Czech priest Tomáš Halík hands Pope Francis letter urging reforms, vision

The Czech priest and theologian Tomáš Halík met with Pope Francis at the Vatican on Wednesday and presented him with a letter praising the Pope for his efforts to reform the Catholic Church and urging the establishment of a clear future vision.

The letter has been supported by nearly 75,000 signatories including 2,500 theology professors and public figures from across the world. Mr. Halík told the news server aktualne.cz that opinions on the current role of the Catholic Church were gathered from all signatories and are now being published in multiple languages, including Czech. He also said that an intercontinental network of theologians ready to devise and implement reform impulses has been established.

The 71-year-old Templeton Prize winner has been actively involved in theological doctrine within the Catholic Church since the 1990s.