Top Stories

Filipino priest is new bishop in US territory

MANILA: Pope Francis named a Filipino priest who has been serving the predominantly Catholic community in a US island in the Pacific for nearly two decades now to serve as its new bishop.

Fr. Ryan Jimenez will be the second bishop of the Diocese of Chalan Kanoa in Saipan, the main island of the US Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, which is home to thousands of Filipinos.

CBCPNews, the official news service of the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines, made the announcement.

The 44-year-old new bishop was born in Dumaguete City and raised in Larena, Siquijor. He succeeds Bishop Emeritus Tomas Camacho who served the diocese for 25 years until his retirement in 2010.

Jimenez obtained his Bachelor of Arts degree in Pre-Divinity from Ateneo de Manila University before he left for Saipan in 1997, according to the news portal.

He continued his studies at St. Patrick Seminary and University in California where he earned his Masters in Theology in 2003.

Bishop Jimenez’s episcopal ordination is set for Aug. 14 at the Chalan Kanoa Cathedral, CBCP announced.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Related Articles

Back to top button