Card. Tagle: encounter is the key step in the journey of dialogue
The 7th Philippine Conference on the New Evangelisation ended yesterday. The new prefect of Propaganda Fide gave a speech summarising the event. “Everyone has needs but everyone also has a gift. Your gift is the response to the needs of the others,” Tagle said.
Manila (AsiaNews/Agencies) – Card Luis Antonio Gokim Tagle, archbishop of Manila and new prefect of the Congregation for the Evangelisation of Peoples, yesterday gave his synthesis of the 7th Philippine Conference on the New Evangelisation (PCNE-7).
The key step in the journey of dialogue is a "personal encounter" with others, he said, in particular with those who are considered "unique", real people, "not just caricatures or a concept”.
The conference was held on 28-29 January at the Smart-Araneta Coliseum in Cubao, Quezon City, centred on theme At Sino Ang Aking Kapwa, ‘And who is my neighbour?’ (Luke 10:29).
Card Tagle’s address ended two days of meetings and testimonials.
In one of his last official actions as Manila’s archbishop, the prelate told participants that by meeting one’s neighbours “we hopefully will learn the path of humility, admitting our prejudice and even the injustice that we have committed.”
“Let us be converted to the truth. From humility and repentance, hopefully, I will be open to the others who are God’s creatures too,” he added.
According to the new prefect of Propaganda Fide, following the path of dialogue also means "to be a neighbour", getting away from fears, pride and self-righteousness, which prevent us from seeing the uniqueness of our neighbours.
Someone in need is a neighbour, "and that means every person,” said the cardinal. “Everyone has needs but everyone also has a gift. Your gift is the response to the needs of the others,” Tagle said.
A neighbour, he explained, both invites and gives compassion. “We don’t only ask who is my neighbour, we also ask can I be a neighbour to others.”
Card Tagle launched the first conference in October 2013 in response to the call for a new evangelisation.
The Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) organised this year’s edition, PCNE-7, as part of the Year of Ecumenism, Interreligious Dialogue and Indigenous Peoples planned for 2021, when the Church will celebrate 500 years of Christianity in the Philippines.
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