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It was the Legaspi expedition with its complement of five Augustinian friars under their superior, Andres de Urdaneta, that set I motion
the most extensive missionary work ever undertaken in those times. The priests set up camp in Cebu, and thus it was from Cebu that the Christian faith spread to other islands: Panay in 1569, Masbate, Ticao
and Burias in 1570, and Manila along with Central Luzon in 1571.
Cebu City is the oldest city in the Philippines, founded in 1565 by Legaspi and Urdaneta. It was the firs Spanish settlement, and also the
first Catholic mission established in the then Islas Filipinas . The city was often referred to as the "City of the Most Holy Name of Jesus." Magellan planted a wooden cross in Cebu which still
stands today.
Ironically it was Manila that became the archdiocese in 1595, and Cebu one of its suffragan dioceses along with Nueva Segovia and Nueva Caceres. But missionary efforts to spread farther
continued to utilize the Diocese of Cebu as their home base. At that time the Diocese of Cebu included the islands of Panay, Samar, Leyte, Calamianes, all of northern Mindanao, and the remote Marianas Islands.
Almost 340 years went by before Cebu became an archdiocese. What had started in the 1500's with only four parishes became a highly populated city and island province that was finally designated as the seat of
an ecclesiastical province, the Archdiocese of Cebu, in 1934. It had Dumaguete, Tagbilaran, Tacloban, and Calbayog as suffragans and was headed by Archbishop Gabriel Reyes.
After having served as
Archbishop of Cebu since 1932, Archbishop Reyes was moved to Manila and was succeeded in Cebu by Julio Cardinal Rosales immediately after the end of the Second World War. Cardinal Rosales lost no time in
rebuilding the ruined facilities, as Cebu City was totally in ruis after World War II. He brought the number of parishes to a total of 115 before he retired in 1982.
Julio Cardinal Rosales was succeeded by
Ricardo Cardinal Vidal, who took over the archdiocese at a tie of great upheavals in the Philippines social and moral order, more devastating perhaps than the past global war. His efforts have been symbolized, in
very recent times, by the total renovation of the Cebu Cathedral and his promotion of the cause of the beatification of Pedro Calungsod, the teenaged companion of the Spanish Jesuit Beato Fr. Diego de Sanvitores.
The layman, an "overseas Filipino worker" who perished in the Marianas in 1672, is seen by the Cardinal as a Cebuano with a Christian courage of great relevance to our times. A nation with a
predominantly young population could look to Pedro Calungsod for a message that can ennoble its youth.
On the pastoral side, the approval of the Plenary Council of the Philippines II decrees in 1992 for
implementation on a national scale was facilitated by a 3-sectioned flow chart containing the orientational principles and the operational programs for parish use. The flow chart of the Cebu Archdiocesan Pastoral
Plan is patterned after the national flow chart, and is the result of the collated flow charts of the archdiocesan commissions and the flow charts of the Cebu parishes.
There are three sections in the Cebu
Archdiocesan Pastoral Assembly Plan namely: 1) the Situationer and Doctrinal Orientation, 2) Integral Evangelization, and 3) the Community of Disciples.
The Situationer is a profile of the 124
parishes in Cebu. From chapel-based data, there are approximately 2.8 million Catholics, and of these the highest percentage are the unchurched, followed by those involved, and the least percentage comprises the
exempt (sick children, old). Almost all of the parishes have Basic Ecclesial Communities (BEC's) ranging from the awareness level to the maintaining and strengthening levels. To date there are 118 parishes
with pastoral councils. The doctrinal orientation is to be Church of the Poor. Mission is integral evangelization, vision is updated from the Synodal vision: maturation in faith through BEC's.
Identified key areas are worship, formation, services, youth, Catholic education, pastoral administration, mission, ecumenism, and social communication.
Integral evangelization includes ecclesial communion,
inculturation of Filipino values with the Gospel, renewal of Christian communities, and a missionary thrusts as among the orientation principles. Those principles are supported by operational programs in the key
areas of worship, formation, service, youth, Catholic education, mission, ecumenism and social communication.
Section 3 covers the Community of Disciples and is best illustrated by a flow charth with the curia
and councils planning out policy issues at the top of the archdiocese. Issues and decisions filter down to the pastoral planning board in consultation with the different commissions on the key areas. And
from here implementation moves on to districts, vicariates, parishes and ultimately chapels.
Attending to the needs of the faithful in Cebu at present are 427 priests and religious in 124 parishes, 102 Catholic
institutions, 2470 BEC's and 18 associations.
OBJECTIVES
- Genuine Ecclesial Communion through the acceptance of the Father's merciful love and compassion for the human family.
- Renewed Catechesis on God the Father and the Church.
- Authentic worship of the Father expressed in a deepened prayer life, purified popular piety, a renewed Marian devotion, and an inculturated liturgy.
- A revitalized social apostolate which emphasizes our calling to be the church of the poor and promotes the service of the poor as the sign of the reign of God in our midst.
- Making the missionary activities as the real response to the love of the Father.
STRATEGIES
On Ecclesial Communion: 1.
Establishment / strengthening / sustaining of existing BECs.
2. Formulation of Formation Program for the Lay.
3. Formulation of Ongoing Formation Program for Priests / Religious.
On Catechesis: 4. Integration of the process of
becoming a servant church, a church of the poor in the
catechetical program for adults and families.
5. Expansion of catechesis on sacraments and ministries focusing on God the Father
and the Sacrament of Reconciliation.
6. Utilization of the various forms of media to deepen awareness of the love of the
Father On Worship: 7. Promotion of varied forms of prayer which deepen our
sensitivity to the love of the
Father.
8. Research on local culture and religious practices.
9. Promotion and intensification of the use of Scriptures
in the rosary, novenas, and
popular devotions. On Social Apostolate: 10. Expansion of archdiocesan programs offering social services and establishment of
linkages with NGOs.
11.
Implementation of sustainable programs for environmental preservation.
12. Continuation of C-CIMPEL activities.
13. Intensification of an education drive on the social teachings of the Church. On Mission: 14. Intensification of
awareness and involvement in the archdiocesan missionary
program.
15. Involvement of Religious Congregations and Catholic Schools in the missionary
programs and activities of the archdiocese.
ACTIVITIES
A. On Ecclesial Communion:
1. Celebrations
Parish Level a) BEC Congress
b) Family Day
c) Recollection for Fathers
d) Feast of Christ the King 1999 District / Vicariate Level a) BEC Congress Archdiocesan Level a) BEC Congress
b) Christian Family Week
c) Celebration of the Laity Week
d) Week of Prayer for Christian Unity
e) 404th Celebration of Cebu as a Diocese
f) Launching of the Year of God the Father
g) Launching of the Jubilee Year
h) World Youth Day
i) Social Communication Week
2. Special Programs
Parish Level To be arranged District / Vicariate Level a) Establishment of District / Vicariate Pastoral Council
Archdiocesan Level a) Enhancement skills program on communications and public speaking for
priests.
b) Paghandum sa Kaparian
c) 5th General Pastoral Assembly (GPA V)
d) Participation in the Festival of Conferences on God the Father in Manila
3. Ongoing Programs
Parish Level a) Bible Study / Sharing
b) Formation of Lay Ministers / BEC Leaders
c) Sustainable programs for BEC
District / Vicariate Level To be arranged Archdiocesan Level a) Ongoing Formation of Priests
b) Clergy Monthly Recollection
c) Recollection / Annual Retreat
d) Strengthening Campus Ministry
B. On Catechesis:
1. Celebrations
2. Special Programs
Parish Level To be arranged District / Vicariate Level To be arranged Archdiocesan Level
a) Modules on the Social Teachings of the Church
b) Inclusion of CAPT '99 in the catechetical program (school based / parish
based)
c) Modules on the Sacrament of Reconciliation
d) Modules on God the Father
e) Homiletics Guide on God the Father
f) Catechesis on God the Father through Mass Media
3. Ongoing Programs
Parish Level a) Retreats / Seminars / Recollection on God the Father
b) Catechetical Program for Adults District / Vicariate Level
To be arranged Archdiocesan Level a) Publication of Cebuano Catechism for Filipino Catholics
b) Extention of Catechetical Programs to non-sectarian schools
C. On Worship:
1. Celebrations
Parish Level a) Communal Celebration of Penance District / Vicariate Level a) Communal Celebration of Penance
Archdiocesan Level a) Communal Celebration of Penance
b) Trinity Sunday
2. Special Programs
Parish Level To be arranged District / Vicariate Level To be arranged Archdiocesan Level a)
Establishment of linkages with schools and universities on research of local
cultures and religious practices.
b) Seminars on Contemplative Prayer
c) Formation Program for the traditional "mananabtan"
3. Ongoing Programs
Parish Level a) Campaign for confessions among family groups District / Vicariate Level To be arranged Archdiocesan Level
a) Updating / formulation of liturgical novenas
D. On Social Apostolate:
1. Celebrations
Parish Level To be arranged District / Vicariate Level To be arranged Archdiocesan Level a) Earth Day
b) National Migrant Sunday
c) Indigenous People Sunday
2. Special Programs
Parish Level To be arranged District / Vicariate Level To be arranged Archdiocesan Level
a) Ecological Awareness Seminar
b) Feeding program
c) Symposium on Social Concerns
d) Inclusion of immersion and exposure components of the Church's social
teachings in schools.
3. Ongoing Programs
Parish Level a) Clean and green campaign for the restoration/preservation/development of the
environment.
b) Programs on social services in the parishes. District / Vicariate Level To be arranged Archdiocesan Level a) C-CIMPEL activities
E. On Mission:
1. Celebrations
Parish Level a) Vocation Week District / Vicariate Level a) Vocation Week Archdiocesan Level a) Vocation Week
b) Mission Sunday
c) Mission Awareness
2. Special Programs
Parish Level a) Barrio Evangelization campaign District / Vicariate Level To be arranged Archdiocesan Level To be arranged
3. Ongoing Programs
Parish Level a) Mini-school of evangelization District / Vicariate Level To be arranged Archdiocesan Level
Cebu School of Evangelization
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