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Sunday, March 14, 2004
Apu Ceto’s endless mission
By Ria Isidro-de Fiesta
HE CLAIMS he is 67, but he looks more like he is in his mid-50s. He may seem fragile at first glance, but he is not fragile in personality and in spirit. These traits, and more, are what has made Archbishop Paciano Aniceto one of the well-loved and respected personas in the Catholic Community.
In an interview with Sun•Star Pampanga, Apu Ceto, as he is fondly called by many, has bared his impression on what is presently transpiring in his community and his insights on the coming elections.
SSP: Sir, we have featured you numerous times, but we have to admit that we do not know your age.
APU CETO: (Laughs) Siguro kung babae ako mahihirapan kang malaman. I’m 67 years old.
SSP: Could you please give us a brief background of your childhood?
APU CETO: I was born in Sta. Ana and I am the oldest of four. As a young boy, I used to serve at the Sunday Mass frequently.
SSP: When did you receive your calling?
APU CETO: As I said earlier, I was an altar boy. It was then that a tangible and invisible power from the altar pulled me into what became my vocation. I was a high school student at the Holy Cross Academy then. I was around 15 or 16.
SSP: Where did you study to become a priest?
APU CETO: After high school, I entered the Mother of Good Counsel Seminary in Apalit. I studied there for two years. From there I transferred for college at the San Jose Seminary in Quezon City. There, I took Philosophy and Theology courses.
I was ordained priest on December 23, 1962 by Cardinal Rufino Santos at the Manila Cathedral.
SSP: Could you please give us a brief account of your priesthood?
APU CETO: I was first assigned as assistant parish priest in Betis, for four years. Then I was assigned as assistant parish priest of Mabalacat. In 1965, I was transferred at the Mother of Good Counsel Seminary, in San Fernando where I was assigned as spiritual director, then procurator and finally rector. I stayed 11 years in the seminary.
In 1977, I got my first parish — in San Jose Malino in Mexico, and then I was assigned as assistant parish priest in Del Carmen in Guagua. In 1978, I was appointed secretary to Archbishop Oscar Cruz.
On June 20, 1979, I was installed auxiliary bishop in Tuguegarao, Cagayan for five years, and then as bishop of Iba, Zambales until December 13, 1983.
After six years, on March 14, 1989, I was transferred to San Fernando as the 3rd Archbishop of Pampanga.
SSP: What could you consider your accomplishments?
APU CETO: In the Church, we do not work alone, but always in solidarity with the priests, the religious and the people.
During the critical years of the Pinatubo disaster, we convened the 1st Archdiocesan Pastoral Assembly. This assembly crafted the 2nd Archdiocesan Integrated Pastoral Plan, which is the basis of all activities and projects of parishes, institutions and schools.
With the help of the priests, the clergy also established the clergy common fund, which supports various pastoral functions and the health needs of the clergy.
The clergy was also able to build a clergy center, Bale Pari, for our retired and old priests.
SSP: They said that you are one of the respected personas in the Catholic community. How do you feel about this?
APU CETO: I do not conduct any survey about myself. (Laughs) Well, I try my best to live up to my motto, imple ministerium, which means that I am always available to be of service to the Christian community.
SSP: What could you advice those who want to follow your footsteps?
APU CETO: They must consider priesthood as an alternate form of employing their keeps for the moral and religious formation of our people.
In our age of globalization, we need priests who will assert the basic values of the Gospel of Christ.
SSP: Who are your inspirations?
APU CETO: My inspirations are my parents who lived with simple faith in God, as well as my teachers and my professors in the seminary.
SSP: Do you feel that you still have more to do in this lifetime?
APU CETO: The mission of Christ never ends. Age or other factors do not prevent me from pursuing the basic call to respond to God’s Kingdom.
SSP: The elections are only two months away. What do you think the next president of the country should possess in order to serve the country well?
APU CETO: The next president should possess the necessary quality for leadership — competence and real concern for the common good. The next president should know how to manage our economy and adopt policies that will alleviate poverty, promote peace and order and unity among our people.
SSP: May we ask who you will be endorsing for president?
APU CETO: I do not endorse any candidate. The Church endorses the qualities and qualifications that should be possessed by the candidates.
SSP: What is your birthday wish for Pampanga, and for yourself as well?
APU CETO: My wish for my cabalen is that we continue developing a strong sense of God and human dignity, which is the basis for constructing a society that is human, just and peaceful.
(March 14, 2004 issue)
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