Because the 1987 Constitution guarantees the “separation of Church and State”, it guarantees that there should be no interference by the Church over matters of the State.
One of the these freedoms which the Church should not interfere with is the freedom of suffrage, which penalizes such acts as an election offense under Section 261 paragraph (d) of the Omnibus Election Code, summarized as: “(1) Any x x x head of any religious organization who coerces or intimidates or compels, or in any manner influences, directly or indirectly, any of his parishioners to aid, campaign or vote for or against any candidate or any aspirant for the nomination or selection of candidates. (2) Any x x x head of any religious organization who punishes or threatens to punish by excommunication, for disobeying or not complying with any acts ordered by the former to aid, campaign to vote or not to vote against any candidate x x.”
According to our national hero Dr. Jose Rizal, ”In order to understand the destiny of a people, it is necessary to open the book of its past.”
Recent events, such as the reading of the Pastoral Letter for the Diocese of Dumaguete, Negros Oriental and Siquijor, behooves many Catholic faithful to rethink and review the significance of such interference by a Catholic church leader, by openly naming and urging his parishioners not to vote for the Congressman who voted in favor of the Reproductive Health.
The right to worship, “to believe or not to believe” is one of the basic liberties protected under Art. III, Section 5 of the 1987 Constitution, however, Article II, Sec. 6 states: “The separation of the Church and State shall be inviolable.”
In view of these provisions, institutions, religious, charitable or educational purposes are exempt from taxation (Art. VI, Sec.28), and no public money should be spent for use, benefit, or support of any priest, preacher, minister except when such priest, preacher, or minister is assigned to armed forces, or any penal institutions, or government orphanages or leprosarium”
Religion may be defined as “any specific system of belief, worship, conduct, etc.” often involving code of ethics and a philosophy, and in this aspect , when one belongs to a specific religious group like the Roman Catholic Church, its leaders have the moral ascendancy over their parishioners. Hence, their justification of coming up with such Pastoral Letter.
To recall history, the one basic principle of the Spanish colonization of the Philippines was the union of the Church and State, hence, the prominent role that the Spanish friars in governance, allowing them to occupy significant positions in the government. Such interference legitimated the friars’ interference in the colonial administration, causing oppression and untold suffering among the people. The main dark characters in the Philippine Revolution in 1896 were the Spanish friars-archbishops, bishops and priests. Records will show that Filipinos paid with the blood of heroes and martyrs, the tears and sweat of a people who had risen against oppressive Spanish regime, starting with the execution of Dr. Jose Rizal upon the charges of treason, initiated by the Spanish friars.
Thus, while the Preamble of the 1987 Constitution implores “the aid of the Divine Providence”, recognizing the intense religious nature of Filipinos, the government is neutral while protecting all believers and non-believers.
But when the individual externalizes his beliefs in acts or missions that affects the public or acts inimical to the public, the freedom to do so is governed by the laws of the State. It does not relieve the person from criminal acts committed in violation of penal laws and special laws of the State.
As the saying goes, “no one is above the law”, and as one Catholic Bishop said: “When I was feeding the poor, they called me a saint but when I asked why they were poor, they called me a communist!”
In a democracy, every person should respect the other person’s views, and majority rules. There should be an atmosphere of tolerance to allow freedom to prosper.
Catholics who favor the RH Bill should not despair. To date, there is no solid Catholic vote.
If you recall during the emergence of Protestantism, an English Lord exclaimed: “England is not the King, and the King is not England!”
In the same manner, to paraphrase: “The Church is not the Monsignor, and the Monsignor is not the Church!”
