- Feb 5, 2002
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SÃO PAULO – A new and largely unpredented “Catholic bloc” in the Senate in Brazil, the largest Catholic country on earth, has been presented by its founders as a way to defend Catholic “moral and ethical values,” but denounced by critics as unrepresentative of the wider Church.
Officially launched on Sept. 4, the bloc is seen by many observers as an attempt by Catholic legislators to replicate the success of Brazil’s “Evangelical Caucus” in parliament and among govenrment officials, which, were it a formal political party, would be the third largest in the country.
Notably, although some Brazilian bishops attended the Sept. 4 launch event, inlcuding Cardinal Paulo Cezar Costa of the national capital Brasilia, the country’s bishops conference has said it was not consulated about the initiative and has no ties to it.
The Catholic bloc was founded by Senator Marcos Pontes, a military officer who in 2006 visited the International Space Station and became the first – and, until now, the only – Brazilian astronaut.
Continued below.
cruxnow.com
Officially launched on Sept. 4, the bloc is seen by many observers as an attempt by Catholic legislators to replicate the success of Brazil’s “Evangelical Caucus” in parliament and among govenrment officials, which, were it a formal political party, would be the third largest in the country.
Notably, although some Brazilian bishops attended the Sept. 4 launch event, inlcuding Cardinal Paulo Cezar Costa of the national capital Brasilia, the country’s bishops conference has said it was not consulated about the initiative and has no ties to it.
The Catholic bloc was founded by Senator Marcos Pontes, a military officer who in 2006 visited the International Space Station and became the first – and, until now, the only – Brazilian astronaut.
Continued below.
New ‘Catholic bloc’ in Brazil’s Senate seen as effort to counter Evangelical influence
“That so-called Catholic bloc is coherent with which Catholic stance, if it doesn’t follow the episcopate’s views?” asked Daniel Seidel, who heads the bishops’ conference’s Justice and Peace Commission.
