Retired Bishop Emilio Bataclan of Cebu, who spent decades in episcopal and priestly ministry, died Wednesday, June 24, at a hospital in Cebu City. He was 85.
Bataclan died while recovering from a leg amputation caused by complications from diabetes, according to Cebu Archbishop Alberto Uy.
“While recovering in the hospital, he suffered a heart attack this morning and peacefully returned to the Lord,” Uy said in a statement.
“Please keep Bishop Bataclan in your prayers, and let us commend his soul to God’s mercy and grant him eternal rest,” the archbishop added.
Ordained a priest for the Archdiocese of Cebu in 1966, Bataclan devoted decades of service to the local Church in various pastoral and leadership roles.
St. John Paul II appointed him auxiliary bishop of Cebu in February 1990. He was ordained to the episcopate on April 19 that year.
In 1995, he was named bishop of Iligan, where he served for nearly a decade before returning to Cebu in 2004 as auxiliary bishop.
Bataclan remained in that post until his retirement in 2015 upon reaching the mandatory retirement age of 75 for bishops.
Despite advancing age and health challenges, he continued participating in church events. On May 1, he presided over a Mass for the 60th anniversary of his priestly ordination.
