Archbishop , Archdiocese of Agana
Brief Chat
His inaugural homily during his installation as the fourth archbishop of the Archdiocese of Agana was tinged with poignant candor , contrition and self-flagellation . “ We church leaders disappointed you , we ’ ve hurt you , we ’ ve betrayed your trust ,” Archbishop Ryan Jimenez said .
His homily was occasionally spiced up with humor — disclosing his fondness for karaoke that brought chuckles to the hundreds of Catholic faithful who witnessed the event at the Dulce Nombre de Maria Cathedral-Basilica in Hagatna on Aug . 15 .
But ahead of him are highly demanding tasks that are not funny — such as sweeping up the debris of a church scandal that shocked the Guam community . Jimenez is inheriting the tasks to complete the implementation of the $ 45 million settlement agreement between the archdiocese and the more than 250 former altar servers who sued , alleging sex abuse by clergy members .
He buckled down to work the very next day after his installation . “ I had to do some paperwork and I have to spend time learning the things that our archdiocese has been doing especially with the bankruptcy case ,” Jimenez said at a press conference on Aug . 16 .
The archdiocese has been able to sell most of its 41 listed assets to cover the settlement costs . “ The only property that is on the market right now is the Chancery . “ We ’ re not selling churches or parishes ,” Jimenez said .
Last year , the local nonprofit Phoenix Foundation pulled out its offer to acquire the Chancery compound from the Archdiocese of Agana after falling short of the $ 2.3 million required to seal the transaction .
“ We ’ re doing our best to do our part to comply with the court order . Everything now is under the trust , which has been mandated to give what the victims deserve ,” Jimenez said .
Before being appointed archbishop of Agana , Jimenez served as the bishop of the Diocese of Chalan Kanoa on Saipan . He succeeded Archbishop Michael Byrnes who resigned last year due to health reasons . Byrnes succeeded Antonio Apuron , who was defrocked by the Vatican after being found guilty of
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Ryan Jimenez
Archbishop , Archdiocese of Agana
Mending a fractured church
By Mar-Vic Cagurangan sex charges .
Bringing back to the fold those who have abandoned their faith as a result of the church ’ s scandalous episode is also a challenge that Jimenez is taking on . The Guam church hid its disgraceful secrets for more than five decades until the sex abuse survivors came out in the open .
“ I need to do my best to reach out to these people who lost their trust in us ,” he said . “ My approach is to be patient . We don ’ t judge . God is patient with us , so I need also to be patient .”
Jimenez vowed to beef up the archdiocese ’ s child protection initiatives “ to ensure that the safe environment standards are implemented .”
He acknowledged that , in general , the church is becoming aloof and is sometimes slacking off in its duties . “ We just wait until somebody rings the doorbell . Our task is to go out there and ring doorbells ,” the archbishop said .
The church ’ s basic pastoral care and availability to the people leave much to be desired as well , he said . “ Sometimes , we priests tend to look at our vocation as if we ’ re the CEO . We need to manage the church as an organization , but our responsibility goes far beyond that ,” he said .
Treating the church missions as regular work needs to change , Jimenez said . “ We ’ re betraying the people . We signed up here to serve . We have days off but our vocation is to be there whenever we are needed . If there ’ s a sick call , we should abandon everything and go respond to the request .”
While there ’ s a separation of church and state , staying in one lane requires reconsideration when the common good is at stake , Jimenez said . Church leaders are duty-bound to participate in public discourses , he said .
Abortion , for example , is one of the most divisive and recurring debates on Guam , a predominantly Catholic community . Jimenez stands by the church ’ s position . “ The Catholic teaching is very clear : all life from the moment of conception to death must be upheld , must be respected ,” he said . “ The archdiocese needs to have a louder voice .”
Jimenez stressed that it is the church ’ s duty to address social issues such as drug abuse , feeding the hungry and homelessness . “ We need to address these issues with a holistic approach . It ’ s continuing . It ’ s long term , and not just like band-aid solutions ,” he said .
Jimenez concurrently serves as a consultant to the U . S . Conference of Catholic Bishops Subcommittee on Asian and Pacific Islander Affairs . Born and raised in the Philippines , Jimenez came as a migrant worker to the Northern Mariana Islands in 1995 and taught at Eskuelan San Francisco de Borja , a Catholic school on Rota .
He began his studies and formation for the priesthood at St . Joseph Seminary College ( high school department ) in the Diocese of Dumaguete , Philippines . He then transferred to the college program of the Jesuit-run San Jose Seminary in Quezon City , earning an undergraduate degree from the Ateneo de Manila
University .
After living in the Northern Marianas for more than 20 years , Jimenez braced for adjustments . “ Home is where God put you at the moment at a particular place at a particular time ,” he said .