Msgr. Fernando Ocariz, the Prelate of Opus Dei and third successor of Saint Josemaria Escriva as head of Opus Dei, will be in the Philippines on July 25 to August 5. He is scheduled to have gatherings with the faithful of Opus Dei, their families and friends, as well as to visit some of their apostolic and social projects in the country.

The Prelate makes these trips as spiritual father of the members of Opus Dei worldwide. This year he has gone to Spain: Seville in May, Murcia and Valencia in June; and Galicia, Castilla y Leon, and Asturias in July.

The last trip of the Prelate of Opus Dei to the Philippines was in 2008. It was the late Bishop Javier Echevarría who came, accompanied by Msgr. Ocariz. Both were here also in 1998.

Msgr. Ocariz was born in Paris on October 27, 1944 in a Spanish family that fled to France during the 1936-1939 Spanish Civil War. He is a consultor for the Holy See’s Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith as well as the Dicastery for Evangelization. Pope Francis appointed him as Prelate of Opus Dei on January 23, 2017, following the death of Bishop Echevarria. Since 1994 he had accompanied Bishop Echevarria on his pastoral trips to more than 70 countries.

The pastoral trips of the Prelate spur the work of evangelization in the various countries. Blessed Alvaro del Portillo’s stay in 1987 led to the establishment of a number of social initiatives, among them the Center for Industrial Technology and Enterprise (CITE) in Cebu, family farm schools, and the Family Cooperation and Health Services Foundation (Famcohsef). Bishop Echevarría’s visit resulted in establishing and expanding projects like Education for the Upbringing of Children (Educhild) and the Philippine Food Bank Foundation.

From the Philippines, Msgr. Ocariz will have a short stay in Indonesia, August 5-7, before proceeding to Australia.