Tagle eyes renewal of Christian faith, Church

Manila Archbishop Luis Antonio Cardinal Tagle. INQUIRER FILE PHOTO

MANILA, Philippines— Manila Archbishop Luis Antonio Cardinal Tagle is hopeful that the three-day Philippine Conference on New Evangelization (PCNE), which ends Friday, will see a renewal of the Christian faith and the Church in the modern world.

In a statement, the Archdiocese of Manila said the three-day conference, which is being held at the University of Santo Tomas, was in celebration of the Year of Faith and a response to the call for a “new Church” amid an emerging powerful culture brought about by advancing information technologies and social networking.

“The program for the three-day conference lays bare the richness of the Church’s teachings and liturgy with talks from Church experts and workers in various fields,” said the archdiocese.

Tagle officiated the “Misa ng Bayang Pilipino” on Wednesday to kick off the event and later engaged several lay groups in a dialogue.

“This free-wheeling encounter with representatives of various sectors will be about the stories of faith told in the language of the modern world and how the Church listens and reacts to these narratives,” said the Manila archdiocese.

Tagle also disclosed that Pope Francis would deliver a message at the closing Mass of the conference.—Jocelyn R. Uy