Pope Leo XIV appoints Varquez as new Tagbilaran bishop

Pope Leo XIV has appointed Bishop Crispin Barrete “Bai” Varquez as the new head of the Diocese of Tagbilaran in Bohol.

The diocese announced the appointment, describing Varquez’s return as a homecoming.

“For the Diocese of Tagbilaran, this is more than the appointment of a new shepherd. It is a homecoming,” the diocese said.

“Bishop Varquez is a son of this Diocese - formed in its seminaries, nourished by its communities, and shaped by years of priestly ministry among its people. Now, he returns to the local Church that helped form him, entrusted with the pastoral care of the very Diocese he once served,” it added.

The 65-year-old prelate will succeed Archbishop Albero Uy, who was assigned to the Archdiocese of Cebu in September 2025.

Varquez, currently bishop of the Diocese of Borongan in Eastern Samar, will become the eighth bishop of Tagbilaran.

According to the diocese, Varquez was ordained a priest on 14 April 1989. He later served as an assistant parish priest in Mindoro and as a formator at the Immaculate Heart of Mary Seminary in Tagbilaran and St. Augustine Major Seminary in Tagaytay.

He became vicar general of the Diocese of Tagbilaran in 2007.

Varquez was also appointed bishop of Borongan in 2007.