Bishop Andres is fine, but,” Bishop Andy said with a smile, “I prefer Andy because it makes me sound younger.” This remark was delivered with the same warm humor and gentle tone which has always characterized Bishop Andy’s service to the diocese, from his years as a pastor to his time as diocesan tribunal judge, to Judicial Vicar, and now in his episcopal ministry.

The Impact of Uncle and the Most Reverend Victorino Ligot, Bishop

In October of this year, Pope Leo XIV appointed Father Andres Ligot to be the Auxiliary Bishop of San José.  In his new role, he will be assisting Bishop Oscar Cantú, our diocese’s “Ordinary” — another title for the presiding bishop who governs a diocese.

Following his learning the good news of his new position, Bishop Andy briefly visited family and friends in the Philippines. “It was a trip back to my roots,” he recounted. “I visited places that were part of my life: I visited the bishop who was my rector when I was in high school and then I visited and blessed my uncle’s tomb.”

This had a very personal significance for Bishop Andy, since his uncle was Bishop Victorino Ligot, who became the first Bishop of San Fernando, La Union, in the Philippines. “He became a bishop very young, and he was my role model,” Bishop Andy explained. Witnessing his uncle’s pastoral example had a profound effect on young Andres, who began to wonder whether God also wanted him to follow the path of Holy Orders.

“My uncle said to me and to my family, ‘Andres does not need to follow my footsteps. He can still be a good man and choose a different vocation.’” His uncle nonetheless encouraged him personally: “He said I had to see if this was what God wanted for me.” Young Andres therefore opted to attend seminary, where “Everybody knew I was the nephew of the bishop.” What this meant, Bishop Andy admits with a hint of mirth, was, “I had to be on my best behavior.”

Ordained by Pope Saint John Paul II

Bishop Andy is one of the very few who can boast of having been ordained by a canonized saint. On June 14, 1992, he was ordained a priest at Saint Peter’s Basilica by Pope Saint John Paul II. But that opportunity almost did not happen for Bishop Andy, who related the harrowing story of trying to arrive on time to his own priestly ordination in the pre-internet age of the early 1990s.

At the time, Deacon Andres was studying at the Colegio Ecclastico Internacional Bidasoa in Pamplona, Navarra, Spain. In an era without the internet, fillable digital documents, emails, and GPS, he vividly described how “all of the arrangements had to be made by fax. If they got lost, you redid them by hand. I could only correspond with my bishop via a local ‘telephone shop’ where I sat in a cubicle, and the shop manager dialed the Philippines for me.” And once he arrived in Rome, “nobody picked me up at the airport, and directions to the convent where I was staying were word-of-mouth.”

Thankfully, his relatives from London arrived in Rome the day after he did, and he made it to his ordination ceremony on time. Bishop Andy’s rocky path to his presbyterate ordination stands in sharp contrast to his recent episcopal one, where more than a thousand of the faithful, as well as priests and religious, were present, in-person and virtually, to witness the event. (See sidebar for link to highlight reel.)

The Heart of a Pastor In San José

Since arriving in the Diocese of San José in 1999 at the request of the late Bishop Patrick J. McGrath, Bishop Andy has held several positions, from Judicial Vicar to Vicar General, to pastor of Saint Lawrence the Martyr in Santa Clara and later of Saint Elizabeth of Portugal in Milpitas. Through it all, he has become well known for his steady demeanor, something he credits to the late bishop. “I am always guided by something Bishop McGrath said one time to the priests: how we always ‘need to take hold of ourselves to control our emotions.’” It was advice that shaped his pastoral approach.

Likewise, a genuine pastoral love for others has also undergirded his various ministries. As the Diocesan Judicial Vicar for thirteen years, he recalled, “I loved helping pastors and priests resolve problems with the validity of the sacraments, and the valid celebration of a marriage.” But soon his pastoral heart compelled him to ask Bishop Cantú to return to parish life. He admits, “I missed parish ministry and the people. A good relationship with people is what matters most to me.”

Bishop Cantú installed then-Father Andy as Pastor of Saint Elizabeth of Portugal in 2021. The Saint Elizabeth community is one that Bishop Andy cannot help but gush over, “It is a community that I truly love, one hundred percent, because they are very loving people.” Many parishioners have told Bishop Andy that, although his title has changed, he remains, for them, a loving pastor. To them, he has a message: “Thank you for your confidence in me. I am still the same Father Andy, now with more responsibilities."

A Diamond 60th Year

As he enters his 60th year on earth, Bishop Andy has also been reflecting on the grace that has sustained him.  He mused that, now as Bishop, “I am still trying to remain very open and approachable to people. I love anointing the sick. I love hearing confessions.” For him, this hearkens back to his uncle, Bishop Victorino. “Although he was a bishop, my uncle still went for sick calls. He would hear confessions. I saw in him what it means to be a good priest.”

Of becoming Bishop during his diamond year, he humbly asserts, “It is not because I merited it.” Rather, he attributes it solely to: “God's grace, shining through all these years, through challenges and triumphs.”  Bishop Andy further reflected on what he has learned over time, “At 60, I have learned that peace is a choice, that wisdom often means knowing which battles to fight and which ones to lovingly let go.”

He continued, “That is my reflection as I turn 60 years old: life is too short, make the best of it and do not waste it. We can all make a difference in the lives of people.” This is also one of his pastoral goals, always: “A pastor at heart, I want always to be open to people and always there to listen, to comfort, and to guide. Because I truly love being here.” He repeated, “I love it here. This is my home, and the people are so wonderful here!”