Church puts clout on the line with drive against reproductive health bill

Vito Barcelo
Manila Standard Today
Nov. 29, 2012

A Catholic official said Wednesday the bishops for the first time would be urging the faithful to vote as a bloc to defeat the Reproductive Health bill that the bishops say is anti-life and the candidates favoring passing it.

Analysts, however, said the move was a risky one because it would be putting the Church’s influence on the line.

“It would be okay if the faithful followed the clerics and rejected the candidates favoring the RH bill, but what if they didn’t and voted according to their conscience?” one said.

Isabela de Basilan Bishop Martin Jumoad said the advocates of the RH bill should not underestimate the bishops’ campaign against those favoring the measure.

“I think we can come up with a Catholic vote,” Jumoad said.

“The Church’s moral responsibility to uphold the sanctity of life will be our code of belief.”

But Lipa Archbishop Ramon Arguelles said whether or not a Catholic vote existed, what was certain is that they would be intensifying their campaign against the bill and its proponents and supporters.

“What they think of as a myth today may be a reality tomorrow,” Arguelles said.

“We are trying to encourage the good Catholics, and there are already those who are responding to our call.”

Still, Cebu Archbishop Jose Palma, president of the Catholic Bishops conference of the Philippines, on Wednesday said “it’s up to the people to make their own decisions” when asked about the so-called Catholic vote.

“There is no official statement from the CBCP” on whether or not the Catholics would be urged to reject the political candidates supporting the RH bill, Palma said, adding the Catholics had the freedom to choose their government leaders.

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The CBCP said every diocesan bishop would be issuing his own pastoral letter to local priests that will be read during Mass starting on Sunday.

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In South Cotabato, Marbel Bishop Dinualdo Gutierrez said efforts were under way in his diocese to campaign against the pro-RH bill candidates.

Sorsogon Bishop Arturo Bastes said they had already intensified their campaign to urge voters to reject the pro-RH bill candidates.

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At the House of Representatives, the RH bill’s principal author on Wednesday expressed hope that the period of amendments for the measure would push through next week.

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“Fear has always been used by the clergy as an instrument of repression and reprisal like fear of eternal damnation, fear of excommunication, fear of offending religious ministers, fear of contraceptives as abortifacients and carcinogenic, and fear of a demographic winter.”

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Full article at the Manila Standard Today

[After the mostly unsuccessful episcopal attempts to influence voters in the USA, it will be interesting to see how well such attempts fare in the UK and Phillipines]