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HYPERACTIVE BIGOT IN ITALY TRIES TO RUN THE WORLD. NATIONAL SECULAR SOCIETY NEWSLINE 4 July 2003
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Days before Roman Catholic
Italy took over the EU's rotating presidency, the pope put further
pressure on EU policymakers to accede to his demand for a recognition of
the so-called "Christian roots" of Europe in its historic
first constitution. A draft of the European Union constitution unveiled
earlier this month contained no mention of Christianity despite heavy
lobbying from the pope and Christian Democrat parties. "I
wish once more to appeal to those drawing up the future European constitution
treaty, so that it will include a reference to the religious
and in particular the Christian heritage of Europe," the hyperactive
pensioner said from his sumptuous palace in Rome. final
version is due to be thrashed out in Rome, with Italy at the helm
of the presidency for six months from Tuesday. Italy, along with Roman
Catholic Spain, Portugal and Poland, has demanded a specific reference
to Christianity in the constitution, aimed at shaking up creaky
EU institutions.
The
pope once more got out the forked tongue on Saturday to state his "full
respect for the secular nature of those institutions", but in a 134-page
document, he hammered home what he sees as the need for Europe to
come to terms with its Christian heritage. In
language that will repel many Europeans, the pope says: "Europe, as you
stand at the beginning of the third millennium, open the doors to Christ!
Be yourself. Rediscover your origins. Relive your roots."
Who
is this strange man talking to? Only a small minority of Europeans are
regular churchgoers, particularly in Protestant countries where less than
10 percent of the population attend regularly. the
debate has taken on added urgency as overwhelmingly Muslim but secular
Turkey strives to start EU accession talks in 2005. Opponents to the
reference to Christianity say it would offend millions of Muslims and
other religious groups already in the EU and that faith should play no
part in a constitution. Sanderson,
vice president of the National Secular Society, said: "The
pope says he respects the secular nature of Europe and at the same time
he's trying to turn it into some kind of theocracy which, presumably,
he hopes to have a big say in running. This development must be
resisted. The constitution must remain secular for all our sakes."
The
final constitution is due to be signed on May 1, 2004. Meanwhile,
the Vatican is seriously considering whether to apply to become
a full member of the United Nations instead of just an observer, as
at present, the Pope's top diplomat Jean-Louis Tauran said this week.
"We
will have to weigh carefully the consequences and the advantages and disadvantages
of such a step," he told a press conference. "We are at the
stage of elaborating the project, which is currently being studied by
lawyers in the (Vatican) State Secretariat." so-called
Holy See (the political wing of the Vatican) is currently represented
at the UN in New York by its permanent observer, Papal Nuncio
Celestino Migliore. But Tauran, secretary for relations with states
of the Holy See, cautioned that no decisions had yet been taken on
whether the Vatican should acquire full UN membership.
The
Holy See maintains permanent observers at the United Nations in New York
and Geneva and at the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation
UNESCO, and its Food and Agriculture Organisation.
Read
here how the Vatican wangled its way into the United Nations, and
why
it must not be promoted to full member status. Instead, it should be expelled
entirely. http://www.secularism.org.uk/vatican.htm
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