Vatican names Moises Cuevas as first bishop of Diocese of Calapan

Pope Leo XIV has raised the Apostolic Vicariate of Calapan to a diocese and designated Moises Cuevas, its current apostolic vicar, as its first bishop, the Vatican announced on Wednesday.

According to a CBCP News report, the elevation of the now-Calapan diocese shows the stability of the Catholic Church in Oriental Mindoro, which has about 800,000 Catholics.

Cuevas was appointed as Calapan apostolic vicar in September 2023. The 52-year-old prelate is the youngest bishop in the Philippines.

The Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) agreed in July 2025 to endorse Cuevas’ petition for the canonical elevation of Calapan to a diocese.

It has 41 parishes and operates three seminaries and 14 schools serving more than 11,000 students across the province.

The diocese also has 60 diocesan priests, five Society of the Divine Word missionaries assisting in parishes, and 57 seminarians in formation.

Before becoming an apostolic vicariate in 1951, the Church territory functioned as the Apostolic Prefecture of Mindoro for 15 years after its establishment.

The Vatican’s approval coincided with the 75th anniversary of Calapan as an apostolic vicariate. — JMA, GMA Integrated News