The world, my brother, isn’t like that.” That retort to critics who’d stonewall reforms sweeping the Catholic church came from the cardinal that Pope Francis handpicked to lead mint-new counselors: Oscar Maradiaga of Honduras.
How will such reforms affect the Philippines? Here, new voices within a conservative hierarchy, increasingly resound. One is that of Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle, 56. There is the new Catholic Bishops Conference president Socrates Villegas, 54. Add cardinal-elect Cotabato Archbishop Orlando Quevedo, 75. Along with 18 other prelates, Quevedo will be elevated to the College of Cardinals 21 February.
Quevedo expressed preference to continue working in Mindanao, sapped by decades of armed clashes. “The conflict killed tens of thousands and helped nurture Islamic extremism in Southeast Asia”, recalled The New York Times. Quevedo is respected as a voice for social justice, Muslim leaders say.
None of the new cardinals come from Italy or the US. “That’s a reminder to traditional Western powerhouses…where they stand in the Catholic footprint early 21st century,” wrote John Allen, former Vatican correspondent for National Catholic Reporter.
By happenstance, new hopes for turning swords into plowshares came Saturday when the government and Moro Islamic Liberation Front completed a peace accord.
“The agreement provides an unprecedented opportunity to end one of the world’s longest-running intrastate conflicts,” wrote Ateneo University’s Richard Javad Heydarian.
Halfway around the world, Cardinal Maradiaga told Germany’s Kolner StadtAnzeiger: “We are at the dawn of a new era. Reforms launched by Francis – just 10 months leading a 2,000-year-old institution – recall John XXIII’s call for the Second Vatican Council, “Open the window and let in fresh air.”
Come October, a Synod of Bishops would tackle “social issues not even visible on the horizon” at the 1980 conference. These include surrogate parenthood, childless marriages to same-sex partnerships.
Tagle and other cardinals, who elected Francis in March, knew “much had to change.” These include overhauling the Synod, from a coffee clutch that met in Rome, every three years into a “tool of collegial leadership.” Laymen “constitute the vast majority of God’s people.” Now, a new Congregation for the Laity responds to that reality.
Francis’ priority is to “show compassion through a different kind of care, especially the needy,” Maradiaga said. “Traditional teaching continues…but they can’t any longer come from authoritarianism and moralism.”
That is reflected in his candid taking on of Gerhard L. Muller, prefect of the Vatican’s Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith. A Benedict XVI appointee, he was also named named cardinal by Francis on January 12.
Muller could be “less absolute in his defense of authority in the church,” the Honduras prelate said. “(But) I understand it. He’s German, and a German professor of theology on top of it. In his mentality, there is only right or wrong, that’s it. The world, my brother, isn’t like that.
“You should be flexible when you hear other voices, instead of just saying, ‘No, here this is the wall.’ He’ll get there, and understand others. But for now, he’s just beginning.”
“Francis wants to lead the church in the direction that he himself moves. This is closer to people, not enthroned above them, but alive in them,” said the cardinal, Francis favored “a simpler life and leadership” from
priests and bishops in line with the “sometimes forgotten message of Jesus.” They should go out to people, rather than sit in offices and wait for people to come.
A completely new constitution for the severely criticized Curia is being drafted. It’d replace – not just modify or adapt – Pope John Paul II’s 1988 apostolic constitution “Pastor Bonus.” “The Curia is by no means a monolithic bloc,” he said. “There are many in the Curia who agree it cannot stay as it is.” They’ve come forward with their proposals.
‘Can Francis Cure the Curia?’ asks The Commonweal. It’s basic form was established in the late 16th century to help the pope apply the Council of Trent decisions. The Curia has never been well loved.
“The Curia allows expression of many opinions,” a French ambassador to the Holy See once said. “But it is unified behind it once they are made.” “Although it has limited means, it serves a worldwide church of 1.2 billion believers,” said Norman Tanner, of Gregorian University.
So, how did such a well-regarded bureaucracy reproduce the murkiest aspects of Italian politics? The Curia suffered financial scandals and blunders in the past, but received less media attention. Before Vatican II, the Curia had real powers. John XXIII changed the game when he brought the world’s bishops to Rome, then backed them against the Curia’s agenda.
To a large extent, John Paul II left the Curia to its own devices while he focused on world issues, “and so the Curia did as it pleased during his long decline from Parkinson’s disease.” Before election as Benedict XVI, Joseph Ratzinger served in the Curia for a quarter of a century. “But, he was never of it.”
For Benedict, the church is the search for beauty and truth. He focused on his books and picked Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone as secretary of state. “Bertone had been promoted beyond his competence, yet he threw his weight around.”
Benedict tried to grapple with reforms. For example, he instituted external controls on the Institute for the “Works of Religion” —the so-called Vatican Bank. But his reforms failed to go far enough. “And his successor Francis inherited the mess.”
We chafe at what the next 10 months could bring. And if Francis visits Yolanda victims this year, as some speculate, how would it affect the church here with emerging leaders who, in their own way, reflect Francis?
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