MANILA, Philippines - Manila Archbishop Luis Antonio Cardinal Tagle returned yesterday from the Vatican where he attended the conclave that elected a new pope and witnessed the inauguration of Pope Francis.
Tagle said he is optimistic the new pontiff would be able to handle the issues on sex scandals involving priests, corruption and other problems confronting the Catholic Church.
He also expressed hope that Pope Francis would visit the Philippines in 2016.
He arrived at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport Terminal 1 at 10 a.m. along with his predecessor, emeritus Manila Archbishop Gaudencio Cardinal Rosales and retired Cebu Archbishop Ricardo Cardinal Vidal.
Tagle and Rosales attended a press conference at the airport while Vidal took a connecting flight to Cebu.
The 55-year-old Tagle said he was glad to return to Manila. “It is really a wonderful gift of God to be part of this singular moment of the Church, which comes quite rarely... and we thank God for the gift of a new pope and he is an extraordinary man of God,†he told reporters.
He expressed hope that Pope Francis would be able to address the Church issues.
“I think so, because in Argentina he also faced some tough situations and he survived. He seemed to have contributed to the stability of the Church there,†he said.
Tagle said that after the election of Pope Francis, all the 114 cardinals paid homage to the new pontiff as a show of their pledge of obedience.
When it was his turn, the pontiff told him that he had high hopes for the Philippines.
Tagle, who was considered a papabili or candidate for pope, has been evading the media after Pope Benedict XVI announced his resignation in February.– With Rudy Santos