Argentina: Catholic Church in Santa Fe supports constitutional reform but warns about extreme secularism

Faced with the project to reform the Provincial Constitution in Santa Fe (Argentina), the Archdiocese of Santa Fe de la Vera Cruz asked to “recognize the Church within plurality, without privileges.”

In a statement released on Wednesday, December 4, the local Catholic Church reflected on the importance of the religious dimension in the project planned for 2025.

The Archbishop of Santa Fe de la Vera Cruz, Mons. Sergio Fenoy; and its Auxiliary Bishop, Mons. Matías Vecino, together with the Archdiocesan Social Pastoral Team and the Archdiocesan Board of Education, highlighted the need for the text of the Provincial Constitution to promote a plural society that is respectful of diverse religious beliefs.

In Argentina there is a National Government and autonomous provinces, and each of them has its own constitution. Provincial constitutions must respect the representative and republican form of government, respect what is contained in the national constitution, ensure their own Judicial Power, organize their municipal regime, and ensure primary education. Likewise, the national government guarantees each province the exercise of its own institutions.

In this framework, and in coherence with the National Constitution and the International Covenants, the Archbishopric considers it inadmissible that in the content of the Provincial Constitution, more precisely in article 3, the Catholic religion is declared as official of the province, because this “It is practically a profession of faith.”

“Since the middle of the last century the Church has been affirming the just autonomy and cooperation of the temporal order with respect to the religious order. Therefore, it must be concluded that the Province is not, nor can it be, in any way “Catholic””, they specify.

However, they point out that “the absence of a creed as the only valid or official one should not be confused with secularist dogma,” since secularism represents a “radically contrary” position that affirms that the State should be neutral in religious matters.

This, “at first glance, sounds logical and in keeping with the times, but it hides two errors,” the archbishopric warns.

“The first is the intrinsic contradiction,” since neutrality is “a religious position known as agnosticism.” The second error “has to do with intolerance towards the plurality that is intended to be safeguarded,” they warn.

Under this neutrality, they add, the will to “impede the Christian inspiration of national culture” would be reflected, which would supplant an undue presence of the Church with an undue presence of the State.

For this reason, they propose replacing the article with a wording that respects plurality and guarantees cooperation between the State and religious institutions, contemplating all expressions of faith without exclusive privileges for any.

In this way, extreme secularism would be avoided, replacing it with an “inclusive secularity”, which recognizes and values ​​the historical and cultural contribution of the Catholic Church, but without disparaging other faiths.

Historically, the statement indicates, the Catholic Church “has contributed and continues to contribute in a notable way to the cultural idiosyncrasy of the people and the construction of the social fabric,” so “it would be disloyal not to recognize it,” it adds.

In that sense, the contribution of the Church stands out in areas such as health, education, and social assistance, whose operation is not supported by the State, nor are the salaries of priests. For this reason, it values ​​“mutual collaboration for activities based on the common good.”

“In a society that increasingly boasts of being pluralistic, it would be regrettable if all education and human development were secular and monopolized and homogenized by the State, without parents being able to intervene, and without other institutions – the Church among them – can make their enriching contribution,” he points out.

Likewise, it calls for including in the debate topics such as human dignity from conception to natural death, conscientious objection and the gender perspective, avoiding imposing “single ideological visions.”

Finally, the prelates call on Santa Fe society to build a Constitution that truly represents the diversity and aspirations of the people, as promoted by Pope Francis with his message of inclusion for “everyone, everyone, everyone.”