CEBU CITY (PHILIPPINES)
GMA Regional TV [Cebu City, PH]
January 30, 2025
The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Cebu has acknowledged that sexual abuse committed by members of the clergy has life-long impact to the victims.
“We acknowledge as an Archdiocese that sexual abuse of priests involving minors deeply wound the very fabric of our faith life and community and cause irreparable damage to the lives of the victims that can scar them for life. As we continue to confront these painful realities, we continue to invite the faithful to accompany ministers with prayers and to help in the vigilance of creating and fostering safe spaces in the Church most especially for the most vulnerable of her members,” according to the Archdiocese, in a message signed by Archbishop Jose Palma on Thursday, January 30, 2025.
In a report of GMA Integrated News, a US-based watchdog and research group on January 29, 2025 launched an online database identifying 82 Catholic clergymen who have been accused of the sexual abuse of minors in cases relating to the Philippines.
“The recent release of the database of Filipino priests referred to in the list, reminds us all of the need to continue to come together with renewed energies to make the Archdiocese of Cebu one hundred percent compliant to all the necessary measures needed to embody the holiness and compassion that Christ call us all to live out,” the Archdiocese added.
According to the report, BishopAccountability.org, which focuses on alleged sexual abuses within the Catholic Church, these cases, which date back decades, involve: Filipino priests accused of sexually abusing minors in the Philippines, Filipino priests who served part of their priesthood in the Philippines but who are accused of sexually abusing minors while working in the US, and priests from other countries – specifically from the US, Ireland, and Australia -who served part of their priesthood in the Philippines.
Of the 82 clergymen, 34 (Filipino and foreign) were accused of child sexual abuse in the Philippines.
The remaining 48 clergymen (Filipino and foreign) were accused of child sexual abuse in other countries like the US, Ireland, and Australia but have worked in the Philippines.
With the publishing of the database, Anne Barrett Doyle, Bishop Accountability co-director, hoped that a “vigorous public conversation” about child sexual abuse in religion would begin in the Philippines.
“We want victims to know that there are people in the Philippines who would give them vigorous support,” Doyle said.
The database’s entries were collated from available sources online, including news reports, court resolution, and Facebook posts.
The Archdiocese of Cebu emphasized that only three names are identified as “incardinated” in the archdiocese.
Incardination is the formal term in the Catholic Church for a “clergyman being under a bishop or other ecclesiastical superior.”
“On this note we attest that of the names listed, only three names are identified as incardinated in the archdiocese and have already been reintegrated in active ministry today but only because they have gone through the required legal and canonical processes in the past and have been determined by competent civil and ecclesiastical authorities as fit to return to active ministry but with continued guidance and supervision,” the Archdiocese’s message further said.
“The priest is currently in Cebu but incardinated in another diocese. His presence in Cebu was intended to facilitate an ongoing renewal program that was required of him by his diocesan bishop. He has been fully cooperative with both civil and ecclesiastical authorities that are overseeing his situation. This also applies to some other names of priests who once served the archdiocese and were assigned by their religious superiors from their respected congregations but are no longer connected with the Archdiocese of Cebu or are made part of the diocesan clergy. To the knowledge of the archdiocese, one is reported to have been dismissed from the clerical state and one passed away years ago,” the message further reads.
Bishop Pablo Virgilio Cardinal David, president of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference in the Philippines (CBCP) said an Office for the Safeguarding of Minors has been put up to take the issue of accountability “very seriously.”
“Every diocese is now required by Rome to establish its own Office for the Safeguarding of Minors and Vulnerable Adults and should have a point person who can formally receive complaints,” David said in a statement released on January 29, 2025.
He added that the Office for the Safeguarding of Minors is headed by Archbishop Florentino Lavarias.
As for Archbishop Palma, he requested the public to help the Archdiocese of Cebu be faithful and worthy of its mission.
“The church will always be undergoing changes and dealing with them demands an unwavering faith. That’s the mark of being relevant. The efforts and desires to make the most of the processes involved ought to be an unending inspiration and task. The church is in the stage of purification until the moment it is fully ‘configured’ to its Founder and Savior. At that time, the truth will reign and genuine justice will be served. And that is based not on human capabilities but on divine guarantee,” Palma underscored.