Follow Pope’s way vs graft, prelates told

MANILA, Philippines—The head of the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) on Saturday urged members of the clergy to adopt Pope Francis’ approach to fighting graft and corruption, instead of just denouncing the “cancer of Philippine society.”

Pope Francis. AP

“Perhaps we can reconsider our approach at solving… graft and corruption by talking more about the beauty of integrity and honesty rather constantly denouncing the evil that we experience,” CBCP president and Lingayen-Dagupan Archbishop Socrates Villegas said in his speech during the opening of the conference plenary assembly yesterday, in the latest sign of a liberal shift in the powerful institution.

More than 100 bishops from various dioceses were expected to gather during the three-day assembly at the Pope Pius XII Center on UN Avenue in Manila to tackle Church matters and pressing national concerns.

The plenary assembly is considered the highest decision-making body of the CBCP, which meets in regular session in January and July.

“Perhaps we can widen circles of integrity rather than creating fiercer watchdogs against corruption. Perhaps we need to remind ourselves that for every prophetic denunciation we utter we must stretch our hands to offer an opportunity for conversion and healing,” he told his fellow prelates.

Villegas urged them to emulate Pope Francis who, he said, had shaken up the old belief systems on spiritual shepherding.

He said the Pope had “slowly moved the Church from being a dogmatic, self-engrossed and authoritative sick institution to being a gentle, outreaching, compassionate and persuasive Church through the power of love and mercy.”

The Pope last year said the Church had become “obsessed” with abortion, gay marriage and contraception, and had set about creating “a poor church for the poor,” in a major shift from his predecessor. Tina G. Santos; AFP

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