Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle

Photo: Paul Haring/CNS

Pro-Prefect of the Dicastery for Evangelization

Dioceses/Religious Orders: Diocese of Imus, Archdiocese of Manila

Cardinal Tagle failed to act on known abuse and made troubling public remarks that downplayed media scrutiny of abuse in the Church. In 2017, Tagle and other Caritas leaders were informed of Fr. Luk Delft’s prior conviction for child abuse, yet Delft was permitted to continue as Director of Caritas Central African Republic, where new abuse allegations later emerged. In 2021, Tagle’s dicastery was tasked with investigating Bishop Patrick Dunn for alleged cover-up in New Zealand. Instead of addressing the complaint, Tagle praised Dunn publicly the following year. Survivors have since received no update on the case.

SNAP filed a complaint against Tagle under the pope’s 2023 decree Vos estis lux mundi on March 25, 2025

Vos estis lux mundi, Pope Francis’ 2023 decree, allows any bishop, cardinal, or religious superior to be reported and investigated for abuse or cover-up. These complaints, submitted to the Vatican, are not verdicts of guilt. They are evidence-based calls for investigation—each meeting the church’s own standard of “serious indications” that a violation occurred. In civil terms, this is equivalent to probable cause or reasonable grounds to investigate.

Every filing draws from a solid foundation of survivor and eyewitness testimony, public records and church statements, independent investigations by media and legal experts, official church documents and canonical proceedings, testimony, depositions, and court-ordered documents from criminal and civil cases.