Tagle among cardinals considered ‘electable’
Predict who the next pope will be at your peril.
An old Italian saying warns against putting faith or money in any presumed front-runner ahead of the conclave, the closed-door gathering of cardinals that picks the pontiff.
It cautions further that “He who enters a conclave as a pope, leaves it as a cardinal.”
Nevertheless, among the handful of cardinals cited by Reuters who are being talked about as “papabili” or “electable” is Cardinal Luis Antonio Gokim Tagle, who is often called the “Asian Francis” because of his similar commitment to social justice.
On paper, the 67-year-old Tagle, who generally prefers to be called by his nickname “Chito,” seems to have all the boxes ticked to qualify him to be a pope.
He has had decades of pastoral experience since his ordination to the priesthood in 1982. He then gained administrative experience, first as bishop of Imus and then as archbishop of Manila.
Pope Benedict XVI made him a cardinal in 2012.
Vatican experience
In a move seen by some as a strategy by Francis to give Tagle some Vatican experience, the Pope in 2019 transferred him from Manila and appointed him head of the Church’s missionary arm, formally known as the Dicastery for Evangelization.
He comes from what some called “Asia’s Catholic lung,” because the Philippines has the region’s largest Catholic population. His mother was an ethnic Chinese-Filipino. He speaks fluent Italian and English.
Between 2015 and 2022, he was the top leader of Caritas Internationalis, a confederation of more than 160 Catholic relief, social service and development organizations around the world.
In 2022, Pope Francis fired its entire leadership following accusations of bullying and humiliation of employees, and appointed a commissioner to run it.
Tagle, who was also removed from his role, had been nominally president but was not involved in the day-to-day operations, which were overseen by a lay director general.
Announcing the Pope’s dramatic decision, Tagle told a meeting of the confederation that the changes were a moment for “facing our failures.” It remains to be seen how the saga will impact Tagle’s chances at the papacy.
If elected, he would be the first pontiff from Asia.
Pope’s visit remembered
Meanwhile, church bells are expected to toll in the coming days as the country mourns the passing of “Lolo Kiko,” who was well beloved by Filipinos.
Many remembered the four-day visit of Pope Francis in 2015, where he comforted the still grieving survivors of Supertyphoon “Yolanda” (international name: Haiyan) in the Visayas and celebrated with more than 6 million Filipinos in Rizal Park, making it the largest papal gathering in history.
Cardinal Pablo Virgilio David, president of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP), called for the tolling of the bells of all the churches and for the Filipinos to unite in praying for the eternal repose of the Holy Father.
Lingayen-Dagupan Archbishop Socrates Villegas called Pope Francis “the Jesus of our age.”
“He was the gift of the Good Shepherd to the Church. He served us with humility. He showed us God’s mercy. He linked us with bridges of compassion with fellow believers and with nonbelievers. He bravely disturbed us in our complacency and prejudices. He taught us to care for God’s creation. He taught us Jesus,” he said in his message.
Villegas, who was the president of CBCP when Pope Francis visited the country in 2015, remembered the warmth that the Holy Father gave to the Filipinos.
“The images of his memorable visit to the Philippines are clear and vivid in our grateful hearts. In sunshine or under the rain, he made us feel the love of God. The rains and our tears of joy were mixed running down our cheeks. We knew that in him, Jesus was in our midst,” he said.
