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| A Historical Glimpse at the Diocese of Lucena |
| 04 March 2020 |
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The Christian faith came to Quezon Province, where the present Diocese of Lucena is located, in the last quarter of 16th century, when the Spaniards began to assign encomenderos in to be in charge of towns such as Lucban and Tayabas.
The initial evangelization done by the Augustinian friars in Lucban marked the earliest contact of the natives of Lucban, one of the first pueblos set up by the Spaniards in the province of Tayabas, with Christianity.
Around the 1580s, the Franciscan friars began the systematic process of Hispanization and Christianization called reduccion. Tayabas, founded by Friar Juan de Plasencia and Friar Diego de Oropesa in 1578, was established as a parish in 1580. They also converted the natives of Lucban, which had its first resident curate in 1595.
Upon the effectivity of "Super Specula Militantis Ecclesiae," the papal bull of erection of the Diocese of Caceres in Naga in 1595, the provinces of Quezon and Marinduque began to belong to the jurisdiction of this diocese. Prior to this date, the Diocese of Manila covered the entire territory of the Philippines.
From 1595 until 1910, Quezon and Marinduque were spiritually and pastorally governed by the bishops of the Diocese of Caceres. On April 10, 1910, the 1902 papal bull of Pope Leo XIII erecting the bishoprics of Lipa, Calbayog, Tuguegarao and Zamboanga, was finally executed by Pope Pius X. This signalled the transfer of Quezon and Marinduque to the jurisdiction of the Diocese of Lipa.
The papal bull "Quo Aeternae Dominici Greges Saluti" of Pope Pius XII constituting the new Diocese of Lucena, was dated March 28, 1950. Its canonical erection took place on September 8, 1950 at St. Ferdinand Cathedral in Lucena, City. According to the bull, the new diocese in Southern Tagalog was to be a sufragan of the Archdiocese of Manila. Bishop Rufino Santos of Manila served as the Apostolic Administrator of Lucena from September 1950 to January 21, 1951. Bishop Alfredo Ma. Obviar took possession of the Diocese of Lucena on January 22, 1951. He resigned as Bishop of Lucena on September 25, 1976. Bishop Jose T. Sanchez was installed Coadjutor Bishop of Lucena, with right of succession, on February 7, 1972, and was appointed as its Residential Bishop on September 25, 1976, formally taking possession of the diocese on October 19, 1976.
The province of Marinduque was segregated from the Diocese of Lucena on April 2, 1977, and on May 10, 1978, the Diocese of Boac was canonically erected.
Bishop Sanchez spearheaded the historic First Synod of Lucena on April 24-27, 1979. Its 284 resolutions became the basis of the renewal of the diocese.
After Bishop Sanchez was appointed Archbishop of Nueva Segovia on January 12, 1982, Bishop Ruben T. Profugo, then Auxiliary Bishop of Lucena, was erected Vicar Capitular of the diocese. On May 15, 1982, Bishop Profugo was appointed as the third residential Bishop of Lucena; his formal installation took place on July 13, 1982.
Gumaca, comprising the eastern part of Quezon province, was made into separate diocese in 1984. The Diocese of Gumaca was canonically erected on January 29, 1985.
On May 4, 2002, Pope John Paul II appointed Bishop Emilio Z. Marquez, then Bishop of Gumaca, as Coadjutor Bishop of Lucena, with right of succession, and apostolic administrator of Gumaca. Bishop Marquez formally took possession of the Diocese of Lucena on November 4, 2003. During his administration, the Second Synod of Lucena was convened on June 7-11, 2004, coinciding with the 25th anniversary of the first synod. To asses the pastoral life of the diocese by evaluating the implementation of the nine decrees of the second synod, Bishop Marquez convened the Diocesan Pastoral Assembly on November 10-12, 2014. Under his helm, eight new parishes were canonically erected in the diocese. |
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