April 18, 2008
Dear Brethren:
We thank all of you for your continued faithfulness to our CFC life and mission. We thank you most especially for the many messages of support and concern that you have sent during this new challenge in our community life.
We refer to the news story that appeared in ABS-CBN News Online based among others, on a letter that Cardinal Stanislaw Rylko, President of the Pontifical Council for the Laity of the Vatican, sent to Joe Tale last March 11, 2008. We wish to immediately assure you that this news story is NOT a Vatican release. This was written by a local reporter, with an unfortunate slant inimical to CFC. We have accordingly written to ABS-CBN News Online, a copy of which was previously circulated.
This letter was part of a continuing dialogue between Joe Tale (and the CFC International Council) and the Cardinal on the matter of how CFC can more fully live out its life and mission, and supposed to be a private communication to the CFC International Council. The dialogue began way back in August 2007, after the International Council wrote the Cardinal to inform him of the results of the elections. This was an act of courtesy in view of the fact that CFC is an international private association of the faithful, approved by the Vatican as such in 2005.
The item of Cardinal Rylko’s letter cited by the news story (i.e. partnership with companies distributing contraceptives), has been the subject of consultations which the CFC International Council held with various pastors of the Philippine church, including Cardinal Rosales, even before we went to the Vatican. We asked the difficult questions, but the answers we got have been essentially the same.
Joe Tale and Rouquel Ponte then visited the Cardinal in March 2008, seeking his guidance on the conflict that visited our community in 2007. The Cardinal was well-informed of the circumstances of the conflict, and knew that there were two groups now using the name Couples for Christ. The Cardinal was most concerned about accusations that CFC was veering away from its life and mission, particularly because of Gawad Kalinga’s partnerships with pharmaceutical companies.
The IC assured the Cardinal that:
1. CFC has not and will not veer away from its vision and mission. Even while we are active in the social dimension of the gospel, our work in evangelization and family renewal have always been continuing.
2. The partnerships were entered into in good faith and in good heart. They involved capacity-building, particularly in the area of health care, and were definitely not about distribution of contraceptives in the GK sites.
3. The pharma companies concerned do not manufacture contraceptives in the Philippines and had in fact withdrawn their limited stocks from the Philippine market.
On the other hand, the Cardinal maintained that:
1. CFC is under the guidance of the Church in issues of faith and morals.
2. Being pro-life includes not partnering with companies distributing contraceptives, even if such partners do not in fact distribute them in the Philippines.
3. Quoting from the letter of Cardinal Rylko’s letter to Joe Tale (March 11, 2008) he said, “We urge that you prepare and spread in the newspapers in the Philippines and on your website a well thought and clear public declaration recognizing the erroneous steps taken. It is recommendable that you prepare it with the help of some Bishops and ecclesiastical Advisor, so as to benefit the healing and growth of your organization. This open apology will help to clear the confusion among the faithful. Of course, your decision to stop receiving this type of funding will help recover the good standing of your association Couples for Christ.”
The IC submitted to the Church’s stand. Although we argued that our intentions and actions were noble and that we saw things differently (no scandal in the partnership), we also understood the clergy’s perception that our partnership caused scandal among the faithful. Moreover, we expressed initially that we were not in favor of a public apology, but in obedience and in faith, although with sadness in our hearts, we obeyed. The IC has always advocated a posture of humility and obedience to the Church. While we express our views and justify them, in the end, we obey authority, consistent with our own culture in CFC and our vision statement which includes the phrase “one with the Catholic Church.”
And so we obeyed. Last April 7, 2008, we published a full-page ad in the Philippine Star. The IC is of the belief that this was part of our governance responsibility of safeguarding the oneness of our community’s mission with the church. It is unfortunate that our detractors are now using this gesture of obedience and commitment to our Catholic faith to try to discredit us. We urge all of you to be steadfast. God is testing our humility and obedience. He is asking us to make the sacrifice of loving even those who seek to destroy us. There are many things we do not understand as we journey through this life but when our Church authority, guided by the Holy Spirit, sets directives, we obey, confident that our quiet acceptance of His will shall open the floodgates of His graces.
We assure everyone that we will not waiver from our commitment to love and care for the poor. We continue to be guided by our Mission statement – “Building the Church of the Home and Building the Church of the Poor.”
We exhort you to pray for our community as we weather this storm. Once again, it is time to remind ourselves that our God has given us a wonderful message, one that will refine us into better servants and pastors – “Love one another as I have loved you.” This is our beacon and guide as we forge ahead in our vision and mission.
God bless us all.
CFC INTERNATIONAL COUNCIL
