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Manila Bulletin devider Philippines devider National devider Garcera elected new CBCP president, succeeds Cardinal David

Garcera elected new CBCP president, succeeds Cardinal David

Published Jul 5, 2025 04:59 pm
(PHOTO: ARCHDIOCESE OF LIPA FACEBOOK PAGE)
(PHOTO: ARCHDIOCESE OF LIPA FACEBOOK PAGE)
Archbishop Gilbert Garcera of Lipa has been elected president of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP), replacing Cardinal Pablo Virgilio David of Kalookan, whose final term ends in November.
The election was held Saturday, July 5, during the opening of the bishops’ 130th plenary assembly in Anda, Bohol.
Garcera, 66, is currently part of the CBCP Permanent Council as the regional representative for Southeast Luzon. 
He will lead the collegial body of Catholic bishops for a two-year term starting December 1, 2025.
He has served as archbishop of Lipa since 2017. The archdiocese, located in Batangas, is home to more than 3.3 million Catholics.
Within the CBCP, Garcera previously chaired the Commission on Mission and the Commission on Family and Life. 
Before becoming bishop, he also served as assistant secretary general of the CBCP, executive secretary of the Episcopal Commission on Mission, and national director of the Pontifical Mission Society.
Ordained a priest for the Archdiocese of Caceres in 1983, he was appointed bishop of Daet in 2007, a position he held until his transfer to Lipa.
Garcera also held leadership roles within the Federation of Asian Bishops’ Conferences (FABC), where he served as chairman of the Office on Laity and Family and as director of its Synodal Leadership for Asian Bishops Seminar. 
In 2014, he was among three Philippine delegates to the Synod on the Family held at the Vatican.
Also elected was Archbishop Julius Tonel of Zamboanga, who will serve as CBCP vice president. The 68-year-old prelate will replace Bishop Mylo Hubert Vergara of Pasig, whose second and final term ends in November.
Tonel was ordained a priest for the Archdiocese of Davao in 1980. He was appointed bishop of Ipil in 2007 and became archbishop of Zamboanga in 2023. 
He previously chaired the CBCP Commission on Liturgy and currently heads the CBCP Committee on Bishops’ Concerns.
Both Garcera and Tonel, along with other members of the Permanent Council, will officially assume their new posts on December 1, 2025.
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