“In Spirit and in Truth”

The second Diocesan Clergy of Davao who became bishop took his seat as the seventh Metropolitan Archbishop of Zamboanga last August 22, 2023. He was the Parish Priest of San Pablo Parish, Juna Subdivision, Matina, Davao City when he adopted his coat of arms “In Spiritu Et Veritate” upon his ordination as bishop-elect of Ipil in August 20, 2007.

In his homily during the installation at the Immaculate Conception Cathedral., Jose F. Cardinal Advincula, Jr., D.D., of the Archdiocese of Manila, had these opening words: “In spirit and in truth, we gather in this beautiful Cathedral dedicated to the Immaculate Conception of the Holy Mother of God. In spirit and truth we worship the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. In sprit and in truth we join the communion of saints as we break bread and share the cup of eternal blessing. In spirit and truth we celebrate the sacred liturgy, the source and summit of our Christian life. In the sacred liturgy is celebrated in this magnificent Cathedral of Zamboanga hermosa and installed today is the Most Rev. Julius Sullan Tonel, as its Metroplitan Archbishop.”

Cardinal Advincula recalls that, “As early as 1910, St. Pius X of happy memory created the Diocese of Zamboanga covering the whole island of Mindanao. In 1958, Zamboanga became an Archdiocese.”

Drawing from the Gospel reading on the Annunciation, he proposes his reflection on the mystery of the incarnation saying: “What joy it is for us to behold once again the event of the incarnation today. And what a joy it is for us to have you Bishop Joy, now Archbishop Joy as Archbishop of Zamboanga. Archbishop Joy, always say your Fiat to Jesus our Lord and Savior. Always say your Fiat to Jesus every time you encounter Him in the early morning hours in your private chapel. Always say your Fiat to Jesus when you encounter the presbyterium entrusted to you, when you visit parishes and towns, when you traverse the length and height of this particular Church. Let your Fiat create a culture of encounter in the Church of Zamboanga, for the culture of encounter brings about the joy of the Gospel. Be a concrete sign of the joy of the Gospel.”

It was an opportune time for Cardinal Advincula to reveal the beginnings of Archbishop Tonel’s love of the Liturgy which he took up in Rome with Archbishop Valles before they together worked as formators at the St. Francis Xavier Regioinal Major Seminary of Mindanao. Cardinal Advincula quips, “Your love for the sacred liturgy is known for so many of us. No other than your grand niece told us las night in the testimonial banquet that even as a small child you would re-arrange the furnitures for the mass.”

Further, Cardinal Advincula has this remembrance for the new Archbishop Tonel of Zamboanga: “From the University of Sto. Tomas, where you spent your Seminary years, to your studies at the Pontifical Institute of Liturgy, San Anslemo in Rome, with the great Filipino Benedictine Fr. Anscar Chupungco, how I remember well those years when I find you and Archbishop Muloy Valles coming home late in the evening because classes at the San Anselmo begin in the afternoon till the evening. I saw you tired after the gluing classes in liturgy taught in Italian. Yes, the late Fr. Anscar Chupungco demanded nothing but excellence from the Filipino priests in San Anselmo. And you, Archbishop Joy did very well during those years. I am proud of the fact that so many Filipino liturgists have been formed by Fr. Anscar Chupungco and are now serving in their respective Dioceses and religious communities.”

As a brother Archbishop, Cardinal Advincula has this advice to Archbishop Tonel: “Archbishop Joy, remember the seven actions of the shepherd: you feed the flock, you restore the flock, you guide the flock, you protect the flock, you shape the flock, you resource for the flock, and yes you empower the flock. Build on the achievements of your predecessors. Provide vision and direction in the spirit of the Gospel of Jesus.”

Althought the first Diocesan Clergy of Davao who was ordained Bishop, Most Rev. Guillermo Afable, D.D., Bishop of Digos, could not make it to the installation of Archbishop Tonel in Zamboanga since it was the Feast Day of the Cathedral of Digos, the Mary Mediatrix Cathedral, the third Diocesan Clergy of Davao who was ordained Bishop of Mati was there to witness the momentous event of the one who delivered the homily during his installation in the Diocese of Mati. (Photos: The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Zamboanga FB Page)