Photo by Kyzeir Jover Javier/ THE FLAME
POPE LEO XIV’s representative to the Philippines highlighted the importance of listening in the ministry of bishops, saying it should always be part of their meditation and their interactions with the people entrusted to their care.
“This act of liturgical listening is fundamental for us as disciples of Jesus,” Apostolic Nuncio to the Philippines Archbishop Charles John Brown said during the celebration of the double jubilee of Manila Archbishop Cardinal Jose Advincula on Tuesday, Sept. 15, at the Manila Cathedral.
Audiam or “I will listen” is the episcopal motto of Advincula.
Brown said the bishops, as episkopos or overseers, are called to see the way forward and lead the Church as its people journey together.
But to truly lead, they must listen to those they serve, he added.
“For all of us as priests and bishops, this first listening, this listening to God is not only the root of our vocation, but is also of course something we must practice every day in our lives of prayer and meditation,” the prelate said.
Brown described Advincula’s meeting with the late Jaime Cardinal Sin as a “providential” encounter between two future archbishops of Manila.
He recalled Advincula’s entry into St. Pius X Seminary in Roxas City, Capiz in 1964, where the late cardinal served as rector and taught him Latin.
“Cardinal Joe (Advincula) has shown himself to be exemplary, always available, a shepherd who knows his flock, a generous pastor who is constantly visiting his people, listening to them, presiding at countless celebrations throughout the archdiocese of Manila and beyond,” Brown added.
On the same day, Advincula launched his book. “Audiam: A Listening Heart for a Synodal Church,” a compilation of his homilies.
The book features a foreword by Advincula’s predecessor, Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle.
“A book like this one allows us to listen, to listen once again by reading, to homilies that the cardinal has delivered in these last several years as metropolitan archbishop of Manila,” Brown said.
Advincula marked his 50th anniversary of priestly ordination and 25th anniversary of episcopal ordination this year. He was ordained a priest on April 4, 1976, and a bishop on Sept. 8, 2001. F — Abigail Peralta
