Cardinal says Catholic politicians must stick to church teaching

An Italian cardinal today stressed the need for Catholic politicians to adhere to church teaching and said Italians should keep ethical issues about family and life in mind when they vote in next month’s election for Parliament.

Abortion and granting legal rights to unmarried couples have been issues ahead of the April 9-10 elections.

Cardinal Camillo Ruini told a meeting of the Italian bishops’ conference, which he heads, that Italians should pay particular attention to fundamental ethical considerations when they vote, particularly concerning respect for life and support for “legitimate” families.

Ruini has been trying to encourage the Italian faithful to make their balloting choices reflect Catholic teaching, prompting criticism that the church was interfering in secular affairs.

Ruini repeated that the church has no interest in getting involved, but at the same time couldn’t stay silent concerning fundamental human values.

He recalled a 2002 document from the Vatican’s Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith on the behaviour of Catholics in political life, which said Catholic politicians had a duty to support Catholic principles on the job, such as opposing abortion laws or working to overturn them.

Ruini noted there had been some cases in which Catholic organisations had supported politicians or movements whose positions were at odds with Catholic teaching.

Making the correct choices would avoid a “Catholic cultural diaspora,” Ruini said, quoting the 2002 document.

Ruini also entered into a recent debate over whether Islam should be taught in Italian public schools.

Cardinal Renato Martino, who heads the Vatican’s justice and peace office, said last week that he saw no reason why Islam couldn’t be taught if there was enough demand.

“In principle, it doesn’t seem impossible to teach Islamic religion,” Ruini said. However, he said “certain fundamental conditions” were necessary, including that the Italian constitution not be violated.

Italy officially separates church and state but still teaches Catholicism in schools.

“We would also need to be assured that teaching Islam wouldn’t give way to a socially dangerous indoctrination,” Ruini said.

While Italian public schools teach Catholicism, students have to sign up for it – a concession made to non-Catholics when Italy revised its concordat with the Vatican in 1985.

Previously, students who did not want to attend those religious classes had to ask for an exemption.