LET'S STICK TO REALITY: TAGLE VIS-A-VIS VATICAN POLITICS

LET'S STICK TO REALITY: TAGLE 
VIS-A-ViS VATICAN POLITICS 

"Come now, let's kill him." GENESIS 37:20

BY ALEX P. VIDAL

Who would not want a Filipino pope? 
There is no doubt that Luis Cardinal Tagle, 55, is qualified to become the next pope. He is intelligent and speaks different languages; Cardinal Tagle is educated in a wide variety of fields and has the charisma and moral turpitude that is like Caesar's wife--beyond doubt. He is a dark horse, asserted his drum beaters. 
But let's be realistic. The politics that have crept the Vatican for centuries showed that no cardinal from the third world has occupied the Roman Catholic hierarchy's most influential and powerful post. For a cardinal from a third world country to be chosen as successor of Pope Benedict XVI is like wishing for the Halley's comet.

EXCITED

It's alright for all Filipinos to be excited about the global news of Cardinal Tagle's possible ascension to Vatican's top religious portfolio. In times of economic despair and political instability in the country that prides itself as the only Catholic country in Asia, we need this kind of positive report to boost our morale and satisfy our ego as a nation.
However, we must not over exaggerate Cardinal Tagle's chances. We must stick to reality and refrain from stretching our freedom to exaggerate. To know when to reverse the telescope is like painting a great picture. 
Even before Pope Benedict announced he was quitting, the names of Cardinal Peter Kodwo Appiah Turkson of Ghana, Cardinal Marc Ouellet of Canada, and Cardinal Francis Arinze of Nigeria were already being dangled.

COUNCIL 

Born in 1948 and is currently the president of the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace, Turkson was elevated to the cardinalate by Pope John Paul II in 2003 and was appointed president of the Ponitifical Council for Justice and Peace in 2009 by Pope Benedict XVI.
Quebec's Marc Ouellet was born in 1944 and is the present prefect of the Congregation for Bishops and concurrently president of the Pontifical Commission for Latin America since his appointment by Pope Benedict XVI on 30 June 2010. He was elevated to the cardinalate, by Pope John Paul II, on 21 October 2003.
Born in 1932 in Nigeria, Francis Arinze is the current Cardinal Bishop of Velletri-Segni, succeeding Joseph Ratzinger, who became Pope Benedict XVI. Arinze was one of the principal advisors to Pope John Paul II.

CHANCES

Of course we will not underestimate the chances of Cardinal Tagle. The US-based Catholic News Service (CNS) recently endorsed the Filipino cardinal in a newly posted glowing profile. 
"His youthful energy, his pastoral experience, his theological training and his communications skills impressed cardinals and bishops from around the world even before Pope Benedict XVI inducted him into the College of Cardinals last November," trumpeted the CNS. Alex P. Vidal