VILLAREAL (Studio Eight)
ILOILO CITY – Reverend Fr. Cyril Buhayan Villareal was installed as the new bishop of the Diocese of Kalibo in Aklan province.
“I promise that I will do my best to be a good shepherd to you – a shepherd who listens to you and who cares for you; a shepherd who will pray for you; a shepherd who will bless you with the Lord,” said Villareal after his episcopal ordination and installation at Kalibo Cathedral in Kalibo on Thursday, April 23.
He was appointed by Pope Leo XIV last Jan. 24 after Bishop Jose Corazon Tala-oc retired in June 2025. The position was vacant for nearly 10 months. Archbishop Victor Bendico of Capiz served as the diocese’s apostolic administrator.
Villareal hails from the neighboring Capiz province and was born in Mambusao town in 1974.
Prior to becoming bishop of Kalibo, the 52-year-old Villareal served in his native province as the parish priest of Dao town.
He graduated high school and earned his A.B. Philosophy degree at Saint Pius X Seminary in Roxas City.
Villareal studied Theology at the University of Santo Tomas (UST) in Sampaloc, Manila and obtained a master’s degree in theology from a university in Vienna, Austria.
He was ordained priest on May 25, 2001 at the Immaculate Conception Metropolitan Cathedral in Roxas City.
Present during his installation was Manila Archbishop Cardinal Jose Advincula Jr., a fellow Capiz native and former archbishop of Capiz.