Cardinal Tagle gets 3rd position from Vatican

Cardinal Tagle gets 3rd position from Vatican

CARDINAL Luis Antonio Tagle continues to be entrusted with more responsibility in the Vatican after being given another new appointment by Pope Francis.

In its online news web site, the Vatican reported Tagle was appointed by Pope Francis on Wednesday as a new member of the Pontifical Council for Inter-religious Dialogue.

The Pontifical Council is the central office of the Church for the promotion of inter-religious dialogue in accordance with the spirit of the Second Vatican Council.

It is the third appointment bestowed by Pope Francis on Tagle.

Pope Francis appointed Tagle as the prefect of the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples in December 2019, and as a cardinal bishop last May.

Retired Sorsogon Bishop Arturo Bastes said the Pope made a “good choice” in assigning Tagle to his new position due to the former Manila archbishop’s experience in interacting with other religions.   “Asia and the Far East are home to the major religions of the world. In the Philippines we have Muslims and Buddhists,” Bastes said.

He said Tagle’s current assignment as the head of the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples, which manages the Bishops in “mission territories,” will also enable him to further promote inter-religious dialogue.

Retired Cagayan de Oro Archbishop Antonio Ledesma agreed with Bastes that Tagle’s new position is a sign that the Church is now more willing to interact with other religions.

“Since Cardinal Tagle comes from Asia, the birthplace of the world religions, and the Philippines is practically the only majority Christian country in Asia, this sends a message to us for the New Evangelization,” the former head of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines Episcopal Commission on Interreligious Dialogue.