_WORLD WATCH______________________________
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Clash with Masons
Prelate rejects limits on Church
The ordinarily soft-spoken Archbishop of Santiago, Cardinal Francisco Javier Errázuriz Ossa, has harshly criticized the Great Masonic Lodge of Santiago for issuing a statement calling Catholics “fundamentalists and intolerant” because of the Church’s position on life and family issues.

In a rare political intervention, the Great Masonic Lodge had issued a statement accusing the Catholic Church of “open interventionism” in parliamentary elections, because Church leaders had urged Catholics not to vote for candidates who favor divorce (which is still illegal in Chile), the legalization of abortion, or acceptance of the “morning-after” pill. This call, according to the Masons, “goes far beyond the moral limits of any religious creed, since it is aimed to impose specific values on the entire country.”

Cardinal Errázuriz, who is also president of the Chilean bishops’ conference, responded by pointing out that the Masons “use the same words that would have been used by the terrorists that organized the attack of September 11.” The cardinal said that, with the statement, the Masons “raised serious questions regarding their alleged openness to Catholicism.”

“I personally cannot trust those who label as ‘fundamentalist’ anyone who has a different idea of what society should be,” he added. “Nevertheless, I am not surprised, because we are accustomed to being the only ones swimming against the current.”

The cardinal told his fellow Catholics that such “criticism is a source of joy when it comes as a consequence of defending the human person, the right to life, and the family.”

Father Joaquin Alliende, spokesman for the Chilean bishops, said the Masons’ statement betrayed their “great lack of seriousness or moral authority.” He pointed out that the Masonic Lodge had been silent about human-rights violations during the reign of General Augusto Pinochet, when the Catholic bishops were boldly criticizing the government in spite of the risks.

Back to Catholic World Report January 2002 Table of Contents