The Archbishop of Oviedo, Msgr. Jesús Sanz Montes, has defended the participation of Catholics in public life and rejected the idea that Christian faith should be relegated to the private sphere. During a meeting held in the Senate, the prelate claimed the right of believers to engage in societal affairs from their religious convictions. “No to secrecy, thank you,” he stated.
According to COPE, Sanz Montes took part this Monday, October 19, in the II Forum “What Catholic faith contributes to Spain and Europe,” organized by the Fundación Enraizados in the Europa Room of the Senate Palace in Madrid. The event brought together representatives from the ecclesial, academic, journalistic, and political spheres to reflect on the contribution of Christianity to Spanish and European society.
“I do politics whenever I can”
During his speech, the Archbishop of Oviedo referred to the criticism that members of the ecclesiastical hierarchy receive when they speak out on political and social issues. Sanz Montes defended that the Church’s pastors also have the responsibility to bear witness to the faith in the midst of society.
“I do politics whenever I can, understanding politics as that task, that ministry of bearing witness in the polis, in the city,” he declared.
The prelate explained that his participation in public life responds to a commitment to principles such as truth, coexistence, and honesty, in contrast to behaviors like “lying, slander, and theft.”
In this regard, he rejected the notion that Catholics should limit the expression of their convictions to the interior of churches. To illustrate this, he distinguished between the space where faith is celebrated and the one where Christians are called to bear witness to it.
“No to secrecy, thank you: the temple where we celebrate the mystery, the square where we bear witness to it, and the atrium in between to go back and forth from the temple to the square and from the square to the temple,” he maintained.
With these words, Sanz Montes claimed the presence of believers in society, both in the exercise of their personal responsibilities and in their participation in debates affecting all citizens.
Family and friendship as foundations of coexistence
In his speech, the archbishop also addressed the importance of human relationships in building a free society. To this end, he drew on the reflections of British writer C. S. Lewis on family, friendship, and solitude.
“Friendship reminds us that we are simply incomplete,” the prelate noted, highlighting the need to recognize the bonds that unite people in the face of coercive positions.
Sanz Montes defended a Christian vision of the human person oriented toward the common good and freedom, in which family and personal relationships play a fundamental role.
These reflections were framed within the purpose of the forum, dedicated to examining the contribution of the Catholic faith to social life and the moral foundations of coexistence in Spain and Europe.
“God is neither an intruder nor a rival”
At the end of the day, the Archbishop of Oviedo insisted that the presence of God in people’s lives does not pose a threat to their freedom.
“We must say that He is not an enemy, that He is not a rival, that He is not an intruder in our affairs, but rather a partner in what is best. Counting on Him means knowing ourselves to be children of a Father who watches us grow, who created us, and who awaits us at the end of our destiny,” he explained.
The prelate emphasized that faith has concrete consequences in the way human relationships are understood and in each person’s responsibility toward others.
“Each of us has come into this world to say a word that God kept silent, but that He wants to say with our lips, and to share a good that He withheld, but wants to share with our hands,” he stated.
Sanz Montes concluded by recalling that the presence of God is also important for social coexistence: “That is why God, although He never runs in our elections, matters—and matters greatly—in building a society where we can live in peace, coexistence, and love.”
Read also: Sanz Montes warns of a “moral demolition” that silences the Christian faith in public life
The contribution of the Catholic faith to Spain and Europe
The II Forum “What the Catholic faith contributes to Spain and Europe,” organized by the Fundación Enraizados, also featured the participation of the rector of Universidad CEU Cardenal Herrera, Higinio Marín; the director of El Debate, Bieito Rubido; and the senator for Melilla, Fernando Gutiérrez.
The event, held under the motto “God: Light in Public Life?”, was dedicated to reflecting on the place of religion in contemporary society and its contribution to freedom, human dignity, and the common good.