Dexter side (Coat of arms of the Diocese of Cubao):
Party per fess, is chief Or issuant from a mound of three coupeaux Vert a Tau cross Tenné; in base Azure four roses Argent arranged in lozenge.
Sinister side (Personal coat of arms of Bishop Elias Lumayog Ayuban, Jr.):
Parted by a fess rayonné Gules charged with an open scroll Argent between two wheels Or; in chief of the last a flaming heart of the first transfixed bend sinisterwise by a dagger proper and decorated by a garland of roses of the third; in base, also of the third two arms embowed proper, one Filipino and the other Caucasian, in saltire, wrists wounded and holding bamboo cups Vert interiors of the first. Behind the shield is a bishop’s cross, all are surmounted by a Roman galero with six tassels pendant at both sides in 1, 2 and 3 all Vert.
Motto: “Misericordes sicut Pater”, “Merciful like the Father” (Luke 6:36)
As per ecclesiastical heraldic tradition, the coat of arms of the Bishop is impaled with the coat of arms of his jurisdiction, the Diocese of Cubao, symbolic of his spiritual marriage to his See. The dexter (viewer’s left) side has the place of honor in heraldry, thus the Diocese’s coat of arms is to be placed in the dexter.
The coat of arms of the Diocese of the Cubao was designed by Rev. Fr. Michell Joe B. Zerrudo, and Rev. Fr. Jose Tupino, III, at the birth of the Diocese in 2003.
The shield is divided horizontally into two equal parts, called “per fess” in heraldry.
In chief is a Tau Cross Tenné (brown) placed on a mount of three coupeaux Vert (green) on an Or (gold) field. The mount represents the hills that are reminiscent of the original landscape of Quezon City which geographically constitutes the Diocese of Cubao. Quezon City was tagged by its founder, Manuel L. Quezon, as “the city set on a hill.”
The Tau Cross that surmounts the mount reminds us of the first Franciscan missions founded by San Pedro Bautista, Spanish missionary and martyr, in San Francisco del Monte in the late 1500’s. The mission was originally intended to be a place of retreat (thus, Retiro) for the missionaries. The Tau Cross on top of the hill echoes the words of our Lord in Matthew 5: “Civitas supra montem posita non abscondi” (A city set on a hill cannot be hidden.)
The gold field suggests the light of Christ dispelling the darkness (Diliman, which used to be dark because of it being a heavily wooded place). It is a testament to the missionary character of the Diocese.
In base, the Azure (blue) tincture and the four Argent (silver) roses, are symbols of Mary. The roses stand for Our Lady of the Rosary – La Naval de Manila, the patroness of Quezon City as declared by Pope Paul VI on August 26, 1974. The heraldic metal Argent (white) stands for the Immaculate Conception, the titular of the Diocese. These roses complement the roses in the coat of arms of the late Jaime Cardinal Sin, Archbishop of Manila, which allude to the patroness of his hometown in Aklan: Our Lady of the Holy Rosary. The four roses also commemorate the Year of the Rosary in which the Diocese was founded. On that year, Pope John Paul II included the Mysteria Lucis to the former mysteries of the Rosary. The blue field stands for the profound Marian devotion of the Diocese. Cubao is home to three national Marian Shrines: Our Lady of the Rosary – La Naval de Manila in Quezon Avenue; Our Lady of Lourdes in Retiro; and Our Lady of Mount Carmel in New Manila, Quezon City
.
On the sinister side is the personal coat of arms of the new Bishop, Elias Lumayog Ayuban, Jr., CMF.
In chief Or is the Immaculate Heart of Mary, Protectress of the Missionary Sons of the Immaculate Heart of the Blessed Virgin Mary, popularly known as the Claretian Missionaries, a religious institute of pontifical right named after their Father Founder, St. Anthony Mary Claret. The Bishop is a member of the Congregation and has served as Provincial Superior of the Fr. Rhoel Gallardo Province which comprises the Philippines, Vietnam, Australia, and Myanmar, since 2019.
On a fess rayonné Gules (red), that is, a fess with lines resembling flames, is an open scroll Argent in between two wheels in Or. These are symbols of the patron saint and namesake of the Bishop, the prophet Elijah, which means in Hebrew “Yahweh is my God”. Under the dictates of God, he courageously preached repentance to the Israelites, and was assumed to heaven by God through a chariot of fire (2 Kings 2:11). The flames and the scroll also allude to the Holy Spirit and the Word of God. The Claretians are Missionary Servants of the Word burning with the fire of God’s love and who spread its flames wherever they go.
In base Argent are two arms in saltire holding cups. These symbols are associated with the town of origin of the Bishop in Loay, Bohol, where the historic blood compact between Miguel López de Legazpi and Datu Sikatuna, chieftain of Bohol, took place on
March 16, 1565.
The green galero with six tassels pendant at both sides, along with the episcopal processional cross, indicate that the bearer of the coat of arms is a Bishop.
“Misericordes sicut pater” is the Bishop’s motto, adapted from Luke 6:36, “Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful.”
Heraldic Designers:
Very Rev. Msgr. John Brillantes
Adviser of Escudos Eclesiasticos PH
Life Member of the American College of Heraldry
and
Mr. Johnel Dimco
Head Researcher of Escudos Eclesiasticos PH
Chief Artist of Auxilium Christianorum Ecclesiastical Heraldic Arts