​PS and PSD refuse revision of the Concordat to “tow” abuses in the Church

The idea of ​​revising the Concordat in favor of cases of sexual abuse in the Catholic Church is starting to make its way among some deputies. In Parliament, a PAN draft resolution to defend this very thing, proposing changes to the secrecy of confession and Isabel Moreira, deputy and member of the National Secretariat of the PS, wrote a article in the newspaper “Expresso” to demand the revision of the International Treaty between the Portuguese State and the Vatican.

To this idea, the parliamentary leader of the PS comes to cut the tricks and appeal that the party must “look at these issues without impulses”. These are “impulses” that, “being genuine, positive, natural, are not necessarily the most appropriate way of looking at what is an international Treaty that needs to be seen with great care”, warns Eurico Brilhante Dias, in the program “Saint Bento on Friday” by Renaissance.

Speaking within his own parliamentary group, the socialist leader warns that “if the PS parliamentary group believes it has some momentum in the Assembly of the Republic” this “must be done from a deep reflection on the nature of the Concordat, the parameters of the Concordat ” and where can “improve and not follow a case like this which seems to me the least appropriate”.

In the program “São Bento à Friday”, which can be heard in full every Friday from 11:00 pm, Brilhante Dias also reinforced that the revision of the Concordat “is a responsibility of the Government, which conducts foreign policy”, being, therefore, under the direct authority of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

In the same line goes the position of the parliamentary leader of the PSD: “This is a matter between two States, bringing it to the debate does not contribute in anything”. For Joaquim Miranda Sarmento, “no matter how much anger there may be against the Church in some more left-wing sectors, our freedom also involves recognizing what our past is”.

This legacy, for the social-democratic leader, also includes what has been done positively by the Catholic Church over the years, which “through many of its ramifications supports many people in this country, people who are experiencing many difficulties”.

Miranda Sarmento also emphasizes that “there being a clear separation between the State and the Church, and since the Portuguese State is secular, and rightly so, we must not let this case contaminate everything else that is the role and heritage of the Church in this country”.

Suspicious priests must be removed “just in case”

The two parliamentary leaders also have the same position regarding how the Church should act towards priests suspected of abuse and who are part of the lists of names that were delivered by the Independent Commission to the country’s 21 dioceses.

Eurico Brilhante Dias refers that “there are priests [suspeitos]some have already died and there is nothing to be done, there are priests who are difficult to identify, there are others who are not, who are easy to identify”.

The socialist leader directly challenges the hierarchy of the Church: “if the bishops accept a council, I would remove [padres suspeitos] relationship with children, as a mere precaution, without any element of condemnation”.

Joaquim Miranda Sarmento’s position goes exactly in the same direction. What “should be worrying the Church” are “the victims” who “have to be in the thinking of the action and speech”, but also the suspected priests, “even for the very defense of the priests who are targeted in those accusations”.

The social-democratic leader stresses that the “Church should have removed these priests from their duties and from contact with children”, always taking into account the presumption of innocence of all of them.