Faith, not efficiency, is the heart of the church's mission, says Cardinal Tagle



Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle, prefect of the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples, is pictured in a photo from 2018. (Credit: Paul Haring / CNS.)

ROME - Pope Francis' recent message to pontifical missionary societies is a reminder that the church's primary mission is to proclaim the Gospel, not to run institutions economically, said Philippine Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle.

In an interview with Vatican News published on May 28, Tagle, prefect of the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples, said that the pope "is not against efficiency and methods" that could help the missionary activities of the church.

However, the cardinal said, "he is warning us of the danger of" measuring "the mission of the church using only the standards and results predetermined by management models or schools, regardless of how useful and good they may be."

"Efficiency tools can help but they should never replace the church's mission," he said. "The most efficient church organization may end up being the least missionary."

The pope sent the message on May 21 to missionary societies after their general assembly was canceled due to the coronavirus pandemic.

While missionary societies raise awareness and promote prayer for missions, they also raise funds to finance a myriad of projects in some of the poorest countries in the world. Pope Francis warned, however, that fundraising can never be their first priority.

Tagle said that Pope Francis sees the danger that donations become "simply funds or resources to be used, rather than tangible signs of love, prayer, sharing the fruits of human labor."

“The faithful who become committed and joyful missionaries are our best resource, not money itself,” said the cardinal. “It is also nice to remind our faithful that even their small donations, when put together, become a tangible expression of the Holy Father's universal missionary charity to churches in need. No gift is too small when given for the common good. "

In his message, the pope warned of "pitfalls and pathologies" that could threaten the unity of missionary societies in the faith, such as self-absorption and elitism.

"Instead of leaving room for the work of the Holy Spirit, many initiatives and entities connected to the church end up being interested only in themselves," the pope said. "Many ecclesiastical institutes, at all levels, seem to be engulfed by the obsession with promoting themselves and their initiatives, as if that were the goal and objective of their mission".

Tagle told Vatican News that the gift of God's love is at the center of the church and its mission in the world, "not a human plan". If the actions of the church are separated from this root, "they are reduced to simple fixed functions and plans of action".

“God's surprises and“ disturbances ”are considered destructive to our prepared plans. For me, to avoid the risk of functionalism, we must go back to the source of the life and mission of the church: the gift of God in Jesus and in the Holy Spirit, ”he said.

In asking ecclesial organizations to "break every mirror in the home," the cardinal said Pope Francis was also denouncing a "pragmatic or functional vision of mission" which ultimately leads to narcissistic behavior that makes mission more successful and successful. on the results “And less on the good news of God's mercy”.

Instead, he continued, the church must accept the challenge of helping "our faithful to see that faith is a great gift from God, not a burden," and it is a gift to be shared.