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Wenceslao Padilla

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Wenceslao Padilla

Apostolic Prefect of Ulaanbaatar
ChurchCatholic Church
DioceseApostolic Prefecture of Ulaanbaatar
SeeUlaanbaatar
Appointed2 August 2003
In office2003–2018
PredecessorEverard Ter Laak
SuccessorGiorgio Marengo
Orders
Ordination17 March 1976
by Victorino Cristobal Ligot
Consecration29 August 2003
by Crescenzio Sepe[1]
Personal details
Born
Wenceslao Selga Padilla

(1949-09-29)29 September 1949
Died25 September 2018(2018-09-25) (aged 68)
Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia
NationalityFilipino
DenominationRoman Catholic Church
ResidenceUlaanbaatar, Mongolia
MottoLight that illuminate people
Coat of armsWenceslao Padilla's coat of arms
Styles of
Wenceslao Selga Padilla
Reference styleThe Most Reverend
Spoken styleYour Excellency
Religious styleMonsignor
Posthumous stylenone

Wenceslao Selga Padilla (29 September 1949 – 25 September 2018) was a Filipino Scheut priest who from 2 August 2003 was the Apostolic prefect of the Apostolic Prefecture of Ulaanbaatar, a pre-diocesan missionary jurisdiction of the Roman Catholic Church in Mongolia.

Biography

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Born on 29 September 1949[2] in Tubao, La Union, Philippines,[3] Wenceslao Padilla came from a Catholic family; his father was a catechist. In 1960 he entered the seminary and in 1976 was ordained a priest for Scheut Missionaries. He was a missionary in Taiwan and, for six years, a provincial superior of the Chinese provinces of his Order.

When in 1991 Mongolia and the Holy See established diplomatic relations, he was sent as a missionary to Urga (the old name of Ulanbataar). On 19 April 1992 he was appointed ecclesiastical superior of the mission sui iuris of Urga. He began taking care of street children, the homeless, disabled and old.[4]

When on 8 July 2002, Pope John Paul II established the Apostolic Prefecture of Ulaanbaatar, Father Padilla became its first prefect. On 2 August 2003 he received the episcopal dignity; he received the titular see of Tharros. His episcopal consecration on 29 August 2003 was presided over by Cardinal Crescenzio Sepe, in the Ulanbataar cathedral.

The first Mongolian priest, Joseph Enkhee-Baatar, was ordained by Padilla on 26 August 2016.[5]

He continued in his ministry giving help to homeless and orphans until 2016.[6]

Death

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Padilla died on 25 September 2018 in Ulaanbaatar due to a heart attack.[5][7]

References

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  1. ^ "Filipino Is Mongolia's First Catholic Bishop". Los Angeles Times. 6 September 2003. Retrieved 5 November 2023.
  2. ^ "蒙古烏蘭巴托宗座監牧黃旭東主教逝世,享年69歲" [Bishop Wenceslao Padilla, Apostolic Prefect of Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, dies at age 69]. SL Media (in Chinese). Salt and Light Catholic Media Foundation. 25 September 2018.
  3. ^ "Bishop Wenceslao Padilla". UCA News. Retrieved 5 November 2023.
  4. ^ "Catholics in Mongolia: Steady growth in difficult territory". ACN News. Aid to the Church in Need. Archived from the original on 4 August 2016. Retrieved 5 November 2023.
  5. ^ a b "Mongolia's first bishop, Msgr. Wenceslao Padilla, has died". AsiaNews. 26 September 2018. Retrieved 26 September 2018.
  6. ^ "Religious Freedom Association Forming in Mongolia: Supporters Urge Implementation of Constitution's Religious Freedom Guarantee". International Religious Liberty Association. 18 September 2009. Retrieved 1 July 2016.
  7. ^ Lagarde, Roy (26 September 2018). "Filipino bishop, first prelate of Mongolia, dies – UCA News". UCA News. Retrieved 5 November 2023.
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Catholic Church titles
Preceded by Apostolic Prefect of Ulaanbaatar
8 July 2002–25 September 2018
Succeeded by
Preceded by Titular bishop of Tharros
2 August 2003–25 September 2018