Trixie Cruz: Quo Vadis Philippine Mother Church?

(photo credit: myphilippinelife.com)

For those of us marginal Catholics, the resignation of a Pope, the first such incidence in 600 years is cause for pause. Benedict XVI certainly was not the most loved of pontiffs in recent history. He is certainly no leader like John Paul II and not the rock of conservatism that Paul the VI was.

And by no stretch of the imagination can he claim the beloved status of the laughing Pope, John XXIII. Yet his abdication does leave many of the faithful in a state of consternation. What just happened?

The leader of millions of Catholics does not blithely resign. There must be more to it than his statement of inability to lead, nor can one easily subscribe to the conspiracy theories that he was seeking to evade prosecution for abetting the widespread sexual abuse of children by various priests.

The most viable theory right now is that the curia – the Vatican bureaucracy – a hotbed of intrigue to rival the royal houses of Europe in their heyday, consistently undermined any and all attempts to reform a church already burdened by archaic policies.

We reiterate, Benedict XVI is no John XXIII, the ultimate reformist who dragged the Holy Mother Catholic Church into the twentieth century through Vatican II. John XXIII, though already old by most standards managed to bully, charm, push, pull and nag all naysayers into becoming co-conspirators to deliver change.

And so, while the Vatican seethes with intrigue and plots, what then will the Filipino Catholic faithful do? Already rocked by dissent and division from the recent debates on reproductive health and the encroachments of other more worldly beliefs or alternatives, an assertion of faith seems necessary.

Though Filipinos aren’t strict adherents to Catholic dogma, indigenizing many of its practices and stubbornly incorporating our innate Philippine-ness into the brew, we pride ourselves as being the light of Asia. Perhaps, in view of the instability of the hierarchy right now, the best thing to do is return to our roots, to the tenets of the faith. And pray.


By: Atty. Trixie Cruz-Angeles
(Source : PSSST! Centro)





To know more about Trixie Cruz Angeles, check out: I AM TRIXIE CRUZ