BRASILIA - 17 November 2008 - 310 words
Brazil signs historic agreement with Vatican
An agreement between the Holy See and the Brazilian Government was signed on 13 November recognizing the juridical status of the Catholic Church in Brazil. The Agreement was signed, on the part of the Holy See, by Archbishop Dominique Mamberti, Secretary for Relations with States, and on the part of Brazil, by Celso Amorim, Foreign Affairs Minister.
In a statement, the Brazilian Bishops'
Conference (CNBB) said that although "the Catholic Church
is recognized in her juridical nature, by Brazilian law in the
Proclamation of the Republic," with this accord, the situation
already established is solidified and formalized.
"The specific identity of the Church consists in preaching
the Gospel," the statement said. However, in her activity
in society, she needs a juridical structure and that is precisely
the objective of the Agreement. The statement also explains that
the agreement does not "concede privileges to the Catholic
Church, nor does it discriminate other religious groups. Each
one of its articles respects the juridical status established
in the Federal Constitution and Brazilian law," and guarantees
equal treatment of all entities.
Archbishop Gerardo Lyrio Rocha of Mariana, President of the CNBB
said: "the great importance of the agreement is the recognition
of the juridical status of the Catholic Church in Brazil."
It also includes "the recognition of academic titles, religious
studies in public schools, canonical marriage..."
Some of the aspects mentioned by Archbishop Lyrio were: the collaboration
with the State in the cultural area; religious assistance for
citizens in health care centers or in jail; equal treatment in
schools and other Catholic academic institutions; Catholic instruction
in addition to that of other religious groups in public schools;
recognition of civil effects of marriage and ecclesiastical decisions
in matrimonial matters.
The Agreement, which is considered an historic landmark, was the
brain-child of former CNBB President, Bishop Ivo Lorscheider,
who passed away last year and since the 90s had been proposing
the idea of a formal petition to the Holy See for an agreement
between the Church and the Brazilian Government that would be
more perfect and complete.
Source: Fides
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