a. The 1764 Cathedral of St.

William the Hermit also known as the Metropolitan Cathedral of San Fernando City, La Union is the seat of the Roman Catholic Diocese of San Fernando de La Union, Philippines (Dioecesis Ferdinandopolitana ab Unione, Suffragan of Lingayen Dagupan, which was created on January 19, 1970 and canonically erected on April 11, 1970, comprising the Civil Province of La Union, under the Titular, St. William the Hermit, fiesta on February 10). The Church is under a diocese of the Latin Rite of the Roman Catholic Church in the Philippines from the Archdiocese of Nueva Segovia. San Fernando was established as a pueblo probably in 1587 and as the mission of San Guillermo de Duladulang in 1590. It used to be the sitio of Pindangan and later as the barrio of San Vicente where Fr. Francisco Romero (OSA) and Fr. Santiago Olarte (OSA) had a chapel built in 1764. This was later moved to Tanque then Kabaroan as a precaution against the raids of Mindanaos moros and the Visayan pintados. After being relocated to its present site, a church was built until 1768 under the supervision of Fr. Juan Sorolla (OSA), Fr. Simon Guillermo (OSA), and Fr. Pedro Fernando (OSA). This was probably damaged and Fr. Simon Torrado (OSA) had another church and a convent built in 1817. This was again damaged in an 1860 earthquake and rebuilt in 1873 under the supervision of Fr. Luis Perez (OSA) who had the walls demolished. This is the present church. Fr. Jose Rodriguez Cabezas (OSA) had the convent and the church renovated after being damaged in an 1892 earthquake, and also added the bell tower. Katipuneros under Col. Blas Villamor occupied the church in 1898. It was again damaged in 1945 during World War II and rebuilt from 1947 to 1949.

La Union Province belongs to the Ilocos Region in the northwestern part of the archipelago, now known as Region I, a region known for its towering mountains, thick forest covers, and narrow plains along its coast. The province is narrow, so narrow at some points that the China Sea, along its western border, often sends sunlit sprays up into its foothills on a clear day. La Union is bounded on the north by Ilocos Sur, on the east by the mountains of Benguet, and on the south by Pangasinan. Its name is derived from the union of some southernmost towns of Ilocos Sur with the northernmost towns of Pangasinan to form a new province. Hence its Spanish name La Union. This new province was formed in 1894. Its capital, San Fernando, was then already in existence, having been founded as early as 1734. The province enjoys a long dry season, from April to October, protected as it is from typhoons by the eastern mountain ranges on its eastern border. This long summer accounts for the popularity of its beaches and resorts that line up its western coastline from Bauang to Agoo. Like the two Ilocos provinces to its north, La Union is mono-ethnic Ilocano. Being Ilocanos themselves, the inhabitants of this province also possess the sense of frugality and industriousness that is shared by all Ilocanos. The province is comfortably affluent however, as land is well distributed, and

tobacco, the major revenue crop, brought in its share of boom and prosperity a few years back. The civil province of La Union which comprises the Diocese of San Fernando was the last territory to be separated from the jurisdiction of the Archdiocese of Nueva Segovia, with whom it intimately shares its history of the faith. The Diocese of San Fernando was created on February 9, 1970. The late Most Reverend Victorino C. Ligot became its first residential bishop. He was succeeded by the Most Reverend Salvador L. Lazo. The diocese now has a total of 20 parishes in the 20 municipalities of the province which has a total land area of 1,404 square kilometers, and a population of 550,587 of which 85 per cent are from the Catholic faith. It is suffragan of the Archdiocese of Lingayen-Dagupan. Its titular patron is St. William the Hermit whose feast the diocese celebrates on February 10 every year.

The new bishop, Most Reverend Antonio R. Tobias, D.D., JCL, who took over the diocese on May 28, 1993, found disunity among the clergy, and made its solution his primary concern. In time he succeeded in bridging the gaps through monthly clergy meetins. Thus the clergy eventually reached a consensus and produced its Vision-Mission statement. This was achieved after a major revamp in diocesan assignments within the first year of Bishop Tobias's term. The religious congregations also got united in an association called the Association of Religious in La Union (ARLU). With the formation of this group the religious became more supportive of the programs of the diocese and became partners with the diocesan clergy in evangelization work. They too were able to come up with their Vision-Mission statement. With the clergy and the religious now cooperating in the evangelization work of the diocese, the one other thing left was the bringing of the laity into active participation. Thus in September of 1994 the heads of the parish pastoral councils, with the diocesan heads of mandated organizations and movements, were summoned to a meeting by Bishop Tobias. The meeting was called to bring the clergy, the religious and the laity together into a harmonious working relationship. Activities for 1995 have included the observance of World Sick Day, a choir musical concert, retreats in relation to PCP II decrees, renewals of marriage vows, and the jubilee celebration of the founding of the diocese in September, 1995.

Considered as one of the citys landmarks, the church was founded on 1764 by Fr. Francisco Romero and Santiago Olarte under the advocation of St. William the Hermit. Originally a Chapel situated at Barrio San Vicente, formerly known as Pindangan after which San Fernando was first called. Upon the Canonical Erection of the Diocese of San Fernando and the Solemn Installation of the First Bishop Most Rev. Victorino C. Ligot, D.D. on April 1970, the parish church became St. William Cathedral.

The church was reconstructed by the residents through the efforts of Bishop Santiago C. Sancho in 1947-1949 after it was destroyed during the liberation of the province in 1945 and rededicated on February 10, 1949.
His Excellency, Most Rev. Victorino Cristobal Ligot is a native of Laoag, Ilocos Norte. He was born on March 21, 1924. He started his seminary formation at the old Seminario de la Immaculada Conception in Vigan. Sem. Victorino belonged to the pioneer seminarians to reside in the new Major Seminary building in Pantay Daya. On December 20,1952, he was ordained as deacon by Bishop Juan Sison The same prelate ordained him to the priesthood on March 21, 1953 at St. Paul Metropolitan Cathedral. When the Civil Province of Ilocos Norte became Diocese of Laoag in 1961, Fr. Ligot became one of its pioneer priests. He served as Parish Priest in various parishes of the Diocese. He was elected to the Episcopacy when he was Parish Priest of Laoag Cathedral and Vicar General of the Diocese. On February 12, 1969, he was named Titular Bishop of Badua and Auxillary Bishop of Nueva Segovia taking Pax in Caritate (Peace in Charity) as his Episcopal motto. After a short stint in Nueva Segovia, he was made first bishop of the Diocese of San Fernando de La Union in 1970. He is remembered in San Fernando as the builder of the diocese. There, he served for ten years. Bishop Ligot died on September 18, 1980 at the age of 56.

Rev. Andy Cantoria Ligot was born on November 30, 1965 in Laoag City, the Philippines. The fifth child of the late Ismael Ligot and Eulalia Cantoria, Fr. Andy has three sisters and two brothers. His vocation to the Priesthood was cultivated early in his life mainly upon the influence of his uncle, Bishop Victorino C. Ligot, the brother of his late father. Bishop Ligot was appointed the first Residential Bishop of the Diocese of San Fernando La Union, the Philippines in his early forties. Fr. Andy entered Saint Mary's Minor Seminary in Laoag City in 1978 and then to San Pablo Major Seminary in Baguio City where he finished his degree in Philosophy and Sociology. After finishing his Master of Arts in Philosophy at the University of Santo Tomas in Manila, taught Philosophy and Sociology at the Manila Central University in Manila. After two years of teaching in the University, Fr. Andy went to Pamplona, Spain to continue his seminary formation at the Colegio Eclesiastico Internacional Bidasoa, an International Seminary entrusted to Priests of the Prelature of the Holy Cross and Opus Dei. He obtained a full university scholarship from the Fundacion Banco de Vasconia of Spain and finished his Bachelor of Sacred Theology Magna Cum Laude and Masters in Theology Magna Cum Laude at the University of Navarre, Spain in June of 1992. He was ordained to the Priesthood for the Diocese of Laoag, the Philippines by his Holiness Pope John Paul II on June 14, 1992 at Saint Peter's Basilica in Vatican City. He served for three years in the Philippines from 1992 to 1995. In 1993 he was appointed National Coordinator for the Philippines for Evangelization 2000 and Lumen 2000 and President of the Catholic School of Evangelization in the Diocese of Laoag This assignment brought Fr. Andy to many countries of Asia, among them India, Singapore and Thailand training Youth and Adult Evangelizers for the Catholic Church. At the same time, he also served as Parochial Vicar of Saint Andrew Church in Bacarra, Ilocos Norte and Saint William Cathedral in Laoag City, the Philippines. In 1995, Fr. Andy left the Philippines for Spain. He began his studies in Canon Law at the University of Navarre in Pamplona, Spain. He finished his Licentiate in Canon Law Magna Cum Laude in 1997. After successfully defending his dissertation in 1999, he obtained the degree Doctor of Canon Law 'Sobresaliente'. He came to the United States in the summer of 1999 and ministered to the sick as Chaplain of Veterans Hospital in San Francisco. In September of that same year, he was assigned to the

Church of Nativity in Menlo Park by Archbishop William Levada of the Archdiocese of San Francisco. In November of 1999, upon the invitation of Bishop Patrick J. McGrath, Fr. Andy began his ministry at the Tribunal of the Diocese of San Jose as Defender of the Bond. In the year 2000, he was appointed Judge of the Tribunal and Diocesan Promoter of Justice. In May of 2003, he was incardinated as priest of the Diocese of San Jose. Prior to his appointment as Pastor of Saint Lawrence the Martyr Church and Education Center effective July the 1st of 2005, Fr. Andy was Parochial Vicar of Saint John Vianney Catholic Church in San Jose. At present, Fr. Andy also serves as elected member-at-large at the Priests' Personnel Board during the Clergy Study Week in May of 2006. He is also the priest-member of the Diocesan Review Board.