For a community where nine out of 10 are Roman Catholics, the arrival of a new Bishop is definitely big news.
Faithful from Negros Oriental and Siquijor flocked to the Dumaguete Cathedral last Thursday to witness the installation of Bishop Julito Buhain Cortes as the fourth Bishop of the Diocese of Dumaguete.
VIPs from the clergy led by Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle, and Archibishop Giuseppe Pinto, Papal Nuncio to the Philippines, also arrived for this historic event.
Bishop Lito, as he is fondly called by his flock, has been a priest for the last 33 years. He just completed 12 years of service to the Diocese of Cebu as Auxiliary Bishop and Titular Bishop of Severiana.
Many of us may still remember him as the Father Lito who started his service to the Lord’s Ministry here in Dumaguete in 1980 as the Prefect of Discipline of the St. Joseph Seminary in 1981. He also served in various capacities throughout the Diocese, eventually becoming Monsignor Lito, and capping his stint in Negros Oriental with the post of Diocesan Administrator from May 2000 to July 2001.
Apart from his priestly roots in the Diocese of Dumaguete, Bishop Lito’s assignment to Negros Oriental and Siquijor is a homecoming for he is one of us, having been raised as a child and educated in his parents’ hometown of Siquijor, Siquijor, a part of Negros Oriental at that time.
Bishop Lito also went on for further studies in Cebu, Manila, and Rome, each completed with flying colors.
No doubt, Bishop Lito will be up to the task of heading the Diocese. We welcome you back, Bishop Lito, and we wish you God’s blessings as you chart new directions for the more than one million faithful in the Diocese.
