Archbishop Jose Palma, born in Iloilo and was ordained as a priest in the Diocese of Jaro in 1976, is the newest member of the Vatican’s Pontifical Council for Culture who was recently appointed by Pope Francis last November 11, 2019. He is the only Asian appointee among the eight new members who joined the council as well. Archbishop Palma is a Thomasian graduate of batch 1980. He finished his licentiate in theology and was honored as the magna cum laude in his batch.
He became the president of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines from 2011 to 2013 and led the International Eucharistic Congress in Cebu in 2016. Through this he became the metropolitan of the Cebu archdiocese since 2011.
It is not surprising that he was appointed as one of the council members because he actively shares his insights and opinions about current trends and problems experienced by the Filipino people. He is a human rights advocate who is strongly and verbally against the extrajudicial killings which has heightened during the reign of current President Rodrigo Duterte. One of his most notable lines is “While we appreciate the efforts against illegal drugs, we also question the process things are done,” which is aimed for President Duterte’s weird action against drugs.
Through his active participation and concern with the state of our nation, he is truly an effective Christian and political leader who considers the humanity of others. He not only is able to lead his fellow archbishops and council members, but also the whole Filipino community who wants to put an end to the current injustices we are facing. Archbishop Jose Palma wants to connect the Church with the current crowd and youth so that we may easily open and accept Jesus in our hearts.
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