Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Nueva Segovia

Archdiocese of Nueva Segovia

Archidioecesis Novae Segobiae

Arkidiocesis ti Nueva Segovia
Arkidiyosesis ng Nueva Segovia
Arquidiócesis de Nueva Segovia
Catholic
Vigan Cathedral
Coat of arms
Location
CountryPhilippines
TerritoryIlocos Sur
Ecclesiastical provinceNueva Segovia
MetropolitanNueva Segovia
Statistics
Area2,579 km2 (996 sq mi)
Population
  • Total
  • Catholics
  • (as of 2021)
  • 763,549
  • 634,569[1] (83.1%)
Parishes41
Information
DenominationCatholic
Sui iuris churchLatin Church
RiteRoman Rite
EstablishedAugust 14, 1595 (August 14, 1595) (Diocese)
June 29, 1951 (June 29, 1951) (Archdiocese)
CathedralMetropolitan Cathedral of the Conversion of St. Paul the Apostle
Co-cathedralMinor Basilica of Our Lady of the Assumption (temporary)
Patron saintSaint Paul
Secular priests70
Current leadership
PopeLeo XIV
Metropolitan ArchbishopMarlo Mendoza Peralta
SuffragansRenato Mayugba (Laoag)
Leopoldo Jaucian (Bangued)
Rafael T. Cruz (Baguio)
Bishops emeritus
Map

Jurisdiction of the metropolitan see within the Philippines.

The Archdiocese of Nueva Segovia is an archdiocese of the Catholic Church in the Philippines. It covers the province of Ilocos Sur, on the island of Luzon. The see of the archdiocese is the city of Vigan.[2][3]

The archdiocese was erected in 1595 in the city of Nueva Segovia (modern-day Lal-lo, Cagayan). The see was moved in 1758 to Vigan because of its relative distance, at the request of Bishop Juan de la Fuente Yepes, during the pontificate of Benedict XIV. It became an archdiocese in 1951.

The archdiocese features the only archbishop's residence in the Philippines built during the Spanish era. It is located just beside the Vigan Cathedral. The rear of the convent also had an access to nearby Govantes Dike, apparently a convenient exit point by sea, but it is no longer in use as the dike is no longer navigable. Both the archbishop's residence and the cathedral itself remains to be one of the greatest contributions of the Order of Augustinian Recollects in the Philippines.

The archdiocese also operates its own radio station, dzNS ("NS" meaning "New Sound" and "Nueva Segovia"), which is a member of the Catholic Media Network.

The archdiocese also operates a weekly newspaper, Timek ti Amianan (Ilocano: "Voice of the North").

History

The Diocese of Nueva Segovia was established together with Cebu and Nueva Cáceres by Pope Clement VIII on August 14, 1595, by virtue of the papal bull Super Specula Militantis Ecclesia under the patronage of the Immaculate Conception. Its first bishop was Miguel de Benavides. The ecclesiastical jurisdiction extended to the provinces of Ilocos Norte, Ilocos Sur, Abra, La Union, Pangasinan, Cagayan, Isabela, Nueva Vizcaya, Batanes, Mountain Province and five northern towns of Tarlac.

Although Vigan was the oldest town created by the Spaniards in the north, it was not made the seat of the diocese which was created for Northern Luzon since the preferred locale, Nueva Segovia, a city at the mouth of the Ibanag River in Cagayan, was by then already a flourishing Spanish settlement while Vigan was then only a pueblo, a town. Eventually however, the city of Nueva Segovia was gradually effaced by the floods of the Rio Grande, and the seat was provisionally transferred to the nearby town of Lal-lo, Cagayan. On September 7, 1758, the seat was permanently transferred to Vigan, retaining the old name, up to the present. The transfer was made at the request of the bishop Juan de la Fuente Yepes during the pontificate of Benedict XIV. The year 2008 marks the 250th year since the transfer.

Nueva Segovia was elevated to an archdiocese, separated from Manila on June 29, 1951, by virtue of the papal bull Quo in Philippina Republica of Pope Pius XII. As the other local churches matured, there was eventual weaning from the archdiocese. Presently, it covers the civil province of Ilocos Sur, with the Dioceses of Laoag, Bangued and Baguio, and the Vicariate of Bontoc-Lagawe as suffragans. Santiago C. Sancho was the first archbishop of the newly elevated metropolitan church. Since Sancho, there had been five other Ordinaries of Nueva Segovia – Archbishops Juan C. Sison, Jose T. Sanchez, Orlando B. Quevedo, Edmundo M. Abaya, Ernesto A. Salgado and currently, Marlo Mendoza Peralta who is 37th bishop and 7th archbishop.

The archdiocese maintains a complex of mass communications media – an AM radio station, DzNS (963 kHz) founded in 1968; a weekly newspaper, Timek ti Amianan founded in 1983; and a printing press, the Imprenta Nueva Segovia founded in 1995.

In December 2018, the Nueva Segovia Archdiocesan Archives known as Archivo Nueva Segovia (ANS) was declared a national cultural treasure by the National Archives of the Philippines becoming one of only three archives, including the National Archives and the University of Santo Tomas Archives, to be given the distinction. The archives was established in the early 1990s by Archbishop Orlando Quevedo.[4]

Coat of arms

The sword and the book are symbols of Paul the Apostle, patron saint of the cathedral at Vigan. The sword was the instrument of his martyrdom, the book stands for the gospel which he preached as an apostle. The inscription Gladius Spiritus (Sword of the Spirit) is taken from his epistle to the Ephesians (6:17): "Make the helmet of salvation your own, and the sword of the Spirit, God's word." The red background stands for his burning zeal for souls and for his martyrdom.

The snaky figure in silver that traverses the bottom of the field represents the Abra river on the north bank of which is the seat of the archdiocese of Nueva Segovia.

The popular name of the seat of Nueva Segovia is Vigan which derived its name from the Ilocano word "bigaan," a contraction of 'cabigaan' meaning where the 'biga' abounds, a plant of the taro family but bigger than the taro and with bigger tubers; hence its scientific name Alocasia macrorhiza meaning an alocasia with big root.[5]

Ordinaries

Ordinaries of the Diocese/Metropolitan Archdiocese of Nueva Segovia
No. Portrait Name Coat of Arms From Until Duration Notes
Bishops of Nueva Segovia (August 30, 1595 – June 29, 1951)
1 Miguel de Benavides, O.P.
1597–1605		 30 Aug 1595 7 Oct 1602 7 years, 1 month, 7 days Appointed Metropolitan Archbishop of Manila
2 Diego Soria, O.P.
†1613		 15 Nov 1602 1613 10 years, ? Died in office
3 Miguel García Serrano, O.E.S.A.
1569–1629		 3 Aug 1616 12 Feb 1618 1 year, 6 months, 9 days Appointed Metropolitan Archbishop of Manila
4 Juan Renteria
†1626		 5 Mar 1618 1626 8 years, ? Died in office
5 Fernando Guerrero, O.E.S.A.
1567–1641		 17 May 1627 9 Jan 1634 6 years, 7 months, 23 days Appointed Metropolitan Archbishop of Manila
6 Diego Aduarte, O.P.
1570–1636		 23 Jan 1634 1636 2 years, ? Died in office
7 Fernando Montero Espinosa
†1648		 16 Jul 1639 5 Feb 1646 6 years, 6 months, 20 days Appointed Metropolitan Archbishop of Manila
8 Rodrigo Cárdenas, O.P.
†1661		 30 May 1650 May 1661 11 years, ? Died in office
- Jose Millan de Poblete
†1675?		 27 May 1675 1675 <1 year Died before consecration?
9 Francisco Pizaro de Orellana
1630–1683		 27 May 1680 2 Sep 1683 3 years, 3 months, 6 days Died in office
10 Diego Gorospe de Irala, O.P.
1649–1715		 1 Jun 1699 20 May 1715 15 years, 11 months, 19 days Died in office
- Pedro Mejorada, O.P.
1667–1719		 1 Oct 1717 31 Jul 1719 1 year, 10 months Died in office
11 Jeronimo Herrera y Lopez
1664–1742		 20 Nov 1724 Mar 1742 17 years, 4 months Died in office
- Manuel del Rio Flores, O.P.
†1745		 16 May 1744 1745 ~1 year Died in office
- Juan de Arechederra, O.P.
†1745		 19 Jan 1750 12 Nov 1751 1 year, 9 months, 24 days Died in office
12 Juan de la Fuente Yepes
†1757		 28 May 1753 1757 4 years, ? Died in office
- Bernardo de Ustariz, O.P.
1696–1764		 19 Dec 1763 2 Aug 1764 7 months, 14 days Died in office
13 Miguel García San Esteban, O.P.
1727–1779		 16 Sep 1768 11 Nov 1779 11 years, 1 month, 26 days Died in office
14 Agustín Pedro Blaquier, O.E.S.A.
1801–1803		 20 Jul 1801 31 Dec 1803 2 years, 5 months, 11 days Died in office
15 Cayetano Pallás, O.P.
1750–1814		 6 Oct 1806 1814 7 years, ? Died in office
16 Francisco Albán Barreiro, O.P.
1764–1837		 14 Apr 1817 8 Dec 1837 20 years, 7 months, 24 days Died in office
- Rafael Masoliver, O.P.
†1846?		 19 Jan 1846 1846 <1 year Died
17 Vicente Barreiro y Pérez, O.E.S.A.
1790–1856		 14 Apr 1848 17 May 1856 8 years, 1 month, 3 days Died in office
18 Juan José Aragonés, O.E.S.A.
1816–1872		 27 Mar 1865 14 Aug 1872 7 years, 4 months, 18 days Died in office
19 Mariano Cuartero y Sierra, O.A.R.
1830–1887		 16 Jan 1874 2 Aug 1887 13 years, 6 months, 17 days Died in office
20 José Hevía y Campomanes
1841–1904		 27 May 1889 12 Jun 1903 14 years, 16 days Appointed Bishop of Badajoz
21 Dennis Joseph Dougherty
1865–1951		 12 Jun 1903 21 Jun 1908 5 years, 9 days Appointed Bishop of Jaro
22 James Jordan Carroll
1862–1913		 21 Jun 1908 26 Oct 1912 4 years, 4 months, 5 days Appointed Titular Bishop of Metellopolis
23 Peter Joseph Hurth, C.S.C.
1857–1935		 7 Jan 1913 12 Nov 1926 13 years, 10 months, 5 days Appointed Titular Archbishop of Bostra
24 Santiago C. Sancho
1880–1966		 22 Apr 1927 29 Jun 1951 24 years, 2 months, 7 days Elevated as Archbishop of Nueva Segovia
Metropolitan Archbishops of Nueva Segovia (June 29, 1951 – present)
1 Santiago C. Sancho
1880–1966		 29 Jun 1951 12 Oct 1966 15 years, 3 months, 13 days Died in office
2 Juan C. Sison
1912–1981		 12 Oct 1966 12 Sep 1981 14 years, 11 months Died in office
3 José Tomás Sánchez
1920–2012		 12 Jan 1982 22 Mar 1986 4 years, 2 months, 10 days Appointed Secretary of Congregation for the Evangelisation of Peoples
4 Orlando B. Quevedo, O.M.I.
1939–		 22 Mar 1986 30 May 1998 12 years, 2 months, 8 days Appointed Metropolitan Archbishop of Cotabato
5 Edmundo M. Abaya
1929–2018		 22 May 1999 12 Feb 2005 5 years, 8 months, 21 days Retired
6 Ernesto A. Salgado
1936–		 12 Feb 2005 30 Dec 2013 8 years, 10 months, 18 days Retired
7 Marlo M. Peralta
1950–		 30 Dec 2013 Incumbent ongoing Current Archbishop

Timeline

Coadjutor Archbishop

Coadjutor Archbishop of the Metropolitan Archdiocese of Nueva Segovia
No. Portrait Name From Until Duration Notes
1 Juan C. Sison
1912–1981		 20 Aug 1956 12 Oct 1966 10 years, 1 month, 22 days Succeeded as Archbishop of Nueva Segovia

Auxiliary Bishops

No. Portrait Name From Until Duration Notes
1 Juan C. Sison
1912–1981		 10 May 1947 20 Aug 1956 9 years, 3 months, 10 days Appointed Coadjutor Archbishop, later succeeded as Metropolitan Archbishop
2 Victorino C. Ligot
1924–1980		 12 Feb 1969 6 Feb 1970 11 months, 25 days Appointed Bishop of San Fernando de La Union
3 Miguel G. Purugganan
1931–2011		 23 Jan 1971 21 Jan 1974 2 years, 11 months, 29 days Appointed Bishop of Ilagan
4 Salvador L. Lazo
1918–2000		 3 Aug 1977 20 Jan 1981 3 years, 5 months, 17 days Appointed Bishop of San Fernando de La Union
5 Patricio M. Lopez
1926–1991		 16 Oct 1985 20 Feb 1991 5 years, 4 months, 4 days Died in office.
6 David William V. Antonio
1963–		 15 Jun 2011 14 Nov 2018 7 years, 4 months, 30 days Appointed Bishop of Ilagan

Suffragan dioceses and Bishops

Diocese Image Bishop Period in Office Coat of Arms Diocese Logo
Baguio
(Baguio City,Benguet)
 Rafael T. Cruz June 20, 2024 – present
(1 year, 19 days)
Bangued
(Abra)
 Leopoldo C. Jaucian
S.V.D.		 January 5, 2007 – present
(18 years, 185 days)
Laoag
(Ilocos Norte)
 Renato P. Mayugba October 12, 2012 – present
(12 years, 270 days)

Notable churches under the jurisdiction of the Archdiocese

  • Conversion of Saint Augustine Parish, Bantay
  • Minor Basilica of Saint Nicholas of Tolentine, Sinait
  • Saint William the Hermit Parish, Magsingal
  • Minor Basilica of Our Lady of the Assumption, Santa Maria
  • Archdiocesan Shrine of Saint Vincent Ferrer, San Vicente
  • Archdiocesan Shrine of Saint Lucy the Martyr, Santa Lucia

See also

References

  1. ^ "(Catholic Metropolitan Archdiocese)". gcatholic.org. Retrieved September 16, 2023.
  2. ^ "Metropolitan Archdiocese of Nueva Segovia". GCatholic.org. Retrieved February 29, 2016.
  3. ^ "Archdiocese of Nueva Segovia". Catholic-Hierarchy.org. David M. Cheney. Retrieved January 21, 2015.
  4. ^ Hermoso, Christina (December 9, 2018). "Nueva Segovia archives declared national cultural treasure". Manila Bulletin. Retrieved June 14, 2019.
  5. ^ Madriaga, Mariano (1957). "The Coats-of-Arms of the Ecclesiastical Jurisdictions in the Philippines: Part I. The Metropolitan Sees". Philippine Studies. 5 (2): 177–190. JSTOR 42720389. Retrieved June 5, 2021.

17°34′29″N 120°23′20″E / 17.5748°N 120.3890°E / 17.5748; 120.3890

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