Did you know

THE NEWLY beatified Pope John Paul II visited the country three times, once as a cardinal, and twice during his papacy—in 1981 and 1995. During his February 1981 visit, he beatified the first Filipino martyr, Lorenzo Ruiz, along with 15 other Christian martyrs and personally told then Jaime Cardinal Sin that he wanted the Manila Cathedral to become a Basilica. The Manila Cathedral was turned into a Minor Basilica via a Papal Bull issued by Pope John Paul II on April 27, 1981. Schatzi Quodala, Inquirer Research