Cotabato Archbishop Orlando Quevedo. Photo courtesy of CBCP News
MANILA, Philippines—The Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) lauded the elevation to cardinal of Cotabato Archbishop Orlando Quevedo, calling his cardinalship a proof that Catholic faith is strong in Mindanao.
“A Cardinal from Mindanao is a papal tribute to the strength of the Catholic faith in that region of our country. It is a proof that the Catholic faith in Mindanao is now bearing rich fruits; Cardinal Quevedo is its living testimony,” CBCP president Socrates Villegas said Saturday.
He also deemed Quevedo a “blessing for the Church” and “an intellectual giant with a very simple lifestyle and very warm fraternal manners.”
Quevedo was elevated to the College of Cardinals on Saturday, making him the first cardinal appointed by Pope Francis and the country’s eight cardinal.
A CBCP president from 1999 to 2003, Quevedo is also the country’s second active cardinal, next to Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle who was elevated two years ago.
Other Filipino cardinals are Rufino Santos, Julio Rosales, Jaime Sin, Ricardo Vidal, Jose Sanchez and Gaudencio Rosales, the CBCP said.
Tagle in the statement also expressed his support, noting that Quevedo’s blessing now “extends to the whole Church.”
“The Church in the Philippines and Asia has been greatly blessed these past decades by the service and leadership of Archbishop Quevedo,” he said.
Quevedo is among the 19 cardinals newly elevated by the Supreme Pontiff.
The College of Cardinals is tasked to elect a successor in case the Pope dies or steps down from his post.
RELATED STORIES
Pope to create Quevedo 18 others new cardinals
Benedict joins Francis in cardinal making ceremony