Jesus Y Varela
Encyclopedia
The Most Reverend Jesus Y. Varela is a Filipino
Filipino people
The Filipino people or Filipinos are an Austronesian ethnic group native to the islands of the Philippines. There are about 92 million Filipinos in the Philippines, and about 11 million living outside the Philippines ....

 prelate
Prelate
A prelate is a high-ranking member of the clergy who is an ordinary or who ranks in precedence with ordinaries. The word derives from the Latin prælatus, the past participle of præferre, which means "carry before", "be set above or over" or "prefer"; hence, a prelate is one set over others.-Related...

 of the Roman Catholic Church
Roman Catholic Church
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the world's largest Christian church, with over a billion members. Led by the Pope, it defines its mission as spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ, administering the sacraments and exercising charity...

. He has been the Bishop Emeritus of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Sorsogon
Roman Catholic Diocese of Sorsogon
The Roman Catholic Diocese of Sorsogon is a diocese of the Latin Rite of the Roman Catholic Church in the Philippines. The diocese was established in 1951 by the Archdiocese of Caceres, and in 1968, the diocese was subdivided after the Diocese of Masbate separated. The diocese is a suffragan of...

, since his retirement on April 16, 2003. He was appointed bishop of Sorsogon on November 27, 1980 Prior to that he served as the first ever sitting Bishop of then Diocese of Ozamis
Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Ozamis
The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Ozámiz is an ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Roman Catholic Church in the Philippines. Ozamiz is the Archdiocese in the Province of Misamis Occidental, on the island of Mindanao.-History:...

. He also served as the Auxiliary Bishop of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Zamboanga
Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Zamboanga
The Archdiocese of Zamboanga is a Catholic archdiocese in the Philippines. Its present jurisdiction includes Zamboanga City, with suffragans in Basilan , Sulu Archipelago and Zamboanga Sibugay...

 and titular Bishop of Tatilti.

Life

He was born on December 18, 1927, in Bacolod City
Bacolod City
The City of Bacolod , is a highly urbanized midsize Philippine city. It is the capital of the Negros Occidental province. Having a total of 499,497 inhabitants as of August 1, 2007, it is the most populous city in the Western Visayas Region. It is currently ranked as the 17th most populous city in...

, the son of Vicente Varela, a Judge from Bago City
Bago City
Bago City is a second class city in the province of Negros Occidental in the Philippines. According to the August 1, 2007 census, it has a population of 159,933 people. The city is located 21 kilometers south of the provincial capital, Bacolod City....

 within the same province of Negros Occidental
Negros Occidental
Negros Occidental is a province of the Philippines located in the Western Visayas region. Its capital is Bacolod City and it occupies the northwestern half of Negros Island; Negros Oriental is at the southeastern half...

. He is a direct descendant of Gregorio Varela
Varela Family of Negros
The Varela family is a clan from Negros, southern Philippines, the family has produced several notable figures in religion politics and education.-History:...

, a Spaniard who was one of Bago City
Bago City
Bago City is a second class city in the province of Negros Occidental in the Philippines. According to the August 1, 2007 census, it has a population of 159,933 people. The city is located 21 kilometers south of the provincial capital, Bacolod City....

's founding fathers, and through Gregorio's wife Josefa Araneta he is a distant relative to the revolutionary Juan Araneta
Juan Araneta
Juan Anacleto Araneta , was a pioneer sugar farmer and revolutionary leader during the Negros Revolution.-Early life:Juan was born to Romualdo Araneta and Agüeda Torres in Molo, Iloilo, Philippines...

.

Bishop Varela attended the Colegio Del Sagrado Corazon in Iloilo City
Iloilo City
The City of Iloilo is a highly urbanized city in the Philippines and the capital city of Iloilo province. It is the regional center of the Western Visayas, as well as the center of the Iloilo-Guimaras Metropolitan Area...

 for kindergarten, and the Iloilo Normal School for half of his elementary years. When his father was appointed a provincial judge in Surigao, he transferred to the Surigao Elementary School. The family later moved to Sorsogon
Sorsogon
Sorsogon is a province of the Philippines located in the Bicol Region; it is the southernmost province in Luzon and is subdivided into fourteen municipalities and one city. Its capital is Sorsogon City and borders the province of Albay to the north...

 when his father was reassigned. He studied at the Sorsogon National High School between 1946 and 1949, after which he studied for three years at the Our Lady of Peñafrancia Minor Seminary. Later, he also studied in the University of Santo Tomas
University of Santo Tomas
The Pontifical and Royal University of Santo Tomas, The Catholic University of the Philippines , is a private Roman Catholic university run by the Order of Preachers in Manila. Founded on April 28, 1611 by archbishop of Manila Miguel de Benavides, it has the oldest extant university charter in the...

 in Manila
Manila
Manila is the capital of the Philippines. It is one of the sixteen cities forming Metro Manila.Manila is located on the eastern shores of Manila Bay and is bordered by Navotas and Caloocan to the north, Quezon City to the northeast, San Juan and Mandaluyong to the east, Makati on the southeast,...

, earning a Ph.L. degree in 1952. Between 1958 and 1961 he completed coursework at the University of the Angelicum in Rome
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...

.

Varela was ordained on March 17, 1956 in Cebu City
Cebu City
The City of Cebu is the capital city of Cebu and is the second largest city in the Philippines, the second most significant metropolitan centre in the Philippines and known as the oldest settlement established by the Spaniards in the country.The city is located on the eastern shore of Cebu and was...

, where his father last served as a Provincial Judge. He joined the Society of Jesus, following in the footsteps of his older brother Mariano, who was a Jesuit priest. Later on his two younger sisters and one of his cousins became nuns. The latest in the family to join the religious service is his nephew Richard Varela of the Salesian Order.

In addition to his service as a bishop, Varela was also involved in broadcasting. In 1972, he served as the Vice President of UNDA, a Catholic radio and television organization, and in 1974 he became its president. He was also President of the Philippine Federation of Catholic Broadcasters, and used this position to criticize then Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos
Ferdinand Marcos
Ferdinand Emmanuel Edralin Marcos, Sr. was a Filipino leader and an authoritarian President of the Philippines from 1965 to 1986. He was a lawyer, member of the Philippine House of Representatives and a member of the Philippine Senate...

, at a time when all media were censored or under the direct control of the government.

He also serves as Chairman of the Episcopal Commission on Family and Life, of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines
Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines
The Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines is the official organization of the Catholic episcopacy in the Philippines. Archbishop Jose S. Palma of Cebu is the current president while Archbishop Socrates B. Villegas of Lingayen-Dagupan is the current Vice President. The CBCP has 99 active...

, and is a member of its permanent council to which all Filipino Roman Catholic bishops belong.

Ministry

  • 1956-1958- Chaplain, Agriculture College, Pili, Camarines Sur
  • 1956-1957- Curate, Pili, Camarines Sur
  • 1957-1958- Archdiocesan Vice Chancellor, Caceres
  • 1961-1963- CATWELO/CBCP Asst. Secretary General, Manila
  • 1963-1965- Archdiocesan Chancellor, Caceres
  • 1967-1975- Cursillos de Cristiandad/Archdiocesan Director, Caceres
  • 1967-1971- Auxiliary Bishop, Zamboanga
  • 1968-1972- Member, CBCP Administrative Council
  • 1971-1981- Diocesan Bishop, Ozamis
  • 1972
  • Vice President, UNDA Philippines
  • President, Philippine Federation of Catholic Broadcasters
  • 1974- President, UNDA Philippines
  • 1980-1994- Diocesan Bishop, Sorsogon
  • 1982–present
  • Chairman, Episcopal Commission on Family and Life
  • Member, CBCP Permanent Council

Sources

  • http://www.cbcponline.org/bishops/bishops/varela.html
  • http://www.catholic-hierarchy.org/bishop/bvarela.html
  • http://www.cbcponline.net/jurisdictions/sorsogon.html
  • http://www.igreens.org.uk/catholic_bishops_support_gmos.htm
  • Aquino appoints new Pag-Ibig execs
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