Pope Francis has appointed as bishop of Daet, Philippines, Fr. Rex Andrew C. Alarcon, of the clergy of the diocese of Caceres, currently superintendent of the parish schools of the archdiocese. The Vatican announced the appointment on January 2, 2019.
Alarcon, 47, will be the fourth bishop of the diocese, succeeding Archbishop Gilbert Garcera. The diocese has been without a bishop since last April 2017 when Archbishop Garcera was installed as archbishop of Lipa in Batangas.
Bishop-Elect Alarcon was born in Daet, Camarines Norte, in the diocese of Daet, on 6 August 1970. After completing his high school education and philosophy courses at the Holy Rosary minor seminary in Naga, he studied theology at the University of Santo Tomas in Manila. Subsequently, between 1999 and 2001, he studied at the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome, obtaining a licentiate in Church history.
He was ordained a priest for the Archdiocese of Caceres on November 9, 1996.
From 1996 to 1997 he was parish vicar in the parish of Saint John the Evangelist in Naga, an educator at the minor seminary and, from 1997 to 1999, private secretary to the archbishop.
Returning home, after his studies in Rome, in 2001 he became a lecturer at the Holy Rosary seminary; from 2002, director of the stewardship program of the Archdiocese of Caceres and, since 2007, superintendent of the Naga Parish School and president of the Catholic Association of Education. Since 2013 he has held the office of superintendent of the Catholic schools of the archdiocese, member of the college of consultors and spokesman for the same archdiocese. Since 2016 he has served as president of the Catholic Educational Association of the Philippines.
