SPAIN

New Zealand Tablet, 27 April 1911, Page 783

SPAIN

A PASTORAL ON VOTING. ' M „.S e ? ighl j R ? v i ?r. Salvador- y-Barrera, Bishop of Madrid has devote*! his Lenten Pastoral to instruction of H th US6 i of the f r anc hise by Catholics and the attitude of the Church towards public questions and political parties. It is a document that affords much useful enlichtenraent on a subject upon which there is occasionally confusion of thought. Some Catholics in the Bishop’s diocese were about to aea A to ■ the electors as Anti- Liberals, and they asked for his blessing. He explains that he cannot gl Tf. Quoting from the letter 4 Inter Gatholicos Hispamm, addressed to the Bishop of Madrid by the Holy R woiild^n^h^-" 1 ; 2 ?’ 1906 ’ t?ie P relate points out th£ t would not be just to accuse people of want of fidelity P°artv e Ch Tho h C S a 1 +b P r b^, caus tbe y belon g to the Liberal lartj. the Catholic Church cannot identify itself with one, political party or another. What it teaches is that every citizen should take a real interest in the welfare of his religion and his country. The Church does not Sardes' far from saying—that Catholics should avoid y Q r despise politics. They are bound to take an upright fulfilled fbpv° pub JL matters, and that conditio/ brim? fulfilled, they cannot be too active in politics, for politico? the right? an effectlve mean s of defending and promoting