Feature: ArchB Villegas celebrates silver anniversary of priesthood
By Venus H. Sarmiento
Dagupan City (7 October) -- Hundreds of visitors flocked to St. John's Cathedral here to greet Lingayen Dagupan Archbishop Socrates Villegas on the celebration of his 25 years of priesthood.
Villegas said it was God's will that he celebrates his silver jubilee here in Pangasinan saying "Bataan was my 'love at first sight' but Dagupan became the 'apple of my eye'."
The archbishop said he never imagined this to happen when he was ordained as a priest in 1985. He said whatever new and abrupt things that happen to a man's life is God's will because He is full of surprises.
"Kung minsan ang Diyos ay nagbibiro sa mga nagpaplano sa kanilang buhay," he added.
Villegas was ordained as a priest at the Immaculate Conception Cathedral in Manila on October 5, 1985. He received his appointment from Pope Benedict XVI to head the Lingayen- Dagupan diocese on Sept 8, 2009 to replace retired Archbishop Oscar Cruz.
He was also an awardee of the 1994 Catholic Authors Award and was cited as one of the Ten Outstanding Young Men (TOYM) of the Philippines in 2000. Villegas is also widely known to be close to the Aquino family being a friend of the late President Corazon Aquino. (PIA-Pangasinan) [top]
