Philippine Catholic bishops on Monday welcomed the elevation of one of their own to the rank of cardinal, a key position in the Church’s hierarchy.
Pope Francis on Sunday announced a consistory for the creation of 21 new cardinals from around the world, including Bishop Pablo Virgilio David of Kalookan, to be held in the Vatican on Dec. 8.
READ: Bishop David named among 21 new cardinals
David, 65, is currently serving as president of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP).
Bishop Mylo Hubert Vergara, CBCP vice president, said the pope’s choice of David and the 20 others from around the world represents, yet again, his love for the peripheries.
“The pope’s choice of Bp. David is consistent with his selection of cardinals who reach out to the peripheries,” Vergara said.
The Pasig bishop highlighted the cardinal-designate’s work in establishing several mission stations within his diocese “to better serve the poorest of the poor.”
With a population of more than 1.3 million, a significant number of parishioners in David’s diocese, which includes the cities of Caloocan, Navotas, and Malabon, are informal settlers.
To help attend to their pastoral needs and concerns, he established an Urban Poor Ministry, in partnership with other church organizations.
Acknowledging that poverty is a root cause of human trafficking, the bishop also created a special ministry dedicated to preventing exploitation and protecting vulnerable communities.
David has a particular concern for persons deprived of liberty, especially young offenders, emphasizing that caring for prisoners is a Christian duty.
When former President Rodrigo Duterte launched his bloody drug war, David decried how his diocese had turned into a “killing field.”
He explained that he has taken upon himself the task of documenting the spate of violence by setting up a team for proper documentation.
David also established a community-based drug rehabilitation program, which has three main components: patient’s care, family care, and community care.
Cardinals serve as the pope’s closest advisers and collaborators in the pastoral governance of the worldwide Catholic Church, but their main task is to elect a new pope.
Vergara added that David’s elevation to cardinal is also a recognition of his contributions as CBCP president and his “invaluable work” with the Federation of Asian Bishops’ Conferences (FABC).
David, along with Vergara and Cardinal Jose Advincula of Manila, is currently in Rome for the second and final session of the global synod on synodality, convened by Pope Francis.
In his intervention on Oct. 4, the CBCP head, who is also part of the communication body of the Vatican synod, emphasized that addressing poverty is essential to building a Church that truly serves the poor.
He explained how “local migration” from rural provinces to cities poses a “big challenge” to traditional parish structures, which typically serve established local parishioners.
“If the poor don’t come to Church, the Church must go to the poor,” David said.
