It’s a girl, not a boy, for ex-bishop and lover

It’s a baby girl and not a boy, as we had reported last Thursday, for former Antipolo bishop Crisostomo Yalung and his confessed lover, Cristine Rances, sources told The STAR yesterday. And her name is Christian Alexandra.

One source said Christian Alexandra was delivered through a repeat Caesarean section at around 9 p.m. on Thursday, while another medical doctor said time of birth was at around 10 p.m.

The 6.14-pound baby girl has extremely similar facial features to those of Yalung, 49, one of the sources said.

The STAR reported Thursday that Rances, 26, gave birth to a 6.5-pound baby boy and was given the name Crisostomo Manuel. That report was based on information given by a woman who had claimed to be a companion of Rances and who was attending to her at the Cardinal Santos.

The first baby, Christian Guadalupe is now one year and two weeks old. She was also born in June. Three months later, Christian Alexandra was conceived.

Christian Guadalupe stirred a scandal that forced Yalung to resign from the priesthood and prompted him to initially go to the US and later move to the Vatican where he now works as a librarian.

As it turned out, the woman-friend who initiated the contact with The STAR was using Rances’ old cellular phone number and was at the same time concocting and feeding false information to The STAR.

In a telephone interview, Rances said the woman is her "friend" who now refuses to take calls from that particular cellular phone.

The STAR got hold of Cristine’s authentic telephone number from another source who had read the erroneous article.

"She is so beautiful. She looks very much like her father," Rances told The STAR.

Rances was with several relatives and Monsignor Nico Bautista, head of the Catholic Mass Media Ministry, last night for the "blessing" of Christian Alexandra.

Rances, 26, expressed her gratitude to Bautista for his moral support during difficult times.

During last night’s interview with The STAR, Rances said she will file for child support, but did not give a date.

Cristine said Yalung has not been informed yet of the birth of Christian Alexandra. The last time they communicated was in April.

Quoting Yalung, Rances said, "He said he is not going to neglect us. He said he is now looking for a way to help us." Rances said they had moved to Pasig from their original residence in Antipolo.

"He said he will come one day and take his children with him. He is willing to take care of us but he just wants to spend a little more time serving the Catholic Church," Rances said.

Yalung was supposed to have returned to Manila this month to renew his visa, but has not arrived back home, she said.

Earlier, Rances claimed that Yalung was aware of fathering another baby and said that she was seeking support for their two children.

Rances had told ANC’s "Strictly Politics" aired last Tuesday that she may go to court in a bid to seek child support from the local Catholic Church.