In a land area of 5,088.4 square kilometers, the Archdiocese of Cebu covers the whole civil province of Cebu. This province island lies at the heart of the Central Philippines called the Visayas region. In the history of Christian evangelization, it prides itself as the Cradle of Christianity in the Far East because it is here that the first European explorers, headed by the Portuguese Ferdinand Magellan, sailing under the auspices of the kingdom of Spain in 1521, established their first settlement and introduced Christianity.

It is located to the east of Negros island; to the west of Leyte, and Bohol islands. It is situated on both sides by the straits of Bohol (between Cebu, and Bohol), and Tañon (between Cebu, and Negros). Cebu is located between 9°25'N and 11°15'N latitude, and between 123°13'E, and 124°5'E longitude in the center of the Philippine Islands.

Cebu is a long narrow island stretching 225 kilometers (140 miles) from north to south, surrounded by 167 neighboring smaller islands, that includes Mactan Island, Bantayan, Malapascua, Olango, and the Camotes Islands.

Like the rest of tropical Philippines, Cebu has basically two seasons, hot or dry (summer) from March to May, and rainy or wet season from June to February. Cebu's tropical climate is tempered by the breezes that blow over the island from the Pacific Ocean. The temperature range over the year is from 26°C to 38°C. At night, temperatures to as low as 18°C during the cooler months. But in the heat of summer temperatures can reach 38°C to 40°C.

Cebu City
Its capital is Cebu City, the oldest city in the Philippine Islands, which forms part of the Cebu Metropolitan Area together with four neighboring cities (Danao City, Lapu-Lapu City, Mandaue City, and Talisay City) and eight other municipalities.

Cebu City is also the seat of the archdiocese where the Cebu Metropolitan Cathedral is, as well as the other ecclesiatical institutions and centers like the Archbishop's Residence, the archdiocesan pastoral center called the Patria de Cebu, and Cebu Caritas with several offices there being housed, and the diocesan seminaries.

Cebu City is also the seat of the archdiocese where the Cebu Metropolitan Cathedral is, as well as the other ecclesiatical institutions and centers like the Archbishop's Residence, the archdiocesan pastoral center called the Patria de Cebu, and Cebu Caritas with several offices there being housed, and the diocesan seminaries.

Festivals
Cebu City is also home to historical landmarks that stand witness to the beginnings of Christianity in the Far East. For one, it has the Basilica Minore del Sto. Niño which houses the oldest Christian icon in the Philippines, the image of the Señor Sto. Niño (the Holy Child), which was brought by Magellan in 1521, and since considered the Lord and Protector of Cebu. The feast of Sto. Niño, which falls on the third Sunday of January, is one of the biggest celebrations in the country, with two dual festivities held together, the religious one traditionally called the Fiesta Señor, and the civic festival called the Sinulog.

Sightseeing
Aside from the basilica, there is the Fort San Pedro, the Spanish quarters established by Miguel Lopez de Legazpi in 1565, and the kiosk of Magellan's Cross, erected in 1866 fronting the Cebu City Hall, to mark the spot where Magellan landed in Cebu 1521.

Commerce
Cebu is one of the premier provinces in the Philippines, and the main center of commerce, trade, education, and industry in the central, and southern parts of the islands. It has five-star hotels, casinos, white sand beaches, world-class golf courses, convention centers, and shopping malls. Its capital, Cebu City, is called the Queen City of the South.

Language
The lingua franca in Cebu is the Cebuano language, which is the most widely spoken language among the Visayan languages. Other languages spoken are Tagalog, which is the base language of Pilipino, the national language. English is also widely spoken, and is the medium of instruction in schools and used in business transactions and government official communications.

Growth of the Archdiocese: A Report
After thirty-three years of sterling service to the Archdiocese of Cebu as Archbishop, Julio Cardinal Rosales, in 1983, turned over to his successor, Archbishop Ricardo J. Vidal, a local church that saw itself rising from the rubble of the Second World War to its present vibrance and on the side hosting, among the other memorable and historic occasions, the 1965 National Celebration of the Fourth Centennial of the Evangelization of the Philippines and Pope John Paul II's visit in 1981.

In August of 1983 the low-key and unassuming Msgr. Vidal found himself in the shoes of the larger-than-life Cardinal Rosales and assumed pastoral administration of over a million faithful in this heartland of the Visayan Islands. With vital structures and infrastructures already put in place (like the seminaries, the Archbishop's Palace, Patria de Cebu and Caritas buildings, the restored Metropolitan Cathedral and multifarious parishes established, to cite some), the new Archbishop set his own course of action and steered the Archdiocese to a new direction.

Owing to his vast experience as formator (he spent most of his priestly ministry as seminary formator culminating in the rectorship of a regional major seminary in Luzon) then Msgr. Vidal, who was elevated to the College of Cardinals in 1985, stamped his mark on the Archdiocese by giving stress on formation. Reflective of his character, he did not instigate shocking reforms. Instead, he introduced gradual but trenchant changes culminating in the convocation of the Fourth Diocesan Synod of Cebu in 1985-86. Since then the thrust of the local church took a definitive shift.

One of his first major acts not long after he took office was the reorganization of the diocesan structure into different episcopal districts to ensure closer coordination and interaction between and among priests. Under the care of an auxiliary bishop and assisted by an episcopal vicar, each district is composed of several vicariates.

New-Parishes
The steady increase of population and the clamor of the people for closer pastoral care necessitated the creation of more parishes in the Archdiocese. If for anything, creation of a new parish is a cogent index of the coming of age of a certain Christian community in a given territory wherein continuous support of the pastor and separate ecclesial existence are already viable.

In 1981 there were 96 parishes and three chaplaincies, 34 of which were established by late Cardinal Rosales. Today there are already one hundred and forty one 141 parishes. Therefore in a little over ten years, the current Local Ordinary, Cardinal Vidal, has already established 38 parishes.

Pastoral Planning Board
During the Fourth Synod the administrative and pastoral administration of the Archdiocese was looked into, resulting in the formation of a special body to oversee the drawing up of the pastoral programs of the Archdiocese and their implementation. Thus the Pastoral Planning Board was created shortly after the Synod. It is actually the Diocesan Pastoral Council which operates under the direct supervision of the Cardinal and is managed and coordinated by a priest who acts as the Pastoral Planning Board Coordinator. The board is composed of the Chairmen of the different Archdiocesan Commissions, together with two Men Religious, two Women Religious and five lay people, all of whom are appointed by the Archbishop.

The very composition of the Pastoral Planning Board is reflective of the spirit of the times wherein a close collaboration between the Clergy and the Laity on the one hand and between the Secular and the Religious on the other hand is evident.

Clergy
One important component of any diocese is the clergy that serves it. Cebu has been blessed with a dynamic presbyterate through the years. Yet it did not stop the archbishop from pursuing his own programs for the ongoing formation of priests to ensure a sustained level of competence in the ministry.

Ongoing Formation of the Clergy
The regular monthly recollections were refashioned to become an extended program of renewal of the clergy. Handled by a group of priests and lay counterparts, monthly recollections gave priests the opportunity to evaluate and discuss the different aspects of their ministry and address some concerns that touch on the personal (relational and professional) dimension of their pastoral service. From purely lecture-style assemblies, group-dynamics activities were recently incorporated in the format.

In this way relationship between older and younger clergy has become closer and perennial spats between parish priests and their vicars have been diffused although not entirely eliminated. The Cardinal's Hour which comes towards the end of the day is one forum wherein the archbishop addresses his priests and discusses with them matters of consequence. It is during this time that priests are updated of the pertinent issues of the time.

Another source of renewal for the clergy is the annual retreat. Retreat masters of national and international renown have been invited in the past to conduct spiritual exercises. Special programs like seminars and symposia for the ongoing formation of priests have also been availed of by some.

BEC: The Way of Being Church Towards The Third Millennium
When the Synod was convoked in the mid-80's a new pastoral approach was already making waves in the Church, at least in the 'third world Church'. As recent as Vatican II yet as ancient as the Church herself, formation of Christian communities as a new way of experiencing ecclesial life traces its roots to the time when Christianity was still nascent. But its twentieth century revival started in Latin America in the 60's and was adopted to the Philippine setting shortly after.

The Fourth Synod officially adopted Basic Ecclesial Community or BEC as the pastoral approach of the Archdiocese thereby ensuring radical re-focusing of the vision and mission of the Cebuano Church. A Secretariat was formed headed by Father Mamerto Mambaje to oversee and spearhead the introduction of BEC's in the parishes. In 1991 a five-year renewal program was drawn up in preparation for the quadricentennial celebration of Cebu as a diocese with the theme BEC: Towards Maturation in Faith wherein it was envisioned that by 1995 all parishes in Cebu shall have been "BECised" already.

Although this has not been realized 100% (as most visions do) comparable study would bear out that indeed BEC is already trenchant in all the corners of the Archdiocese. In 1980 the Quinquennial Report to the Holy See listed only around forty small Christian communities existing. But in 1994 it rose dramatically to 2,470 although the exact number of active communities cannot be ascertained, nor can sheer numbers alone be an accurate gauge for the maturation of the Cebuano's faith.

A sustained annual mission program of the Archdiocese called the Cebu Archdiocesan Mission Program (CAMP) composed of newly ordained priests and lay counterparts has been a big boost to the promotion of BEC.

Catechetical Apostolate of the Archdiocese
Vis-à-vis the promotion of BEC as pastoral approach is the intensive catechetical drive of the Archdiocese. Seven Archdiocesan bodies have been at the forefront of this endeavor.

They are: