Cardinal Tagle: Our motivation is spiritual, pastoral and missionary FILE PHOTO
MANILA, Philippines–No roof above their heads, no shelter from the storm.
Manila Archbishop Luis Antonio Cardinal Tagle has raised concerns over the country’s homeless as he led the recent groundbreaking for a Catholic Church-funded housing project in Barangay (village) Muzon, San Jose del Monte City, Bulacan.
“We cannot overemphasize the need to address this urgent concern for urban housing, especially in light of the many who continue to be displaced by natural and manmade disasters and calamities,” Tagle was quoted as saying by Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) News, the official news service of the CBCP.
“To quote Pope Francis, we’re neither a government agency nor an NGO (nongovernment organization) in disguise,” Tagle said.
“At first glance, we are just doing what NGOs and the government are doing… But first of all, our motivation is spiritual, pastoral and missionary,” he said.
Tagle said the Bulacan housing project aimed to benefit the poor employees of the Archdiocese of Manila.
“Poverty comes in many forms. That is why we have feeding programs for the hungry, education for the unlettered. One face of poverty now is the problem of homelessness and that is what this housing project seeks to address in its own little way,” he said.
In its report, CBCP News said the project cited by Tagle was an initiative of Domus Mariae Foundation, the social housing arm of the archdiocese.
The 4,000-square-meter housing project, which will cost about P31 million to build, would benefit 73 employees of the archdiocese.
“Each 50-square-meter unit will cost P620,000, payable through a Pag-Ibig Fund housing loan with an amortization period of 25 years,” it said.
Founded in February 1983 by then Manila Archbishop Jaime Cardinal Sin, the Domus Mariae Foundation was “envisioned to provide low-cost housing for the poor.”
“Its mission is to help and promote shelter for the homeless and landless families in the slums of Metro Manila, a major concern of both the Church and the state,” CBCP News said.
The foundation’s first project, on a one-hectare lot donated by the Orosa family, was Saarland Village I in Barangay Cupang, Antipolo City. It benefited 110 poor families from San Andres Bukid, Manila.