rrizzo@bbncca.ARPA (Ron Rizzo) (02/19/86)
[ Reproduced without permission from the 2/18/86 Boston Globe, p 19. ] The Church Versus The Sandinistas ================================= by Edward R. F. Sheehan (2nd of 4 articles) SAN JOSE, Costa Rica -- The eruption happened in January, during my second conversation with Cardinal Miguel Obando y Bravo, archbishop of Managua and head of the church in Nicaragua. The cardinal, sitting in his office beneath an oil portrait of the Crucifixion, had been talking quietly of the church-state crisis until I mentioned Nicaraguan dissidents imprisoned by the Sandinistas. The cardinal leaped from his chair, and in a torrent of Spanish acted out the plight of political prisoners. Pressing his palms against his temples, hurling imaginary men to the floor, he exclaimed: "They squeeze their heads like this, and beat them on the ground. They give them no food or sleep for three or four days...." He continued thus, decrying what he called the grave abuses of human rights in Nicaragua where he, the cardinal, has become de facto leader of the opposition. More calmly, the cardinal and his senior aides -- Auxiliary Bishop Bosco Vivas of Managua, and Monsignor Bismark Carballo -- explained the griev- ances of the church. They do not claim violent persecution, but increasing obstruction and harassment by the Sandinistas. For example, since the regime's suspension of civil liberties last October when the cardinal, alluding to the New Testament, declared over Radio Catolica that "Liberty is the greatest gift of God to man," the radio was shut down for two days. Earlier, foreign priests considered hostile to the Sandinistas were expelled form the country and the Social Pastoral Office of the Archdiocese of Managua and the church newspaper were seized by armed men of the state security forces. In early January, the state shut Radio Catolica permanently. Not only have most means of public communications been monopolized by the Sandi- nistas, but the cardinal and other bishops are no longer allowed to conduct street processions or open-air Masses. "They won't even give me gasoline," the cardinal said. But wasn't this at least partly because the bishops of Nicaragua had failed to condemn counterrevolution -- the contras fighting the Sandi- nistas and killing fellow Nicaraguans? "I've nothing to do with the contras," the cardinal shot back. "I'm against all violence, and for dialogue and national reconciliation." Reagan vs. the Russians? "We're a ping-pong ball between the super- powers." "It's our denunciation of government violence, first with Somoza and now with the Sandinistas," Bishop Vivas said, "that has caused the problem.... The government lies, considering all who disagree with them the enemy." Monsignor Carballo added, "You see, we're unfaithful to Lenin -- and they're Marxists." Some Nicaraguan priests ARE faithful to Marx and Lenin -- those of the so-called "Popular Church," including three members of the cabinet suspended by Rome from their priestly functions. "There is no contra- diction between Marx and Christ," Rev. Ernesto Cardenal, the minister of culture, told me. "You can be a Marxist and not an atheist. I declare myself a Marxist Christian." Other priests outside the government are as ardently Sandinista. Upon such priests the state lavishes its favors, giving them money and access to the media. [ The Soviet constitution recognizes freedom of worship. Certain Orthodox prelates are rather lavishly supported by the regime as showcases for tourists to "prove" there is no persecution of religion in the USSR.--RR ] Rev. Agustin Toranzo, a Spanish Jesuit in the northern town of Ocotal, is an example. "The pope and Cardinal Obando think Nicaragua is another Poland," he told me. "The popular church wants a dialogue with the bishops but many bishops refuse. Such authoritarianism does not conform with the will of Christ. The pope -- and the bishops -- are committing a sin by not condemning the contras." True, Cardinal Obando's tactics can be criticized and the church in Nicaragua is divided. True, John Paul II receives most of his infor- mation on Nicaragua from the cardinal, and the harassment of the church is less severe in other dioceses -- such as Esteli -- where the bishops are more conciliatory to the Sandinistas. However, after traveling throughout Nicaragua, after observing the multitudes who flock to the traditional church, after entering so many hovels with pictures of Obando and the pope, I am convinced the tradi- tional church commands the loyalty of most Nicaraguans and that the popular church atracts only a small minority. John Paul II and Miguel Obando, in that order, are the most popular men in Nicaragua. Moreover, I agree with Bishop Vivas that the popular church is "an arm of the state, twisting the words of Christ into slogans for the Sandi- nistas." I agree with Monsignor Carballo that "juridically the popular church remains in communion with Rome, but in practice it's in schism." The Roman Church has grappled with schisms for two millenia -- and has usually prevailed. In France during the revolution, for example, a "Constitutional Church" was established, but Rome played a waiting game and eventually crushed it. With its peerless institutional and historical memory, Rome knows every trick -- how to be patient, how and when to make small concessions, how (in the end) to have its way. Given the Sandinistas' guns and their zeal to retain power, it may take many years for Rome to win the battle in Nicaragua. "I agree," said Cardinal Obando, "that Rome will win in the long term. But for the short term, we have terrible problems and 1986 will be very hard." No doubt. But the Sandinistas, it seems to me, have made their worst mistake when they took on the church. There is a French proverb, "QUI MANGE DU PAPE EN MEURT." Free translation: Bite the Pope, and die. ********************************************************************** Edward R. F. Sheehan, novelist and a winner of the Overseas Press Club Award, is a former fellow of Harvard's Center for International Affairs.
tonyw@ubvax.UUCP (Tony Wuersch) (02/21/86)
This article on the Church versus the Sandinistas is very interesting
and I hope we see more committed, opinionated stuff like this. (Maybe
some Saul Landau stuff on the bourgeoisie versus the sandinistas?)
This is also a notice of goodbye. I've taken a job in Zurich,
Switzerland, and will leave the net Mar. 7. At least net.politics
and related newsgroups reputed to have low signal-to-noise ratios.
I'll try to obtain a net address, but I can't guarantee success.
I've appreciated the net a lot, not always for what it's taught me
about the effect of sampling biases on communication, but for all
the fine, honest, concerned, intelligent people I've been able to
correspond and frequently debate with.
I believe in the virtue of good writing and in developing political
and social ideals in public, open arenas. There really are so few
forums for the discussion of serious topics by anyone but those
professionally involved in academia, politics, or journalism, it's a
crying shame. I've cleared up and rethought many of my judgments with
the help of and sometimes initiated by opinions on the net.
To name a few among the many, I've especially appreciated the articles
of Gabor Fencsik, Laura Creighton, Ray Chen, Jan Wasilewski, Richard
Carnes, Jodi Patilla, Jeff Myers, Oded Feingold, Ellen Eades, Cheryl Stewart,
Annadiana Beaver, Linda Seltzer, Ron Rizzo, Steve Dyer, Ray Levasseur,
Moira Mallison, Baba ROM Dass, Piotr Berman, Yosi Hoshen, and Heather
Emanuel, among many others (no order). I *know* I've forgotten others.
I hope the net grows, and I'll do what I can to help. Somebody oughta
make some money for themselves by writing a book about it.
Tony Wuersch
{decvax,amd}!ubvax!tonyw