Bishop-elect Occiano ordination, installation date set

By CBCP News

Father Luisitio Occiano, who has been appointed by Pope Francis as the new bishop of Virac, will officially assume his new role on June 26.

Occiano, 52, will be installed as Virac’s third bishop five days after his episcopal ordination at the Peñafrancia Basilica Minore in Naga City on June 21 at 9 a.m.

Archbishop Emeritus Rolando Tria Tirona of Caceres will ordain the priest to the episcopate, with Archbishop Charles Brown, apostolic nuncio to the Philippines, and Archbishop Adolfo Tito Yllana, apostolic nuncio to Israel and Cyprus, serving as co-consecrators.

In Virac, he will be installed to his seat in the Immaculate Conception Cathedral by Archbishop-elect Rex Andrew Alarcon, who is also scheduled to assume leadership of the Caceres archdiocese on May 2.

Occiano’s appointment as bishop was announced by the Vatican on February 29. He will succeed retired Bishop Manolo de los Santos, who served the Virac diocese for around 29 years.

In the interim, the pope also appointed De los Santos as the diocese’s apostolic administrator of Virac until the installation of Occiano.