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July 31, 1967. A new day dawned upon
the church in Western Mindanao. Carved from the Archdiocese of
Zamboanga, the Diocese of Dipolog was created by Pope Paul VI by
virtue of the Apostolate Letter “Quantum Prosit”. It covered the
whole province of Zamboanga del Norte. The Most Rev. Felix S. Zafra,
D.D., was appointed the first bishop of Dipolog. He took possession
of the diocese on October 24,
1967.
A new diocese was born. But the seeds
of Christianity were sown four centuries earlier, when the
pioneering settlers of Dapitan led by Datu Pagbuaya encountered and
made alliance with the Spaniards who had just started to colonize
Cebu. Soon after, the work of evangelization began. Like most people
of Bohol, the place of their origin, the Dapitanons embraced the new
faith peacefully. But it was not until the turn of the sixteenth
century that missionaries started to reside in Dapitan and baptism
of new converts was initiated.
The Society of Jesus was tasked to
preach the good news in this part of Mindanao. They came to the
Philippines in 1581. When the country was divided among four
religious congregations for their area of responsibility in 1598,
the Jesuits were given the Diocese of Cebu which covered the Visayas
and Mindanao; Dapitan fell under the jurisdiction of the courageous
men of St. Ignatius.
At first, the Jesuits came as chaplains
of the Spanish naval force out to explore, conquer and colonize more
tribes. Such was the case of Pascual de Acuña whose brief stay
started the Jesuit mission in Dapitan. The squadron of Juan Juarez
Gallinato, of which he was the chaplain, had just defeated the
Manguindanau Muslims in a ferocious battle near Dapitan. While the
terms of surrender were being negotiated, the squadron anchored at
the Dapitan harbor. Acuña took advantage of the situation to do
mission work among its residents and the surrounding tribes until
the Muslims managed to escape after two months. This was in 1609.
Other Jesuit naval chaplains followed
his example particularly when Dapitan became a regular port call for
Spanish squadrons on patrol. Finally, in 1629, the Society sent the
Mexican Jesuit, Pedro Gutierez, to found specifically the Dapitan
mission. Dedicating tirelessly all his efforts for those all his
efforts for those whom he has regarded as his children, he was able
to establish a permanent Jesuit mission residence in the area two
years later. He became its first superior.
As a missionary residence, Dapitan was
at first dependent on Cebu. In 1639, it was placed under the
jurisdiction of the Zamboanga residence. It was transferred anew in
1643 to Loboc (Bohol) residence. Finally, in 1645 or a little
later, it became independent, with its jurisdiction extending from
Iligan to Sindangan Bay. The rest of the peninsula remained under
the responsibility of the Zamboanga Jesuit mission which was
established in 1635.
The missionary zeal of the Jesuits was
spent particularly on the conversion of the Subanen known to be the
original inhabitants of the peninsula. At times, they had to offer
their lives as a martyrs like Francisco Paliola who shed his blood
in Ponot on January 29, 1648. Dapitanons shared in these missionary
endeavors. They acted as escorts, soldiers or interpreters of the
foreigners, like the son of Pagbuaya, Manook. Others became lay
evangelizers in their own place. Manook’s daughter, Maria Uray,
wanted to become a nun after becoming a widow. She was refused entry
for being a native. Prevailed to stay in Dapitan by the Jesuits, she
devoted all her life to her faith, becoming a living example to her
people.
By 1696, the following settlements
within Dapitan jurisdiction had a church building, and these numbers
of Christian residents: Dapitan (411); Iligan (420); Layaun (176);
Ylaya (360); Dipolog (210); Dicayo (286); Duhinob (339); Manukan
(335); Sian (219); Sindangan (91); Mucas (295); and Quipit (336).
All in all at the end of the 17th century numbered 3478
approximately.
Things ahead looked bright for the
Jesuit missionaries until the Bourbons ascended to the Spanish crown
in the 18th century. Their endearing and questionable
loyalty to the Pope and Rome, as well as their international
character, made the men of St. Ignatius a threat to the Bourbons and
their plans. This resulted to the banishment of the Jesuits from all
lands under the domination of the Bourbon monarchs in 1768. They
were expelled from the Philippines soon after. The Order of
Augustinian Recollects took over their jurisdiction, including the
Dapitan mission in 1770.
The Augustinian Recollects arrived in
the Philippines in 1606. They came late for the Philippines among
the Augustinians, Franciscans, Jesuits and Dominicans eight years
earlier. Thus, the eastern part of Mindanao was taken from the
Jesuits and assigned to them. In 1770, the expulsion of the Society
of Jesus handed to them the whole island as field for mission work.
For the Dapitan mission, Bernardo Teresa became the first superior.
During the administration of the
Recollects, the Katipunan parish was established in 1796. At that
time, it was known as Lubungan. Its first pastor was Vicente
Melendo de San Cipriano. Moreover, in 1865, the jurisdiction of
Dapitan and the whole Mindanao was transferred from the ecclesial
province of Cebu to the newly created diocese of Jaro.
The Royal Decree of 1852 allowed the
Society of Jesus back to the Spanish lands. They returned to the
Philippines and resumed their old Mindanao mission. In 1870, Juan
Calabert took possession of Dapitan. Antonio Obach shepherded
Katipunan. But he stayed occasionally at a former Recollect
residence in Dipolog, a kind of trading center of communities
traveling between Dapitan and Katipunan.
Dipolog was under Katipunan until it was
established as a parish in 1896. Jose Vilaclara became its first
parish priest. But three years earlier, the Jesuit Eusebio Barado
led the faithful of the place in reconstruction a new church
building. His successors continued what he started as well as build
public infrastructures like street, drainage system and irrigation.
As preachers, builders and educators of children, young men and
women, the Jesuits served Dipolog until 1940 when they passed the
stewardship to the Filipino diocesan clergy took over in 1946 in the
person of Epifanio Baleares.
Most of the Filipino diocesan clergy who
received and continued the evangelizing work of the Society of Jesus
were Josefinos, so called for having finished their priestly
formation at San Jose Seminary. Trained by the Jesuits, they proved
to be fitting successors of their mentors. Furthermore, the Diocese
of Zamboanga which had jurisdiction over Mindanao since 1910
continued to be administered by the Jesuits who expectedly relied on
their products. One of them was Luis del Rosario who, as archbishop
of Zamboanga, allowed his auxiliary bishop, Leopoldo Arcaira, to
stay and administer the northern part of the archdiocese from
1962-1966.
Then came the papal announcement in 1967
that the Diocese of Dipolog was created out of Zamboanga. It was
above all a recognition that the local church in this part of the
world had come to age. She could now stand on and walk with her own
feet. Aside from Dapitan, Katipunan and Dipolog, the other parishes
which were established before 1967 and became part of the new
diocese were: Sindangan (1936), Labason (1941), Rizal (1950), Siocon
(1951), Manukan (1952), Polanco (1954), Liloy (1957), Barcelona
(1958), and Salug (1960). Piñan became a parish by the end of 1967.
The new diocese consists of the entire
province of Zamboanga del Norte. Including the two cities of
Dipolog and Dapitan, the total land area of the province is 720,594
hectares or 7,205.94 square kilometers. It covers the western
boarder of Mindanao facing the Sulu Sea. Its climate is mild and
moderate. As of 1990, the entire population of the province has
grown to 673,771 of which 80.3% belongs to the Catholic faith, 5.1%
to Islam, 3.6% to the Protestant churches, 7.2% to other religious
denominations and 3.8% without religious affiliation.
From the moment he set his foot on the
diocese, Bishop Felix Zafra opened his arms to his fold and invited
them to Jesus Christ “that they might have life and have to the
full” (“Ut vitam abundantius habeant,” Jn. 10:10). In the process,
basic ecclesial structures were set in place. The number of
parishes increased to twenty–eight. The Maryknoll and PIME
(Pontifical Institute for Foreign Missions) Fathers came in the 70’s
( he latter taking the place of the Claretians in the South while
the Redemptorist did mission work in the area. Aside from the RVM
(Religious of the Virgin Mary) Sisters who had worked in Dipolog
since 1892, the Holy Spirit Sisters and the Blessed Virgin
Missionaries of Carmel began to serve the diocese. In 1982, the
Sacri- Cordian Sisters were organized by Bishop Zafra. Three years
later, he gathered some young men to form them into Brothers of the
Sacred Heart of Jesus and the Immaculate Heart of Mary.
More significant to the diocese was the
increasing number of Filipino diocesan priests ordained. They now
came from different seminaries. But they were able to rise above
their differences and work together, subscribing to the principle of
unity amidst diversity. The founding of two seminaries capped the
remarkable growth of the diocesan clergy. In 1979, Bishop Zafra
co-founded St. Mary’s Theologate in Ozamis City with the other DOPIM
bishops (Bishop Jesus Varela, Bishop Jesus Tuquib, Bishop Fernando
Capalla and Bishop Bienvenido Tudtud) for their theology students.
The following year, Cor Jesu Seminary was established in Dipolog for
its college seminarians. It became the heart of the diocese.
Eventually, the Dipolog priests extended their service to other
dioceses-nationally and internally.
Bishop Jose R. Manguiran was appointed
to take the reins of Dipolog on May 27, 1987. Installed on September
9, 1987, he immediately rallied the clergy and his flock to “do all
in the nale of the Lord” (Facitis omnia in nomini Domini,” Col.
3:17). He called his people to form themselves into ecclesial
communities, building from previously established basic church
structures. For these communities to the effective, Bishop Manguiran
has encouraged cooperatives to be organized and to engage in
income-generating projects. His love for the land and respect for
nature has shown itself to be contagious. The number among his flock
who have become ecology-conscious is growing. As the diocese goes
beyond her twenty-fifth year, Bishop Manguiran, together with clergy
and supported by laity, possesses the capacity to provide direction
to the local church according to the gospel values and the vision of
DOPIM and PCP II (Second Plenary Council of the Philippines).
Challenges indeed lie ahead. For one,
the church has to face with the government the problems besetting
the province the most pressing of which is poverty. Literacy is high
(89.7%). Yet, 83% of the total provincial population falls below the
poverty threshold. Their families earn P12,765 annually, way below
the poverty level of P27,900 set for the province. Most of them are
farmers and fishermen residing in rural areas. Ironically,
agriculture provides the main source of income for the province.
But the productivity of the agricultural land remains low. Added to
this, increased unemployment and underemployment account for the
people’s destitution. To be truly a church of the poor, the local
church must be able to address and lend a hand in the liberation of
the people from their predicament. She hopes to fulfill her part of
building basic ecclesial communities (BEC/GSK) supported by
cooperatives engaged in income-generating projects and by
facilitating national reconciliation in pursuit of peace.
The local church in Dipolog is also
challenged to review and update its diocesan policies. The world
has changed quite rapidly. The diocese has to keep abreast with
these changes to remain relevant. Serving more than half a million
people is not easy. But the challenge is there. Besides forming her
flock into basic communities, she can also extend her hands to other
denominations of faith in dialogue and communion. Ecumenical
movement must be part of the church agenda.
Finally, the church in Dipolog has to
take care of her priests who, as leader servants of Christian
communities, face more challenges. Their formation does not end at
ordination. Otherwise, if one gets sick at the head, the rest of the
body cannot function well. The diocese has to come up and implement
a comprehensive program designed to provide an on-going formation of
the clergy. Setting up an” ordination to expiration” clergy
foundation is necessary in this pursuit.
Integral development through community
empowerment, national reconciliation, dialogue and communion of
faith, ecological concerns—these are a few of the challenges which
assure an exciting ecclesial life to the diocese of Dipolog.
Today, the church in Dipolog looks back
to her past with gratitude and jubilee. Looking forward, she
welcomes her future undaunted, even tasking herself with the mission
“Hiusahonan tanan diha ni Kristo aron mabatonan ang kinabuhi
madagayaon”.
July 31, 2017…. With our patroness, Our
Lady of the Rosary, we invite you, “Come! Today we go beyond our 25th
year. Let us begin realizing and celebrating our golden jubilee!” |