Villarojo
Hundreds of bishops and priests from around the country will gather in Cebu tomorrow as a Cebuano priest will be elevated to the Order of Bishops.
Most. Rev. Dennis Villarojo, D.D. will be ordained bishop at the Cebu Metropolitan Cathedral in downtown Cebu City at 9 a.m. tomorrow.
He and Bishop-elect Oscar Florencio of Palo were recently chosen by Pope Francis to be Cebu’s new auxiliary bishops.
Cebu Archbishop Jose Palma will preside over the concelebrated Mass and will be the principal consecrator during the ordination rites.
Archbishop Emeritus of Cebu Ricardo Cardinal Vidal and Apostolic Nuncio to the Philippines, Archbishop Giuseppe Pinto will be the co-consecrators.
Among those invited to witness Villarojo’s ordination were Manila Archbishop Luis Antonio Cardinal Tagle, Cotabato Archbishop Orlando Cardinal Quevedo, and all members of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines.
In an earlier interview, Villarojo said he’s humbled by his elevation to the episcopate. He said his appointment as bishop entails greater responsibilities which he will try to carry out by the help of God.
Villarojo, 48, and a native of Cebu City, is currently the secretary-general of the forthcoming International Eucharistic Congress (IEC) which will be held in Cebu from January 24 to 31 2016.
“The gift of being a bishop is an affirmation that the Lord is pleased with what we do for the IEC. And our response should be greater fidelity and truthfulness in everything we do,” he said.
With his appointment as bishop, Villarojo also unveiled his “coat of arms” or a distinct symbol of his episcopacy.
As featured in other coat of arms, Villarojo’s symbol has a Roman galero or a broad hat with six green tassels on each side, 12 in total.
On the center is a cross which symbolizes Jesus Christ, the center in the life and ministry of a bishop.
Villarojo also decided to highlight the Magellan’s cross and kiosks in his coat of arms as a sign of his Cebuano roots and his involvement in the IEC.
Villarojo also used as star on his coat of arms as a symbol of the Our Lady of Mt. Carmel where he is a member of the Third Order of the Discalced Carmelites.
Beside the star is a sun which symbolizes the University of Sto. Tomas where he studied and finished his theology degree.
He said the sun is also a reminder of Christ’s truth which he learned in the pontifical university.
Villarojo opted to use the color red as a background to symbolize the martyrdom of his namesake St. Denis, patron of Paris, as well as St. Pedro Calungsod, and St. Lawrence whose feast day is celebrated today.
Red also symbolizes the new bishop’s Spanish family name Villarojo which means “a huge red house or a small red village.”
On the bottom of his coat of arms is a text from the Book of the Prophet Isaiah: “Consolamini Popule Meus” or “Be consoled by people.”
For four years, Villarojo served as private secretary of Archbishop Emeritus of Cebu Ricardo Cardinal Vidal before he went to Rome for further studies from 1998 to 2001.
When he came back to Cebu, he became the head of the Pastoral Planning Board of the archdiocese. In 2010, he was appointed team moderator of the Our Lady of the Sacred Heart Parish in Cebu City.
He was then assigned as secretary-general of the 2016 IEC. Villarojo finished his philosophy studies at the San Carlos Seminary in Cebu City.
He completed his theology studies at the University of Sto. Tomas, and earned his doctorate degree for philosophy at the Pontifical University of the Holy Cross in Rome.
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