Kalookan Bishop Pablo Virgilio David, president of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines (CBCP), preaching from his cathedra during a Holy Mass. File photo from Mark Demayo, ABS-CBN News 

Kalookan Bishop Pablo Virgilio David, was enjoying a simple, quiet Sunday morning in Rome when he started receiving a deluge of messages at noontime.

He was relishing his first eight full hours of sleep after many busy days and was preparing a homily for an afternoon Holy Mass.

One of the first messages came from the procurator of the Collegio Filippino, a "home in Rome" for Filipino diocesan priests pursuing further studies in the Eternal City, and where the bishop was staying.

David was in Rome to attend the General Ordinary Assembly of the Synod of Bishops.

"The procurator at the Collegio sent me congratulatory message on WhatsApp. I texted back and said, 'For what?'" David recounted on his Facebook page.

"He texted again and said, 'Na-announce po na Cardinal kayo' (You were announced as new cardinal). I texted back and said, 'Joke?!'

It was not a joke.

David, president of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines (CBCP), was indeed chosen by the pontiff as among the 21 men from all over the world who will be made a cardinal in a consistory set on December 8, 2024.

Pope Francis made the surprise announcement after the traditional Sunday Angelus prayer.

The college's procurator then called the bishop to insist that it was not a joke and then sent him a copy of the video from the Vatican newsfeed showing the pope announcing the names of the new cardinals.

"I began to receive a deluge of messages. It felt like being caught in a whirlwind. I put down the phone and did a five-minute breathing exercise, which instantly calmed me down," the bishop said.

Before this, David recounted that his phone rang before noon but chose to ignore it thinking the call would be expensive since he was still using a Philippine SIM card.

As the rush of the news slowly faded, he realized it was probably someone from the Vatican trying to inform him of Pope Francis's decision before the official announcement.  

"Now it felt like Elijah standing by the mouth of a cave and feeling a soft breeze that penetrated my soul and prepared me for this new chapter of my life and ministry as a bishop, as a servant of God's people. I said, 'Ok, Lord. My life is in your hands,'" he said.

A DELUGE OF MESSAGES. Kalookan Bishop Pablo Virgilio David shared one of the messages he received when Pope Francis announced him as a new cardinal. Photo from the bishop's Facebook page

Known to Filipinos as Bishop Ambo, he is set to become the country's 10th cardinal.

The last Filipino prelate chosen as cardinal was Manila Archbishop Jose Cardinal Advincula during his time as Capiz archbishop. Meanwhile, the first Filipino to be made a cardinal was Rufino Santos, the late archbishop of Manila.

Once David officially enters the College of Cardinals in the December ceremony, he will be the third Filipino cardinal eligible to vote in a possible conclave to elect a new pope, along with Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle and Cardinal Advincula.

Cardinals who are already over the age of 80 are no longer eligible to vote in a conclave but are allowed to attend the meetings prior to the election.  

Since his election in 2013, Pope Francis has veered away from choosing cardinals among the traditional ecclesiastical seats that usually get the "red hat."

Instead, the pontiff has handpicked men who are cut from the same pastoral cloth of focusing on the neglected peripheries of society.

Here, Bishop Ambo was an obvious choice.

A champion of human rights and care for the poor, the prelate did not shy away from threats and attacks when he criticized former president Rodrigo Duterte's bloody war on illegal drugs.

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He has since introduced several programs in the diocese for community-based drug rehabilitation programs.

Born in Betis, a district in Pampanga known for master woodcarvers of sacred arts, David is a prominent Bible scholar.

The 65-year-old bishop obtained his licentiate and doctorate in Sacred Theology from the Catholic University of Louvain in Belgium.

Meanwhile, he earned his bachelor’s degree in Pre-Divinity from Ateneo and his master’s degree in Theology from the Loyola School of Theology.

Cardinals, traditionally called "princes of the Church," serve as advisers to the pontiff. However, their main duty is to attend the conclave where they elect a new pope in case of a papal death or abdication.  

Among the new cardinals, Bishop Ambo is joined by three other prelates from Asia: Bogor Bishop Paskalis Bruno Syukur from Indonesia, Tokyo Archbishop Tarcisio Isao Kikuchi from Japan, and Tehran Ispahan Archbishop Dominique Joseph Mathieu from Iran.

Others include clergymen from Canada, the pope's home country of Argentina, Chile, Ecuador, Brazil, and Serbia.

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