CEBU CITY, Philippines — Cebu Archbishop Jose Palma expressed his support for Archbishop Charles John Brown, the new Apostolic Nuncio to the Philippines.
Archbishop Brown replaces Archbishop Gabriele Caccia, who vacated the position on November 2019 to be the Holy Father’s Permanent Observer to the United Nations in New York.
Brown is an American prelate from New York, but his most recent assignment is in Albania, where he also served as a Papal Nuncio.
“To us it is important because [Brown] is the main coordinator of all archdioceses and dioceses in the country,” said the prelate.
The assignment of Brown to the Philippines comes just a few months before the country celebrates 500 years of Christianity.
The 500th Year of Christianity (YOC) in the Philippines will begin on April 2021, to celebrate the first mass in Limasawa, and is expected to end on January 2022 for a grand Sinulog celebration in Cebu City.
Changes in the schedule of activities for the celebration have earlier been announced by Archbishop Palma. He said the activities had to be revised and the dates pushed back due to the Coronavirus Disease 2019 pandemic.
Palma hopes for the same enthusiasm from Brown as Caccia had over the 500 YOC.
It can be remembered that during the launch of the 500 YOC preparations in 2019, Caccia visited Cebu to grace the launch and even held a mass at the Basilica Mignore del Sto. Niño.
Caccia also graced the Sinulog festival in 2018 and closed the National Youth Day celebration last April 2019.
/bmjo
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