Tagle, ‘The Asian Francis,’ A Papabili

MANILA ARCHBISHOP CARDINAL Luis Antonio Tagle, whose closeness to the late Pope Francis, has earned for himself the name “the Asian Francis” and is now among the contenders to the seat of St. Peter in the Vatican.

Though it brings immense joy and pride for Filipinos as he would be the first to be considered for the venerable seat, still reports among those knowledgeable in the workings of the Vatican conclave process consider him a remote possibility.

As the Inquirer mentioned, “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,” Inquirer added.

WHO IS TAGLE?
Among the names of cardinals cited by Reuters for “papabili” or “electable”  is Cardinal Luis Antonio Gokim Tagle, who is often called the “Asian Francis” because of his similar commitment to social justice.

Tagle, 67, generally prefers to be called by his nickname “Chito” seems to have all the boxes ticked to qualify him to be a pope, the story added.

Tagle 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.

He was appointed by Pope Francis in 2019 as head of the Church’s missionary arm, formally known as the Dicastery for Evangelization, as a strategy to give him Vatican experience.

He comes from what some called “Asia’s Catholic lung,” because the Philippines has the region’s largest Catholic population, Reuters said. His mother was an ethnic Chinese-Filipino. He speaks fluent Italian and English.

Between 2015 and 2022, Tagle 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.

The Modern Jesus
Bells of the Philippine Catholic churches will toll, requiem masses will be said, in keeping with the order of Cardinal Pablo Virgilio David, president of the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines. Candle stands will be placed on churchyards for the faithful to light candles and pray for the eternal repose of the pope.

Photos of the revered Pope Francis on his four-day visit in 2015, where he comforted the still grieving survivors of Super Typhoon 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, are splashed in Facebook.

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.