The Catholic incoherence

The President of the Government, Marga Prohens, lamented in the last Parliament session having been once again “attacked for displaying a religious symbol”. And then she paraphrased the pope in Spanish: “Raise your eyes”, she demanded. The fact is that Prohens demonstrated that she does not understand the background of this situation.

Firstly, what she calls 'attacking' is nothing more than the healthy exercise of criticism, most of the time with strong arguments. Secondly, she is not criticized for displaying a religious symbol – fortunately, we live in a time when what a person wears around their neck is of little interest to almost anyone.

What is criticized here is the incoherence between the exhibitionism of Catholic elements and the political decisions that are made. I speak of exhibitionism and I ask myself what is the meaning of this proclamation by politicians, who also govern for atheists, agnostics, Muslims, Buddhists, etc.

Thinkers as diverse as John Locke, Voltaire, John Rawls, and Jürgen Habermas have warned of the inconvenience of religious exhibitionism, because the State must be neutral (Locke); the line between the democratic mandate and private creed is blurred (Voltaire); exclusive symbols that do not represent all citizens must be avoided (Rawls); and religious beliefs belong to the private sphere (Habermas).

That said, after three years in which non-Catholic citizens have resignedly accepted this festival of crosses, processions, and nativity scenes, the least that can be demanded of these pious politicians is that they do not contradict the doctrine of Jesus Christ.

This is what is criticized, and it is a shame that it is understood as an attack, because this perception makes reflection impossible.

The president notes religious events in her official agenda. “Emotion and faith. An honor to be able to attend the Holy Mass of Corpus Christi officiated by His Holiness Pope Leo XIV,” she said on social media on June 7, words, “emotion and faith” that someone might consider inappropriate for an institutional representative.

Besides being inappropriate, they are also a kind of fake news in every sense. Because in the Balearic Islands, the minimum aid that some migrants could receive has been withdrawn, the Palma City Council has left people on the street, there is talk of invasion for a few thousand poor people, and red carpet is rolled out for the rich... What would the pope say about this? And Jesus Christ?