Bishop Ryan Jimenez
THE Most Reverend Ryan P. Jimenez, bishop of the Diocese of Chalan Kanoa, will take “canonical possession” of the Archdiocese of Agaña (Hagåtña) Guam on Aug. 15, meaning that the diocese will need a new bishop starting on that date.
A press release from the Episcopal Conference of the Pacific broke the news over the weekend that Pope Francis has appointed Jimenez as archbishop of Agaña.
According to Jimenez, the process that led to his new role started in 2023 when Pope Francis accepted the resignation of Archbishop Michael J. Byrnes due to health reasons. The Very Reverend Romeo Convocar has been serving as the diocese apostolic administrator in the interim.
“There was no open discussion of who would be the next archbishop,” Jimenez told Variety. “A week ago, that’s when I got the call from the Pope’s representative letting me know that the Holy Father has appointed me as the new archbishop of Agaña.”
When Jimenez assumes his new position in August, Pope Francis will appoint either an apostolic administrator for the Diocese of Chalan Kanoa or the College of Consultors will elect a diocesan administrator.
Jimenez said the next bishop for the local diocese will either be “a priest who is not a bishop yet who will be ordained a bishop or [someone] already a bishop, like myself, moving to [the Diocese of Chalan Kanoa].” He said the Vatican can appoint a bishop from any part of the world.
Jimenez said his role as archbishop will be somewhat similar to his role as bishop — the leader of the local church.
But he said his new role comes with expanded responsibilities over a larger geographic area. He noted that Guam has 26 parishes compared to the CNMI’s 13.
He said the Archdiocese of Agaña also has a religious relationship with the dioceses in the CNMI, the Federated States of Micronesia and the Marshall Islands.
He said once he relocates to Guam, he will reach out to his new congregation.
“I would first really take my time to listen, visit parishes, get to know the people, work closely with the clergy, my brother priests and deacons, religious sisters, the ministers of the church,” he said. “I’m not the kind who would jump right into ‘Let’s do x, y, z.’ It’s always important to ground my feet into the context of the archdiocese that I will be assigned to. I will take my time because it is important to truly first get to know the people and the things that I need to know, including the challenges of the archdiocese of Agaña. Then from there, through prayer, through discernment, I’m hoping that the Holy Spirit will lead me, lead us, to … what to do.”
Originally from the Philippines, Jimenez was ordained to the priesthood on June 8, 2003. In 2010, he was appointed apostolic administrator of Chalan Kanoa and, in 2016, as its second bishop, succeeding the late Bishop Tomas Aguon Camacho, who retired in 2010.
