Wednesday, October 05, 2011

Czech priest warns bishops against Klaus´s influence

Catholic priest Tomas Halik warned Czech bishops against getting influenced by President Vaclav Klaus in reaction to an address Klaus delivered in front of believers at the St Wenceslas Day on Wednesday.

He said the bishops should prevent the resurrection of the unity of the ruler and church, typical of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, of which the Czechs were a part till 1918 when it disintegrated.

Halik, who has been criticising Klaus for a long time, said the church must decide whether it would support the president who tries to win favour with it by populist views, or be able to resist people of this kind.

He said the president misused a religious festival.

At the St Wenceslas Pilgrimage, Klaus advocated traditional values and family, emphasised the need of patriotism, and criticised "opportunistic modernism."

"All traditional and conservative is labelled old-fashioned, ridiculed and expelled from the social dialogue," he said.

Klaus said the church should more use its authority in the public debate and fight against the welfare state that stifled individual creativity.

Leaders of the Czech Catholic Church have taken a cautious stance on Klaus´s statements.

Prague Archbishop Dominik Duka, who has good relations with Klaus, said he agrees with Klaus´s opinion that the church should take part in the public debate because Christians should be citizens actively involved in society.

Bishop Jan Baxant shared Klaus´s criticism of the welfare system that pays social benefits even though the state is indebted. But Baxant pointed to solidarity as one of the crucial values at the same time.

Bishop Jan Graubner recalled that Klaus mentioned "undeserved welfare" when speaking of the welfare state, thus referring to certain extreme models of the welfare state whose weaknesses can be seen all over Europe now.

Halik told the paper that Klaus wanted to "tame" the church and use it for his own purposes.

Halik said several years ago Klaus was angry that religious services were broadcast by the public television too often. Klaus then compared the church to a gardener association, he recalled.

Halik said Klaus´s conservative values can be clearly seen in the opinions of Klaus´s assistant Petr Hajek and his protege Ladislav Batora, who heads the D.O.S.T. ultra-conservative group.

Halik said earlier Hajek and Batora discredited Christianity since they present no intelligent conservatism but a series of extreme, provocative and stupid cries.

The D.O.S.T. group appreciated Klaus´s address at the pilgrimage on Wednesday.

Batora said a call for a revival of patriotism and conservative values is a principal political programme and a realistic vision of a statesman.

D.O.S.T. says in a press release that Klaus´s words appeal to a majority of the citizens with his emphasis on natural economic relations, functioning family, and the virtues of responsibility, hard work and patriotism.