We bid farewell to His Excellency, Most Reverend Edward Joseph Adams, Apostolic Nuncio to the Philippines May 4, 2011

source: mb.com.ph

MANILA, Philippines -- His Excellency, Most Reverend Edward Joseph Adams, is leaving the country after three years as Apostolic Nuncio to the Philippines. His Holiness, Pope Benedict XVI, has appointed him to a new post as Apostolic Nuncio to Greece. A Eucharistic Celebration, led by His Eminence, Gaudencio B.

Cardinal Rosales, Archbishop of Manila, will be held on May 4, 2011, at the Basilica of the Immaculate Conception in Intramuros, Manila, to bid farewell to Archbishop Adams.

Born in Philadelphia, United States of America, on August 24, 1944, Archbishop Adams was ordained a priest on May 16, 1970, for the Archdiocese of Philadelphia. He holds a Doctorate in Canon Law. In 1976, he entered into the diplomatic service of the Holy See and served successively in Rwanda, in the Secretariat of State in Vatican City, in Kenya, Honduras, Ireland, Denmark, and Czech Republic. On September 3, 2007, Pope Benedict XVI appointed Archbishop Adams as Papal Nuncio to the Philippines.

Upon his assumption to duty, Archbishop Adams cited the 400-year-old faith that unites Filipino Catholics with the Chair of St. Peter in Rome. He said it is a clear and unmistakable characteristic of the country’s national identity, a unique Philippine heritage for all to see and experience. Filipino bishops lauded Archbishop Adams for his solicitude for the Church in the Philippines and its hierarchy. “We truly felt the sincerity of his friendship. His presence in our midst was truly an inspiration,” Bishop Nereo Odchimar, President of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines, said.

Archbishop Adams said he enjoyed his three-year stay in the Philippines which brought him to many cities and towns to bring the Holy See’s messages. He urged the Filipino prelates to continue the church’s mission of truth, kindness and charity. He said: “Being a human being is to dialogue, being with others, to listen to them, to talk to them, to understand them, to be understood by them, to love them and to be loved by them. This should be the definition of a bishop, to be in the company of God, to participate in and to facilitate great conversation.”

We bid farewell to His Excellency, Most Reverend Edward Joseph Adams, Apostolic Nuncio to the Philippines, and wish him all the best and success in all his endeavors.

source: mb.com.ph