SAN FRANCISCO, Agusan del Sur (MindaNews / 28 Jan)—Bishop Ruben Labajo, formerly of the Cebu Archdiocese, was officially installed on Tuesday as the first bishop of the newly created Diocese of Prosperidad.
The diocese is located in the neighboring town of Prosperidad, the capital of Agusan del Sur.
At 59 years old, this marks Bishop Labajo’s first visit to Mindanao, after spending his entire priestly ministry in Cebu.
Fr. Daryl Glenn Tatoy, spokesman for the Diocese of Prosperidad, said Bishop Labajo arrived for his new assignment accompanied by close to 450 laity and clergymen, who traveled with him aboard a passenger boat from Cebu City to the pier in the municipality of Nasipit in Agusan del Norte.
Tatoy said that the installation ceremony was witnessed by 40 bishops from across the country and 200 priests from the five provinces of the Caraga Region, as well as neighboring areas.
Among the main guests were Manila Papal Nuncio Cardinal Charles John Brown, Archbishop Jose Palma of Cebu, and Cardinal Jose Advincula of Manila.
The ceremony celebrated at St. Michael the Archangel Cathedral, the new seat of the Diocese of Prosperidad, also drew Bishop Labajo’s close friends and family from Cebu, along with notable personalities like former Supreme Court Chief Justice Hilario Davide Sr. and several mayors from Cebu province. The entire officialdom of Agusan del Sur was present to witness the historic event.
Bishop Labajo, Tatoy said, now oversees 26 parishes and one quasi-parish in Agusan del Sur following the split of the Diocese of Butuan, which now covers only the parishes of Agusan del Norte.
The creation of the Diocese of Prosperidad was a long-awaited development, taking 20 years of effort, initiated by the late Bishop Juan de Dios Pueblos of Butuan, according to Fr. Tatoy in his talk with Provincial Tourism Officer Dannah Buquir as they hosted the celebration’s live broadcast of the event.
It also took 57 years after the Prosperidad Diocese was separated from the Butuan Diocese. Pope Francis officially established the Diocese of Prosperidad on October 15, 2024, naming Bishop Labajo as its first shepherd.
In a statement, the Diocese of Butuan described the appointment as a “new chapter in the synodal journey of the People of God in both dioceses.”
Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle, Prefect of the Dicastery for Evangelization’s Section for the First Evangelization and the New Particular Churches, emphasized that the split should not be viewed as division, but rather as a “sign of growth.”
“Let us not look at it as a division, like one family divided into two—no, it’s not that. It’s a sign of growth,” Cardinal Tagle was quoted in a report by the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines. He pointed out that while some parts of the world are concerned with merging dioceses, the Philippines is focused on creating new ones, a clear sign of vitality.
“Now you can give witness to Christ more openly and zealously because there are two local churches,” he added. (Chris V. Panganiban / MindaNews)
