In a 20-page letter to the Venezuelan bishops’ conference, Chavez used threatening language accompanied by quotes from the Bible, Pope Paul VI, US President John F. Kennedy, and French philosopher Jean-Jacques Rousseau in his response to criticisms raised by the bishops last month. Chavez—who pushed through a controversial revision of the country’s constitution last year and won re-election to a second-term on May 28—has waged a public war of words with the bishops in recent months.

“If we allow the peaceful path of the revolution to be blocked, nobody will be able to stop it being achieved through the paths of violence,” Chavez wrote. He pledged to carry out a “peaceful revolution” to oust “corrupt oligarchs”—among whom he has included the bishops—and claimed that “God is with the revolution” while those who oppose it are “with the devil.” Chavez linked his revolution to the teachings of the Gospel. “Jesus’ struggles against hypocrisy were always continual. His vigorous eloquence made no concession to lies,” he said. His remarks even took on schismatic tones as he wrote: “All of the great things of humanity have been carried out in the name of absolute principles. If [Martin] Luther, if the authors of the French Revolution had observed the rules of courtesy, the [Protestant] Reform and the [French] Revolution would never have taken place.”

The secretary general of the Venezuelan bishops’ conference responded to the Chavez diatribe with a statement indicating that the bishops would not enter “into a shouting contest” with the president. Bishop Jose Hernan Sanchez Porras, said: “We believe the president’s reaction is a consequence of the tense electoral climate in which he wants to involve the Church, but we will remain apart from the confrontation.” He added, “We only demand mutual respect and the opportunity to speak for the good of the country.”