San Agustin Cathedral
During the Spanish era there was only the Province of Misamis which included the present Provinces of Misamis Oriental andMisamis Occidental, and was handled by the civil government from Cebu. The Recollect Missionaries came down from Cebu and started a mission in the province. Civil government of its own started only in 1901. And because one part of it was separated from the main by Iligan Bay, the government decided to divide the province into two. Misamis Oriental is the bigger portion. Today the Diocesan Cathedral is one of the 12 Cathedrals that was founded by the Order of Augustinian Recollects in the Philippines.
Before 1865, the whole of Mindanao island and Sulu were part of the Diocese of Cebu. In 1865 the western half of Mindanao came under the jurisdiction of the Diocese of Jaro in Panay. Then Pope Leo XIII established the Diocese of Zamboanga, separating it from Jaro and making it the first diocese in Mindanao. But it was Pope Pius X who executed this in 1910. Thus from 1910 Cagayan de Oro City became part of the Diocese of Zamboanga.
On January 20, 1933, Pope Pius XI created a second diocese in Mindanao, that of Cagayan de Oro City, separating it fromZamboanga City and giving it jurisdiction over the then Provinces of Surigao, Misamis Oriental, Misamis Occidental, Bukidnon and part of the Province of Lanao. Together with Zamboanga it became a suffragan of the new Ecclesiastical Province of Cebu.
In 1939 the Diocese of Cagayan de Oro was divided again with the creation of the Diocese of Surigao comprising the Provinces of Surigao and Agusan; and in 1951 was divided again with the creation of the Diocese of Ozamiz comprising the Provinces of Lanao and Misamis Occidental.
On June 29, 1951, Pope Pius XI elevated Cagayan de Oro City to an archdiocese, coinciding with that of Jaro. The Archdiocese of Cagayan de Oro became the first archdiocese in Mindanao, thereby separating Mindanao from the Ecclesiastical Province of Cebu. It had as its suffragans all the dioceses and prelatures then in Mindanao island: Surigao, Cotabato, Sulu, Davao, Ozamiz, and Zamboanga which had been its mother diocese. It became an archdiocese seven years ahead of its mother diocese.
Later, the Apostolic Prefecture of Sulu, the Prelature Nullius of Marbel, the Prelature Nullius of Tagum, the Diocese of Butuan, the Prelature Nullius of Malaybalay, the Prelature Nullius of Iligan and the Diocese of Tandag became suffragans of the Archdiocese of Cagayan de Oro.
Eventually four other archdioceses were established in Mindanao island: Zamboanga in 1958, Davao in 1970, Cotabato in 1979 and Ozamiz in 1983. Thus there are at present five ecclesiastical provinces in Mindanao.
The first bishop and archbishop of Cagayan de Oro was the James Hayes, S.J., D.D., who established the Ateneo de Cagayan (now known as Xavier University – Ateneo de Cagayan) and among others. He was succeeded by Patrick Cronin, S.S.C., D.D. in 1971. Bishop Cronin established the St. John Vianney Theological Seminary. The third bishop was Jesus B. Tuquib, D.D., S.T.D., who was installed as Archbishop with right of succession on May 31, 1984, and became the Archbishop of the Archdiocese of Cagayan de Oro on January 5, 1988. Antonio J. Ledesma, S.J., D.D. was installed as Archbishop on March 4, 2006.
There are 46 diocesan priests manning the 46 parishes within the jurisdiction of the archdiocese, helped by 2 Jesuit and 5 Columban priests. Six others are doing non-parochial work and 3 others are in retirement. The rest of the Jesuits are in Xavier University – Ateneo de Cagayan or in the major seminary, and the rest of the Columbans, apart from the 5 involved in parish work, are in their procure house doing various apostolates such as hospital work and other activities. There are 18 religious institutes of women, one of which is a contemplative institute, the Carmelite nuns.
The archdiocese has its own diocesan college seminary, the San Jose de Mindanao Seminary that opened in 1955. It was constructed by Archbishop Hayes, was first administered by the Jesuits, then by Columban priests, and now by the diocesan clergy.
Also, within the archdiocese is a theology seminary - the St. John Vianney Theological Seminary, which is mainly for seminarians of the Ecclesiastical Metro Cagayan de Oro. This was started by Archbishop Cronin and finished by Archbishop Tuquib. It opened in 1985.
