Filipino bishop 2 steps away from sainthood

FORMER Lucena Bishop Alfredo Maria Obviar is now two steps away from sainthood after Pope Francis issued a decree on Thursday, November 8, declaring him as “venerable.” “The Pope recognized that Obviar, the first bishop of Lucena, lived the Christian virtues in a heroic way,” said the report of CBCPNews, the official news agency of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP).

To note, the Pontiff would have to recognize a miracle attributed to the

late bishop’s intercession in order for him to be beatified, while a second miracle would be needed for canonization.

The cause for sainthood of Obviar was introduced by the Diocese of Lucena.

The Congregation for the Causes of Saints, then, granted the “Nihil Obstat” (nothing hinders) to the diocesan inquiry of his life in 2001.

Subsequently, the decree of validity was issued in 2007, marking the start of its “Roman Phase.”

In 2014, the “Positio” was submitted and the review of Theologians was concluded in early last year.

Born in Lipa, Batangas, Obviar was ordained a priest in 1919 and was named as the first auxiliary bishop of Lipa in 1944.

He was known as the founder of the Missionary Catechists of St. Therese, a religious congregation of nuns with missions across the Philippines and other countries.

In 1969, he was appointed as bishop of Lucena, a post he served until his retirement in 1976.

Obviar died in 1978 at the age of 89. (SunStar Philippines)