Roman Catholic Territorial Prelature of Isabela
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The Territorial Prelature of Isabela (de Basilan) ( la, Praelatura Territorialis Isabellapolitana) is a
Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...
territorial prelature A territory is an area of land, sea, or space, particularly belonging or connected to a country, person, or animal. In international politics, a territory is usually either the total area from which a state may extract power resources or an ...
located in the province of
Basilan Basilan, officially the Province of Basilan ( cbk, Provincia de Basilan; yka, Wilayah Basilanin; tsg, Wilaya' sin Basilan; fil, Lalawigan ng Basilan), is an island province of the Philippines located primarily in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Re ...
, and its component cities of
Isabela City Isabela, officially the City of Isabela (Chavacano: ''Ciudad de Isabela''; Tausūg: ''Dāira sin Isabela''; Yakan: ''Suidad Isabelahin''; fil, Lungsod ng Isabela), is a 4th class component city and ''de facto'' capital of the province of Basil ...
and
Lamitan City Lamitan, officially the City of Lamitan (Chavacano: ''Ciudad de Lamitan''; Yakan: ''Siyudad Lamitanin''; Tausūg: ''Dāira sin Lamitan''; fil, Lungsod ng Lamitan), is a 6th class component city and ''de jure'' capital of the province of Basil ...
, in the
Ecclesiastical province An ecclesiastical province is one of the basic forms of jurisdiction Jurisdiction (from Latin 'law' + 'declaration') is the legal term for the legal authority granted to a legal entity to enact justice. In federations like the United State ...
of Zamboanga in the Philippines.


History

The Prelature of Isabela in Basilan was established on October 12, 1963, and comprises the whole of Basilan Province, including Isabela City, its former capital, and Lamitan City, the new capital. Bishop Jose Ma. Querexeta, CMF, was the first bishop−prelate of Isabela. During his term, he established parishes for the Catholics as well as schools for both Muslims and Christians. The Mindanao War in the 1970s shattered the prelature's dream of Christians and Muslims living peacefully side by side. This was aggravated by the kidnapping of a Spanish Claretian priest in 1987 who had devoted many years of his priestly life in Basilan attending to the spiritual needs of Christians and the economic needs of the poorer Muslims. Bishop Romulo dela Cruz became the Prelate Ordinary of Basilan in 1989 upon the retirement of Bishop Querexeta. It was during Dela Cruz′s term as a bishop when Islamic Fundamentalism was on the rise and the Abu Sayyaf, a violent fundamentalist group of armed adherents, came into existence. One Franciscan brother and one Claretian priest were kidnapped in 1992 and 1993 respectively. Not even the local clergy was spared. Father Cirilo Nacorda was kidnapped on June 8, 1994, and was released three months later, but not before fifteen of his companions were killed and the remaining 25 captives, mostly teachers and health workers, were finally released. Kidnapping remains a genuine threat for church workers and priests in Basilan. But admirably, not a single one of them, including the lay workers, are intimidated by it, or retreat because of fear. The prelature personnel, from the lay workers up to the bishop himself, are one in standing firm on no ransom for kidnapping. Perhaps because of the semblance of "persecution" of Christians, who are very often the victims of the present instability in Basilan, there is also perceived a unity and solidarity among them. Lay people are exceptionally and spiritually alive, and are always willing to work and get involved. The impending establishment of a Provisional Government in Mindanao under the
Moro National Liberation Front The Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF; ar, الجبهة الوطنية لتحرير مورو) is a political organization in the Philippines that was founded in 1972. It started as a splinter group of the Muslim Independence Movement. The M ...
(
MNLF The Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF; ar, الجبهة الوطنية لتحرير مورو) is a political organization in the Philippines that was founded in 1972. It started as a splinter group of the Muslim Independence Movement. The M ...
) hangs like a sword of Damocles over Basilan Christians who have no wish to be part of the Provisional Government.


Vision and Mission of the Prelature

For its vision, the church in Basilan hopes to proclaim a Christian understanding of the human person, of society, and the common good of all the people of Basilan, considering its divergent cultures, religions and ideologies. For its mission it aims to promote a "new spirituality" that unites people in faith and in the Lord, in justice and charity towards neighbor, in a personal conversion that could bring about a change in societal structures. It is the perception of the church in Basilan that the renewal of a vision and a mission, as initiated by the Plenary Council of the Philippines II, is not entirely new for Basilan Christians because of their minority situation. Rather it is a question of deepening this renewal in order to strengthen one's own
evangelization In Christianity, evangelism (or witnessing) is the act of preaching the gospel with the intention of sharing the message and teachings of Jesus Christ. Christians who specialize in evangelism are often known as evangelists, whether they are i ...
, to be able to pass this on to one's neighbor, be he Muslim or Christian.


Prelates A prelate () is a high-ranking member of the Christian clergy who is an ordinary or who ranks in precedence with ordinaries. The word derives from the Latin , the past participle of , which means 'carry before', 'be set above or over' or 'pref ...
of Isabela


References


GCatholic.org



Prelature website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Isabela Roman Catholic dioceses in the Philippines Roman Catholic Ecclesiastical Province of Zamboanga Isabela, Basilan Christian organizations established in 1963 Roman Catholic dioceses and prelatures established in the 20th century Territorial prelatures