Church is neither left nor right, says president of CNBB – 06/05/2023 – Politics

The CNBB (National Conference of Bishops of Brazil) needs to help “reconstitute a frayed social fabric” after a polarization that fractured communities, says Dom Jaime Spengler.

The archbishop of Porto Alegre took office last week as the new president of the most representative Catholic entity in the country. He inherited the mission to lead the high clergy through a turbulent social scene.

On the one hand, the dome of the bishops has faced resistance in recent years from Catholic groups aligned with Bolsonarism. The defense of causes such as vaccination and the environment earned him the label of the left. He prefers to talk about what he has as “the center, the Gospel”.

On the other hand, progressive sectors question the bishops for positions considered conservative by the Vatican. A Sheet Dom Jaime spoke about the female presence in the Church (“What would become of us without you?”) and about what he called the “scourge” of racism. He then commented on the election of an all-white board of directors at the CNBB. “The nature that made me like this.”

Mr. speaks of “dialogue” and “prayer” to face this new mission at CNBB. What do you see as the biggest challenge in such polarized times? In the first place, it is to announce the Gospel of Jesus. The second major demand is to collaborate in a process of reconciliation in our Brazil. We need to reconstitute the social fabric, which is very frayed. We have divided communities.

Do you see the Catholic Church divided? A recent message from the CNBB talks about “a criminal tragedy that occurred with the Yanomami people”, “the importance of vaccination” and “a cruel economic model”. Bolsonarist groups have tried to label the entity as “left-wing” for positions like this. The Church is not divided, we are very united. What perhaps draws attention: we are political beings by nature and we have our personal positions. And then some express them in a broader way, so to speak. The readings are based on this way of positioning oneself. But we can never remain silent in the face of situations in which life is not respected, regardless of who is in power. It would not be worthy of a disciple of Jesus.

Do concepts such as left and right apply to the Church? We have the Gospel as our center. It is what guides us. The note may have caused discomfort in some sectors. Something very beautiful that is in the Gospel of Matthew, but which is extremely challenging: it says that we will be evaluated in the face of very simple situations. I was hungry, you fed me. I was thirsty, you gave me a drink. We can never lose sight of that.

Mr. once spoke of religious indifference. A threat to Catholicism even greater than evangelical expansion. Why does the number of people without any religion? Here you touch on a very sensitive issue. I really think that the fastest growing segment today are the indifferent and those who call themselves agnostics. Perhaps there is a certain disenchantment, on the part of some, with the way in which the message is conveyed. There are still situations that can be a counter-witness, and that brings discredit.

One of these situations is the issue of abuse against believers, especially minors. It is a reality that is part of human life. The news that emerged brought shameful situations. They diminish what is expected of a minister of the Gospel. The Holy Father’s initiative to bring out this reality explicitly is very opportune.

Mr. said, in 2022, that those who spread lies are not worthy of assuming public office. The speech was understood by Bolsonarist Catholic groups as a message to Jair Bolsonaro. He was? I wouldn’t put that speech of mine objectively addressed to a person, but to a social context that we were living. And I would repeat it at the present time too, see? It is something that is there in everyday life. The truth opens horizons. The lie closes.

Congress is now discussing the Fake News PL, which faces strong opposition from religious people, including the Catholic Parliamentary Front. What do you think of him? We are against the dissemination of false news. Now, I am not in a position to do an evaluation of the project itself at the moment. I really didn’t read you between the lines.

Mr. said in 2018 to Vatican radio, when commenting on Lula’s trial in the second instance, that “justice should be done”. After everything that happened to the now president, he thinks that justice prevailed? This is a beautiful question that you bring me. I confess that I keep asking myself how at a given moment there were so many elements that necessarily led to the condemnation of this or that character, and after two or three years it is simply said that those elements were not sufficiently evaluated, and that condemnation was suddenly not fair. I don’t know if I explain myself. This kind of legal contradiction is something that also concerns us, yes. Because justice, of course, needs to be done. Now, we can’t get carried away by the heat of the moment. By the way, you who are a journalist can even help me, because the legal environment is not my scope.

In Lula’s case, one of the points put into question was the impartiality of the then judge Sergio I live. This kind of situation is strange, right?

In your opinion, was there political casuistry, whether in the repeal of Operation Lava Jato sentences, or in the conviction? This is also a good question. I wouldn’t know how to answer. But I say that this causes a social doubt in the legal authority, and this brings insecurity. It’s not good for us.

Letter signed by a priest and a monk accuses the CNBB of perpetuating the “whiteness pact” by allegedly ignoring black candidates for leadership posts. Certainly, society owes a debt to native peoples and also to Afro-descendants. Every expression of discrimination needs to find ways to overcome it. It is a wound that marks our society. On the election, the assembly [da CNBB] it is sovereign, chooses its representatives through secret ballot. The truth is, yes, we, the four members of the presidency, have a trait. Obviously, look at my hair, my skin. The nature that made me like this. I’m Brazilian, I’m part of this nation and with great pride, see? I am proud of my origin without ever diminishing other expressions.

At the head of the 12 committees that make up the entity, we have two presidents of African descent. We have to recognize that the presence among the clergy is still small due to historical factors as well. In the past there was resistance. And the question of vocation is not simply an expression of a personal decision. It’s God’s grace. It is He who calls.

The pope has decided that women will be able to vote for the first time in a synod. Do you believe that women should gain space in the clergy? AND an issue under debate. There are signs that in the past, especially in the origins of the Church, there was indeed a female diaconate. We need to deepen the studies. Women have always had a prominent place in promoting the faith. They were the first witnesses of the resurrection. I would even say jokingly, since I’m here talking to a woman: what would become of us without you? This participation of women in the ordinary life of the Church needs to be promoted. Hopefully we can expand these spaces together.

The pope preaches respect for community LGBTQIA+, but defends the doctrine that frames homosexuality as a sin. He has also spoken of “ideological colonization” in sex education in schools. How will the CNBB deal with the issue? It took a while for you to bring up this issue [ri]. You see, I start from a very simple principle: they are human beings, and they deserve our respect. The Gospel itself says that there are people who were made like this. How can we be, together with these communities, an evangelizing presence capable of promoting a word of faith without betraying what is important to us? We have to go out to meet these people, helping, if possible, to guide our lives according to the criteria of the Gospel.

What would that mean exactly? Wanting a gay person to stop being gay, for example? As the straight man also needs to maintain an ethical behavior based on what we believe.

Dom Ricardo Hoepers, elected general secretary of the CNBB, defends the Statute of the Unborn Child, which provides for the removal of legal abortion in cases of rape. The entity defends the review of legal shelters when procedure? We need broad spaces for debate. As a Church, we have a consolidated position. We cannot not defend the integrity of life from conception. That, for us, is a basic principle. Of course, there are these situations that you bring up: violence, abuse of minors as well. Very delicate situations that require consensus. It has an expression like Dom Helder Câmara: when problems become absurd, challenges become passionate.

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Dom Jaime Spengler, 62
Born in Santa Catarina, he joined a Franciscan order 41 years ago. He studied philosophy and theology in his youth and later earned a doctorate in philosophy at the Pontifical University Antonianum in Rome. In 2013, Pope Francis appointed him Archbishop of Porto Alegre. Six years later, he became vice-president of the CNBB and, in April, he was elected leader of the entity until 2027.