Ex-Legazpi bishop Cariño dies at 86
Retired Bishop Nestor Cariño, who served in at least three dioceses and was a former secretary general of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP), died on Saturday. He was 86.
The Diocese of Legazpi, where he served as its bishop emeritus, confirmed his death in a statement, saying Cariño passed away at 11:15 a.m. at the Cardinal Santos Medical Center in San Juan City. The cause of his death was not disclosed.
“We commend his soul to the mercy of God and ask the clergy, religious, and lay faithful of the Diocese to pray for the eternal repose of his soul,” the diocese said.
In its tribute, the CBCP said Cariño “faithfully served the Church as priest for over 63 years, and as a bishop for over 46 years.”
“Let us commend him to the mercy of our loving Father, in gratitude for his lifetime of selfless service to the Church and the people of God,” it added.
Wake and funeral arrangements have yet to be announced, but the diocese said he will be laid to rest at Saint Gregory the Great Cathedral in Legazpi City.
Born on Sept. 8, 1938, in Malinao, Albay, Cariño was ordained to the priesthood in 1961. He was appointed auxiliary bishop of Legazpi City in 1978.
He served as bishop of Borongan in Eastern Samar from 1980 to 1986, when he was elected CBCP secretary general.
In 2001, while still serving at the CBCP, then-Manila Archbishop Jaime Cardinal Sin asked him to serve the Ecclesiastical District of Pasig.
Cariño was appointed auxiliary bishop of Daet in 2003 and later became the fifth bishop of Legazpi City in 2005, a position he held until his retirement in 2007.
