ASIA/PHILIPPINES - "A truly missionary Church does not impose political choices, but helps the faithful discern wisely"

Tacloban City (Fides News Agency) – Mission is also expressed in the Church’s ability to accompany people in the concrete issues that shape their lives, including participation in public life. This was the perspective outlined by Archbishop Gilbert Garcera of Lipa, president of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP), during the 70th National Assembly of the Pontifical Mission Societies in the Philippines, held in Tacloban City.

With the next presidential elections in the Philippines scheduled for 2028, the Archbishop called on Church communities to help the faithful form their consciences and participate responsibly in the democratic process. He presented this task not as political intervention by the Church, but as a dimension of evangelization: a missionary community, he said, remains close to people and helps them interpret the realities of life in the light of faith, truth and human dignity. “A truly missionary Church does not impose political choices, but helps the faithful discern wisely, participate responsibly and promote the common good with hearts shaped by the Gospel,” Archbishop Garcera said.

From this perspective, the formation of voters is linked to a missionary Church that does not close itself off within its own structures, customs or internal concerns. The Archbishop urged parishes to develop an outward-looking pastoral approach, with particular attention to the poor, young people, marginalized people, and those who have gradually drifted away from Church life. For him, evangelization requires presence, listening and accompaniment in the places where people live out their social, professional and family responsibilities each day. “Mission begins wherever we live, work, study and serve,” he said, stressing that the Church’s missionary task belongs to every baptized person, not only to specialized organizations or missionaries sent to other countries.

The address was delivered before the national assembly of the Pontifical Mission Societies in the Philippines, providing the CBCP president with an opportunity to encourage reflection on how the generosity and vitality of Filipino Catholic communities can support evangelization beyond the country’s borders. Referring to the contribution of Catholics in South Korea and Japan, despite their smaller Catholic communities, he urged Filipino faithful to strengthen their commitment to missionary cooperation, according to the CBCP website.

For Archbishop Garcera, this missionary renewal is also inseparable from the implementation of the Synod on Synodality. He described synodality as a lived ecclesial practice rather than another organizational program: a way of listening, discerning and walking together. The task now facing Philippine dioceses, he added, is to give concrete expression to the Synod’s orientations. “The work of the Synod did not end with the publication of its Final Document,” he said. “The question before us is no longer simply, ‘What is synodality?’ but, ‘How will we live it?’”
(MLK) (Fides News Agency, 21/8/2026)

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