Pope appoints new archbishop of Manila

Cardinal José Advincula Jr. – PHOTO COURTESY OF THE ARCHDIOCESE OF CAPIZ

Pope Francis appointed Cardinal José Advincula Jr. as the new Archbishop of Manila after the position was vacant for more than a year.

The 68-year-old prelate was archbishop of Capiz before being chosen to replace Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle, who left for Rome in February 2020 to fill the key position of the prefect Curia of the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples.

The pope made the public announcement in Rome on Thursday during a rite for the feast of the Annunciation of the Lord.

In November last year, the pope named Advincula a cardinal, making him the ninth Filipino to become “prince of the Church” in a ceremony held in St. Peter’s Basilica.

Advincula was born in Dumalag, Capiz, and was ordained a priest for the Archdiocese of Capiz in 1976.

He was spiritual director of the Saint Pius X Seminary, where he was also a professor and dean of education.

Canon lawyer

Advincula studied psychology at De La Salle University in Manila and canon law at the University of Santo Tomas before earning a bachelor’s degree in canon law from the Angelicum in Rome.

Previously, he served in the seminaries of the Archdiocese of Nueva Segovia in Vigas, Ilocos Sur, and in the regional seminary of Jaro.

In 1995 he was appointed rector of the Seminario San Pío X de Capiz and became defender of the bond, promoter of justice and finally judicial vicar of the archdiocese. He was named bishop of San Carlos in 2001.

Ten years later, Pope Benedict XVI appointed him archbishop of his native province of Capiz.

As part of his promotion to cardinal last year, he was assigned the titular position of cardinal-priest of San Vigilio Parish in Rome. Last December he was also appointed a member of the Curial Congregation for the Clergy.

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