Admit biases, Catholics urged

MANILA, Philippines — Outgoing Manila Archbishop Luis Antonio Cardinal Tagle urged the faithful to admit their biases towards one another amid calls from the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) for a “dialogue towards harmony” in 2020.

Tagle said a harmonious dialogue between parties involved can only be achieved if everyone acknowledged their biases, which he described as the root cause of all miscommunications.

He said “fear of the other” has worsened, noting that “whenever there is violence, there is often fear turned into prejudice.”

Tagle’s statement was part of his message during the Manila Archdiocesan General Pastoral Assembly on the year of Ecumenism, Interreligious Dialogue and Indigenous Peoples with the theme “talk on dialogue towards harmony.”

He said that the theme is also being carried by the CBCP.

Tagle admitted that just like ordinary Catholics, he also has biases that he has to overcome to achieve a peaceful dialogue.

He said that when he was a parish priest, a retiree he thought would ask for financial support shared part of his benefits with the church.

In order to address one’s biases, Tagle said a “personal encounter” is one of the remedies. He said a person has to reach out to others to resolve the problem.

While he acknowledged the importance of social media, Tagle also said a personal touch is more important.