Archbishop of Agaña
JIMENEZ, D.D. Ryan Pagente Jimenez was born in Dumaguete City in the Philippines on December 18, 1971 to Rogelio and Lilia Jimenez. He grew up in the neighboring island of Siquijor with his two older brothers and one younger sister. He attended Larena Elementary School in the province of Siquijor (1978-1984) and Saint Joseph Seminary in the province of Negros Oriental (1984-1988). It was in Saint Joseph Seminary that he first discovered his aspiration to become a priest. He then enrolled at San Jose Major Seminary in Quezon City and earned his Bachelor’s degree in Pre-Divinity at the Ateneo de Manila University in 1992. After college, he joined the Jesuits Volunteers Philippines assigned as a community organizer in the southern Philippines. From 1993-1995, he taught at a Jesuit high school in Cebu City, then Sacred Heart School for Boys. He went on to complete his studies in the United States at Saint Patrick’s Seminary and University in California where he successfully attained his Bachelor in Sacred Theology (S.T.B.), Master’s degree in Divinity, and Master’s degree in Theology in 2003. Bishop Ryan is currently pursuing a doctoral degree at Fordham University’s Graduate School of Religion and Religious Studies. He first served the Diocese of Chalan Kanoa as a teacher at Eskuelan San Francisco de Borja, the lone Catholic school in the island of Rota in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI) back in 1995. The CNMI is a US territory archipelago in the Pacific. He served in that capacity for two years, after which he continued his studies for the priesthood as a diocesan seminarian. Bishop Jimenez had his sacerdotal ordination at Our Lady of Mount Carmel Cathedral for the Diocese of Chalan Kanoa on June 8, 2003. His first parish assignment is at Kristo Rai parish in Garapan village on the island of Saipan. Later on, he was transferred to Our Lady of Mount Carmel Cathedral parish to serve as its Rector. Since then, he has served his beloved diocese in numerous capacities including as Chancellor, Presbyteral Council member, Personal Secretary to the Bishop, Superintendent of Catholic Schools, Editor-in-Chief for North Star, the weekly diocesan newspaper, adjunct faculty member at Mount Carmel School, among many other ministerial appointments. On December 28, 2010, Pope Benedict XVI appointed Bishop Jimenez as Apostolic Administrator for the Diocese of Chalan Kanoa. He took on this important governance role vacated by the resignation of the late Bishop Emeritus Tomas A. Camacho on April 6, 2010, at age 76 and the untimely death of then-Apostolic Administrator Very Reverend Manuel R. Corcuera on the same year. In this capacity, he was in-charge of the spiritual well-being of more than 43,000 Catholics who call the CNMI home. After almost six years of vacancy, Pope Francis appointed him as Bishop on June 24, 2016. He is the Diocese of Chalan Kanoa’s second bishop. The occasion has been a cause of so much joy for all the Catholic faithful across all thirteen parishes in all 3 major CNMI islands of Saipan, Rota, and Tinian. His Episcopal Ordination and Installation was held at the Our Lady of Mount Carmel Cathedral on August 14, 2016. The principal consecrator was Archbishop Savio Hon Tai-Fai, S.D.B, then-Apostolic Administrator of the Archdiocese of Agana in Guam, and then-Secretary for the Congregation of the Evangelization of Peoples. Co-consecrators were Bishop Tomas A. Camacho, then-Bishop Emeritus of Chalan Kanoa, and Bishop Julito B. Cortes (former high school teacher of Bishop Ryan), Bishop of Dumaguete, Philippines. Immediately afterward, Bishop Jimenez embarked on listening sessions to develop his pastoral plan. From this emerged a 5-year plan of action focused on 6 ministry priorities: Evangelization & Faith Formation, Marriage & Family Life, Youth, Vocation, Liturgy, and Social Justice & Outreach. This plan is envisioned to serve as a blueprint for what the Diocese of Chalan Kanoa wants to accomplish within a 5-year period from 2018 to 2022 based on his conversation with the parishioners. Bishop Jimenez’ episcopacy is centered on shepherding all the Catholic faithful in the Diocese of Chalan Kanoa towards becoming joyful missionary disciples following his chosen call Volumus Iesum Videre, “We would like to see Jesus.” (John 12:21).