Cardinal Tagle, 'the teaching of the church regarding family life is not clearly understood by people'

Cardinal Tagle has told an American audience that he was "shocked" by the preliminary results of a survey on Catholic teaching. Tagle is one of the cardinals appointed by Pope Francis to preside over the Church's synod on the family which will take place in October. Tagle, who is from the Philippines, noted that Catholics around the world.

LOS ANGELES, CA (Catholic Online) - Speaking at American University in Washington D.C., Cardinal Louis Antonio Tagle from Manila, Philippines, said he was "shocked" to read the responses by Catholics regarding Church teaching on the family.

The survey was distributed to assess worldwide views on the family and Church teaching ahead of the synod on the family, scheduled for October 5-19 of this year.

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Cardinal Tagle made his point very clear, the church does not speak to the people in a language they understand. He doesn't mean that Church fathers use Latin, but rather they fail to connect with the laity.

The cardinal also gave an interview to the Catholic News Service. According to CNS, the cardinal explained, "Shocking because almost in all parts of the world, the questionnaires indicated that the teaching of the church regarding family life is not clearly understood by people, and the language by which the church proposes the teaching seems to be a language not accessible to people."

Tagle continued, "So this is my hope, not for change -- how can you change the biblical teachings? But maybe a real pastoral and evangelical concern for the church: How do we present the good news of the family to this generation, with its limitations, with its greatness, with its unique experiences?"

"We should not be talking only to one another. The gospel of the family, the good news that is the family, should be presented to families where they are and how they are."

Cardinal Tagle explained the challenge in the Philippines.

"We don't have big wars in the Philippines, but couples get separated because of poverty, not because there has been a breakdown in communication, of mutual understanding, not because they could not stand each other anymore,"

"Interreligious dialogue does not happen in universities first and foremost. It happens in the home.How does the church equip, first of all, the Catholic partner to engage in interreligious dialogue so that family becomes a school for interreligious dialogue for wider society?"

"I remember one of his rules in life as the presider over the Second Vatican Council, as the implementer: 'No one defeated; everyone convinced,' He would take the extra step, the extra mile, to convince people who find difficulties with this or that. And in the process he would be attacked from all sides."

"In doing my research, I was able to read some of the letters he got from cardinals, the bishops from different sectors of the church. I could just imagine the depth of suffering and also the depth of spirituality of this man, who would never become popular, who would never become a star the way the other popes were."

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"The Vatican has not yet announced the dates and the specific itinerary that the pope will observe, but I am confident it will happen early next year," Tagle explained.

"I think one purpose of the visit of the Holy Father is to come close to the people who suffered from the recent typhoon (in November) and the earthquake (in October)," Cardinal Tagle added. "We will see how that could be done. But he, I think, would want that to be a defining character of his trip.

"I have said his coming will be stronger than the typhoon, but in a positive way."

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