Most Rev. Rex Andrew C. Alarcon, DD
His Grace, the Most Reverend Rex Andrew Clement Alarcon, Doctor of Divinity, was born in Daet, Camarines Norte on 06 August 1970 to +Armando Alveus Alarcon, Sr. Juanita Culvera Clement. He finished Kindergarten, Preparatory and Elementary at the Naga Parochial School and Secondary at the Holy Rosary Minor Seminary. He obtained a Bachelor of Arts (AB) Major in Philosophy at the Holy Rosary College Seminary, Naga City; a Bachelors in Sacred Theology (S.T.B.) from the University of Santo Tomas Manila; Master of Arts in Higher Religious Studies (M.A.) from the University of Santo Tomas in Manila; a Licentiate in Sacred Theology (S.T.L.) from the University of Santo Tomas, Manila and a Licenza –Storia della Chiesa (Church History) from the Pontificia Universita Gregoriana in Rome.
On November 11, 1995, Sem. Rex Andrew C. Alarcon was ordained Deacon by +Jaime Cardinal L. Sin. The following year, November 9, 1996, he was ordained a priest for the Archdiocese of Caceres by +Archbishop Leonardo Z. Legaspi, OP.
Fr. Alarcon’s pastoral and administrative assignments included being the private secretary of Archbishop Legaspi from 1997-1999, 2001-2007, and being the Director of the Stewardship Program of the Archdiocese of Caceres (SPARC) from 2002-2017. He also served in the archdiocesan Seminary, Family Ministry and headed the Commission on Evangelization.
Since ordination, he has taught Church History at the Holy Rosary Major Seminary in Naga City. In 2007, he was appointed Director of the Naga Parochial School (NPS). During his term, he became the Superintendent of Catholic Schools in the Archdiocese and President of both the Catholic Educational Association of Caceres and Libmanan (CEACAL) and Bicol Association of Catholic Schools (BACS).
On January 2, 2019, Pope Francis appointed Fr. Alarcon as the 4th Bishop of Daet. He was ordained Bishop on March 19, 2019, on the Solemnity of St. Joseph, by Archbishop Rolando J. Tria Tirona, OCD as principal consecrator, with Apostolic Nuncio Tito Adolfo C. Yllana and Bishop Manolo A. De los Santos as co-consecrators.
Bishop Alarcon was elected Chairman of the Episcopal Commission on Youth (ECY), which he still heads. He was the youngest member of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) at the time. He is currently a member of the Episcopal Commission on Catechesis and Catholic Education (ECCCE).
As Bishop of Daet his priorities included clergy welfare and ongoing-formation; formation of seminarians to the priesthood; formation of catechists and lay ministries; setting-up and improving diocesan systems and structures for pastoral care and service. Responding to Pope Francis’ call for Synodality, the diocese made some initial steps towards more consultation-participation, inclusivity, accountability and transparency, co-responsibility and dialogue.
Bishop Alarcon’s ministry was a journey with the clergy and lay faithful of Daet, through the Covid-19 pandemic, to the Golden Jubilee of the Diocese of Daet in September of 2024.
At the retirement of Archbishop Rolando J. Tria Tirona, OCD, Bishop Alarcon was appointed 5th Metropolitan Archbishop of Caceres on February 22, 2024, Feast of the Chair of St. Peter, the Apostle. Last March 19, 2024, he completed 5 years of episcopal ministry in the Diocese of Daet.
His Solemn Installation and Canonical Possession as the 5th Metropolitan Archbishop of Caceres took place on 02 May 2024.