Pope Francis appoints new auxiliary bishop for Lingayen-Dagupan

• Source:http://www.pna.gov.ph/index.php?nid=1&rid=890785
• Thursday, June 2, 2016

By (PNA), SCS/FGP/EDS

MANILA (PNA) -- Pope Francis has appointed Msgr. Elmer Mangalinao as the new auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of Lingayen-Dagupan.

The appointment of Mangalinao was announced by the Vatican at 12 noon on Tuesday (6 p.m., Manila time).

According to an article posted on the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) website, the archdiocese has been without an auxiliary bishop since December 2012 after Renato Mayugba was installed bishop of Laoag.

In Pangasinan, Mangalinao will assist the archdiocese’s chief shepherd, Archbishop Socrates Villegas, in his governance of the local Church.

Prior to his appointment, the 56-year-old bishop-elect is the vicar general of the Cabanatuan diocese.

He is also the current president of the College of the Immaculate Conception in Cabanatuan City and School Cluster Head of Sacred Heart School of Talavera and Our Lady of Fatima, General Natividad.

No date has been announced for the Episcopal ordination of Mangalinao and for his installation as the new auxiliary bishop of Lingayen-Dagupan.

Auxiliary bishops are appointed by the pope at the request of the diocesan bishop “when pastoral needs require” their presence, according to the Code of Canon Law.

Their role is to assist the diocesan bishop in the functions of the office and the diocese.

However, their exact duties depend on the diocese, and the responsibilities a bishop assigns them.