The grave of Fructuoso Sebastian Vidal Sr., father or Cebu Archbishop Emeritus Ricardo Cardinal Vidal, was locked on All Souls’ Day. The Cardinal missed his annual cemetery visit this year because of his poor health (CDN PHOTO/JUNJIE MENDOZA).
OVER the years, he has been known to visit the graves of his loved ones every November 2, but this year, Cebu Archbishop Emeritus Ricardo Cardinal Vidal has decided to pay his respect for the dead after the country has celebrated All Souls’ Day.
Buried inside Carreta Cemetery are Vidal’s father Fructuoso Sebastian Vidal, Sr. who died in 1994, as well as Vidal’s aunt and sister, both buried next to his father.
In an interview, Monsignor Joseph Tan, spokesperson of the Cebu Archdiocese, said that the Cardinal is still recuperating after being admitted for four days in the intensive care unit (ICU) of Perpetual Succour Hospital.
According to Tan, Vidal was admitted last October 14, a few days after he returned from a trip to Rome, where the weather was colder.
Tan declined to give the exact cause of the Cardinal’s hospitalization but said that there was nothing to be alarmed about as Vidal was accustomed to being taken to the ICU when admitted to avoid the crowd.
To likewise avoid the visitor influx at the height of the country’s kalag-kalag celebrations and to give him more time to rest and recover, Tan said that Vidal will visit the graves of his loved ones within the next few days.
After officiating Mass inside the cemetery, Monsignor Ruben Labajo, rector and parish priest of Cebu Metropolitan Cathedral, blessed the graves of Vidal’s family members, saying that it was done as a sign of gratitude to the retired prelate.