AMERICA/BRAZIL - Bishop is attacked on social media, after a letter on the upcoming elections

Tuesday, 2 October 2018 mass media   social network   elections   politics   common good  

Ruy Barbosa (Agenzia Fides) - A few days after the publication of a pastoral letter on the forthcoming elections on October 7, the Bishop of the diocese of Ruy Barbosa (in the state of Bahia) and president of the Pastoral Land Commission, in the Brazilian Bishops' Conference (CNBB), Mgr. André de Witte President of the Pastoral Commission, was attacked on social media. This is confirmed by Father Gilvander Moreira, theological assistant of the Commission in the state of Minas Gerais. Priests and lay people of the diocese of Ruy Barbosa express their concern regarding the situation.
In his pastoral letter Bishop De Witte had warned of candidates who violate human rights and "who do not protect the value of life and family and disregard the right to respect, health, education, housing and environmental protection".
Instead, he called for citizens to vote on those who "fight for the recognition of indigenous territories and communities" and for "land reform, social housing and workers' rights". The Bishop also recommended to check whether candidates, including Senate deputies, are "more interested in promoting their image in the election campaign rather than proposing solutions to the country's major social problems".
Similarly, the meeting of Bishops and faithful of the "North 1" region, which is composed of nine ecclesiastical jurisdictions, urged citizens to learn about the programs and lifestyles of the candidates and to evaluate "whether they have committed themselves to the common good in their political action". (SM) (Agenzia Fides, 2/10/2018)


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