Former CBCP president Fernando Capalla passes away at 89

Former Davao archbishop Fernando Capalla passed away on Saturday, the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) said.

He died at 1:38 a.m. in Davao City at the age of 89.

The news was confirmed by the incumbent archbishop of Davao, Romulo Valles, to the CBCP.

“Capalla’s death occurred merely four days after another bishop, Ronald Lunas of the Diocese of Pagadian, passed away in a Davao hospital due to complications from a recent heart bypass surgery,” the CBCP said in a statement.

Capalla was a known peace advocate in Mindanao who served as the president of the CBCP from 2003 to 2005. He led CBCP’s various departments, such as the Episcopal Commission on Interreligious Dialogue and the Episcopal Commission on Ecumenical Affairs.

In 1994, Capalla was appointed coadjutor archbishop of Davao and assumed the role of Davao archbishop in November 1996 until his retirement in February 2012.

Capalla was also the founding father of the Bishops-Ulama Conference. This interreligious organization fosters understanding between Muslims and Christians.

His contributions to interfaith dialogue earned him several awards, including the San Lorenzo Ruiz Award for Peace and Unity in 1991, Ateneo de Manila University’s Public Service Award for Peace in 1998, and the Aurora Aragon Quezon Peace Award for Peace Advocacy and Peace Building in 2000. —Sherylin Untalan/VBL, GMA Integrated News