Filipino priest, Fr. Rene Ramirez, has been appointed as one of the two new auxiliary bishops for the Archdiocese of Melbourne, Australia. The announcement was made by the Holy See Press Office on Friday following Pope Francis’ decision.
Fr. Ramirez, originally from Gapan, Nueva Ecija, was ordained in 1998 and has served in Australia since 2015. He worked as a parish priest for the Holy Family in Maidstone-Braybrook before being transferred to the parish of St. Mel and St. Malachy in 2023.
The 55-year-old studied philosophy at Adamson University in Manila and holds a master’s degree in educational management from De La Salle University. He also earned a licentiate in spirituality from the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome.
Ramirez, alongside fellow appointee Fr. Thinh Nguyen, will assist Archbishop Peter Comensoli, as well as Bishops Martin Ashe and Tony Ireland, in overseeing the four regions of the Melbourne archdiocese. The ordination ceremony is set for February 1 at St. Patrick’s Cathedral in Melbourne.
