PERRYSCOPE
Perry Diaz
Cardinal Luis Antonio “Chito” Gokim Tagle is Primate of the Philippines and archbishop of the
diocese of Manila. He is the country’s 32nd archbishop and when he was named a
cardinal in October 2013, he became the second youngest cardinal in the world
(he is just two years older than Cardinal Baselios
Cleemis Thottunkal of India). Cardinal Tagle is already a household name in the
Philippines and is often seen around Manila, commuting to work on his bike. At
62, he is one of the youngest “papabile” (one who is
likely or possible candidate to be elected
pope). Many Filipinos are hoping he will become Asia’s first pope.
Fr Francis Lucas,
executive secretary of the Filipino bishops’ commission on social communication
and mass media, believes Cardinal Tagle has the
qualities necessary to be the next Bishop of Rome. “He’s humble, meek, simple,
bright, media-savvy, spiritual,” he told GMA News. “He prays a lot… you can’t
see any conceitedness in him.”
Born in Manila on June
21, 1957 to Manuel Topacio Tagle Sr and Milagros
Gokim Tagle, he and his only brother, Manuel Gokim Tagle Jr, were brought up in
a devoutly Catholic environment. At the age of three he was already able to
recite the rosary. He went to school at St Andrew’s in Parañaque City where he
hoped to become a doctor. But when he visited
with his parish priest he was struck by the needs of a poor parish and felt a
calling to become a priest. As a seminarian of the San Jose Major Seminary he
read philosophy at the Ateneo de Manila University, the second highest-ranked university in the Philippines. He then
went on to study theology at the Loyola School of Theology. He completed
his licentiate and doctorate at the Catholic University of America in
Washington DC., where he earned a doctorate in theology, writing his dissertation on the evolution of episcopal
collegiality since the Second Vatican Council.
He was ordained to
the priesthood at the age of 24 and was appointed pastor at St Augustine parish
in Mendez, Cavite. He taught theology at three different
seminaries, one in Cavite and two in Metro Manila.
In 1997 Blessed Pope John
Paul II appointed Fr Tagle as a member of the International Theological
Commission, where he became a close collaborator of Pope Benedict XVI, who was
president at the time. Assisting the Holy See and the
Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, Tagle played a key role in
examining and addressing doctrinal questions. Fr Tagle developed ties with the
progressive theological School of Bologna, contributing to the school’s controversial history of the Second Vatican Council project,
which interprets Vatican II as a “new beginning” for the Church.
In 2013, Pope Benedict
appointed Fr. Tagle cardinal. When Cardinal Tagle received the red hat, he
broke down to tears, which led an observer to
comment, “A leader of the Church can be emotional at times, but not all the
time.” Cardinal Tagle apologized to Pope Benedict XVI the next day.
The Pope replied, “No, you don’t have to say sorry. We need heart in the
Church.
In
2015, Tagle was elected president of Caritas
Internationalis, the global confederation of national Catholic charities; he
was re-elected to the position in May. And, in late 2014, he was elected to a
six-year term as president of the Catholic Biblical Federation. (Source:
Catholic Herald)
The Red Pope
Recently, Pope Francis announced a significant
appointment. He appointed Cardinal Tagle as prefect of the
Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples. In his new role in the
Catholic Church, he will head the office that deals
with most of the dioceses in Africa, Asia, and Ocenia and shape the church in
these territories.
His appointment is very
important because the influence of his congregation is far-reaching.
Originally called the Congregation for the Propagation of the Faith (Propaganda Fide), it was created in 1622 to
deal with the missions opened up by European colonization.
The Propaganda Fide,
“Prop” for short, does the work of both the Congregation for Bishops and the
Congregation for the Clergy. The Prop is responsible
for nominating and supervising bishops throughout Asia, Africa, and Oceania,
which is about one-third of the dioceses in the world. As prefect,
Cardinal Tagle will look for candidates who will support the pastoral vision of
Pope Francis. His congregation can also
influence how seminaries train future priests.
Under the proposed reform
of the Curia, the congregation will have two sections: one for the missions and
the other re-evangelizing the old Christian Propaganda world. This has led many
Vatican observers to refer to its prefect as the Papa
Rosso (Red Pope), for the scarlet robes that the cardinal wears.
Coming from Asia,
Cardinal Tagle will be sympathetic to Pope Francis’ desire that Christianity
reflect local cultures and traditions rather than
simply imitating how Catholicism is lived in Europe.
As prefect, Cardinal
Tagle will also distribute funds collected by the Society for the Propagation
of the Faith, which supports missionary work around the world. Here he could
direct the money to serve the people rather than the
clergy. Pope Francis wants a poor church serving the poor, yet in some
missionary countries the clergy live better than their people.
Cardinal Tagle is an
enthusiastic supporter of Pope Francis, who needs all the support he can get from the Vatican’s Curia. Cardinal Tagle
shares the same pastoral approach to church issues as does Pope Francis.
He definitely is pro-Francis and would support his agenda. It is expected
that Cardinal Tagle, known as the “Asian Francis,” would
seek to appoint bishops for missionary territories that would be in the mold of
himself and Pope Francis.
Pope Francis’successor
But Tagle’s high-profile appointment has all
the benefits of being close to the powers-that-be in the Vatican. It
certainly grooms him as a “papabile,” a strong
contender to succeed Pope Francis who turns 83 later this month. In any
case, the decision to choose the next pope rests on the cardinals who will
elect him at the next conclave.
Cardinal Tagle is
supportive about the agenda of Pope Francis, speaking out for migrants and
refugees, and trying to implement the Gospel of the Poor in his role as
President of Caritas, the Church’s charitable arm. Cardinal Tagle is a
passionate communicator, having hosted hour-long
television programs in the Philippines on the Bible and questions of
faith. He comes over as humble and joyful, and regularly tears up
when talking about the suffering of people he has encountered through his
ministry.
New Mentality
Rome can no longer
see itself, and Europe, as at the center of Christianity. It is tasked
with serving the growing missionary churches. Propaganda Fide, some in
Rome argue, has been one of the slowest to adopt this vision, and to adopt the
reforms of the Second Vatican Council which sought to
give a voice to local churches and bishops.
Like Pope Francis,
Cardinal Tagle is a Roman “outsider” having never studied or worked in the
Eternal City until now. The decision to give him one of Rome’s biggest jobs is
a way of testing his mettle ahead of a future
conclave. One of the reservations some have about Cardinal Tagle’s candidacy is
whether he is robust and savvy enough to handle the brutal politics of the
Roman Curia. Working at Propaganda Fide will be a chance to see how he fares. His potential as future pope
will depend in his new role and what the cardinals think about the current
pontificate at the next conclave. If they have a favorable impression
perhaps Cardinal Tagle would seem more attractive. However, if they have a negative impression, the cardinals would thumb
him down. But that is still in the future, which gives Cardinal Tagle
enough time to do a great job as the Papa Rosso.
Indeed, Cardinal Tagle is a shining rising star where evangelization of peoples
of Asia, Africa, and Oceania would be on top of his agenda. (Source:
National Catholic Register)
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