New San Fernando archbishop promises to be a servant of the poor
[wpgmappity id=”1522″]
CITY OF SAN FERNANDO, Pampanga, Philippines — To be a servant. To listen. To love the poor.
The new archbishop of San Fernando, the Most Rev. Florentino Lavarias, promised to do all these when he met with provincial officials at the Pampanga capitol Monday morning prior to his official installation as the archdiocese’s new head.
“An important aspect of life is service. I’m one with you in service,” Lavarias told the officials as he laid out his thrusts as archbishop.
“It is one thing to be a servant and it is another thing to be treated as one,” he added. “I’d like to listen to you. I’d like to be given by God the grace to listen to you.”
Lavarias said the poor should be love “unconditionally.”
A native of Mabalacat City, Lavarias replaced Archbishop Paciano Aniceto whose retirement in 2012 at the mandatory age of 75 was accepted by Pope Francis last July.
The archdiocese has suffragans in Tarlac, Bataan and Zambales.
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