Pope Francis recently named 21 new cardinals, bringing the total count of red hats up to 256. Among them was another Filipino bishop: Pablo Virgilio David, president of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines, who will become the nation’s 10th cardinal.
The announcement came as a surprise to many, but no one was more surprised than Bishop David, who reportedly first thought his procurator was joking when he was informed. According to Rappler, the conversation went like this:
Procurator: “Congratulations, po [a Tagalog term of respect].”
Cardinal David: “For what, Father Marvin?”
Procurator: “Na-announce po na CARDINAL po kayo… (It was announced that you are a CARDINAL…).”
Cardinal David: “Joke?”
It was not until the newly designated Cardinal David watched the video of Pope Francis announcing the 21 new cardinals that he was sure that he was, in fact, on the list. Then, his new position was further confirmed as he suddenly began to receive a torrent of messages from friends, family, and the Catholic community with their congratulations.
Cardinal-Designate David told Rappler that when he was done with his phone calls he had to take a few minutes to do breathing exercises in order to calm himself down. He described the surreal feeling of suddenly and unexpectedly being named a cardinal:
“Now it felt like Elijah standing by the mouth of a cave and feeling a soft breeze that penetrated my soul and prepared me for this new chapter of my life and ministry as a bishop, as a servant of God’s people,” Bishop David recalled. “I said, ‘Okay, Lord. My life is in your hands.’”
Bishop David, 65, is a biblical scholar who is known for his work defending human rights. Once he is formally installed as a cardinal, on December 8, he will become one of just three Filipino cardinals who are young enough to vote at the next papal enclave.
