue, care for creation and the promotion of peace.”

According to Ilagan Bishop David William Antonio, the name of the new pope will already be mentioned in the Eucharistic Prayer. He said that when a new pope is elected on a weekday, parishes and communities are requested to celebrate the mass “For the Pope” (Roman Missal, Masses for Various Needs or Occasions).

Visits to Phl 

Pope Leo XIV had visited the Philippines while he was still a priest.

According to the Archdiocese of Cebu, Prevost visited Cebu in 2004.

He also blessed the Augustinian Friary in Mohon, Talisay City.

He visited Intramuros in 2010, where he celebrated mass at San Agustín Church during the Order of Saint Augustine’s Intermediate General Chapter. 

Prevost is the 267th head of the Roman Catholic Church and will lead the world’s 1.4 billion Catholics.

He is the first pope from the Order of Saint Augustine – commonly known as the Augustinians - and the second pope from the Americas, following Pope Francis, who died last April 21.

Prevost entered the novitiate of the Order of Saint Augustine (OSA) in 1977 and professed his solemn vows in 1981 before becoming a priest of the order, credited with being the “first apostles” of the Catholic faith in the Philippines.

As the order’s prior general from 2001 to 2013, Prevost had been with almost 200 Filipino Augustinian missionaries, overseeing their governance, leading their missions and making certain that they all adhere to the Rule of St. Augustine.

Encounter  

Rev. Fr. Jonas Mejares, an Augustinian friar from the University of San Agustin in Iloilo and vice president for Augustinian Formation and Mission, recalled his encounter with the newly elected pope, whom he described as “a man of precision, humility and pastoral wisdom.” 

He posted on his Facebook page how he met and talked with Prevost last month. “OMG! We have just met and talked last month! Thank You Lord for giving us a new pope, Pope Leo XIV!” he wrote.

In a separate interview with dzBB, Mejares said he went to Rome at the request of their order’s superior general. While staying at the Sta. Monica building near the Vatican, Mejares said he and then-Cardinal Prevost were living in the same compound but in different buildings. He said he met with Prevost at the Curia.

Mejares said the meeting gave him a chance to thank Prevost on behalf of the Augustinian Province of Cebu. He described the new pontiff as “kind and composed.”

“He is very approachable. When you talk to him, he is very calm and seems shy – but he’s not,” he said.

In another interview on ANC, Mejares said the Catholic Church has chosen “a very good pope” since Leo “is very much balanced with his knowledge on canon law and his exposure in missionary areas.”

Pinoys praying for pope 

President Marcos joined fellow leaders and the Catholic faithful around the world in welcoming the new leader of the Catholic Church, saying the Filipino people are praying for his strength and good health.

“On behalf of the Philippines, I congratulate Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost of the United States on his election as the successor of Pope Francis and leader of the 1.4 billion-strong Catholic Church,” Marcos said in a statement.

“As the new pontiff, who took the papal name Leo XIV, ascends the chair of St. Peter and assumes the mantle of Bishop of Rome, I pray that he will continue to bring the Church closer to the poor and disadvantaged,” Marcos, a Catholic, said.

Marcos said the Filipino people are “also praying for the new pope’s strength and good health as he leads the faithful with grace, wisdom and compassion.”

For her part, Vice President Sara Duterte yesterday joined the Catholic community in celebrating the election of Pope Leo XIV.

“I join Filipino Catholics across the globe in extending our warmest congratulations to His Holiness Pope Leo XIV on his election as the 267th Successor of Saint Peter. This joyful moment unites over 80 million Filipinos – whether in our archipelago or spread across every continent – in deep gratitude to God for guiding the College of Cardinals in their discernment and prayer,” Duterte said.

Mock conclave

Days before the papal conclave at the Vatican, students from Chicago held a mock conclave and elected a fourth-grader who chose the name “Pope Augustine.” 

Now, a Chicago-born Augustinian is taking the mantle as the new leader of the Roman Catholic Church.

According to the Chicago Catholic, the newspaper of the Archdiocese of Chicago, students from the Our Lady of Mount Carmel Academy Chicago took part in a mock papal conclave last May 8. 

Photos of the mock conclave, which drew global media coverage, showed the students dressed as cardinal electors, Swiss guards and other participants in the highly secretive process of selecting the successor to St. Peter.

After three ballots, a fourth-grader named Augustus Wilk, known to his friends as Augie Wilk, was “elected” the new pope. He chose the name “Augustine” and asked students to pray for the real cardinals who will elect the next pontiff.

In what a local US media report described as “perhaps a bit of prescience,” it was Chicago-born Cardinal Prevost, an Augustinian, who emerged at the balcony at the St. Peter’s Square.

Prevost was born in Chicago on Sept. 14, 1955. – With additional reports from Marc Jayson Cayabyab, Bella Cariaso, Jose Rodel Clapano, Cezar Ramirez, Elizabeth Marcelo and Janvic Mateo