Duterte Clash With Catholic Church Intensifies...


I will destroy the Church and the present status of so many priests and what they are doing. You priests, bishops, you condemn me and suggest I withdraw, but then I will start to open my mouth. There are so many secrets that we kept as children. Do not force (me to speak) because this religion is not so sacred. Duterte

Clash Between Duterte and Catholic Church in Philippines Intensifies

A public feud between President Rodrigo Duterte and the Roman Catholic Church in the Philippines intensified Monday as church leaders pushed back against criticism of priests and called for a national day of prayers and fasting. The overwhelmingly Catholic country has been riveted in recent weeks by a clash between the popular president and a powerful institution that has sought to maintain its traditional moral authority while under a barrage of criticism. Rights groups allege that many thousands of mostly poor people have been executed by police in more than two years and that Mr. Duterte has sheltered law enforcement from prosecution, a claim that officials deny. The church has become one of the drug war’s fiercest critics, using its pulpit to condemn the high number of killings and calling for restraint. Some church leaders have offered sanctuary to drug suspects and witnesses to police shootings who are fearful for their lives. That opposition has angered Mr. Duterte, who recently called God “stupid” for the concept of original sin, and on Saturday he said he would resign if anyone could prove that God exists. Source


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