Dutch Cardinal Says the Church Is Being Sidelined by the Government

Cardinal Simonis made his remarks in an interview published March 6 in a Dutch daily newspaper, the Volkskrant. Prime Minister Wim Kok has since rejected the criticism, saying that the cardinal had exaggerated his grievances.

"Originally the separation of church and state meant that the state should not concern itself with church matters," Cardinal Simonis, whose church is the biggest in the Netherlands, told the Volkskrant. "But now it has gone so far that [Christian] belief and the church no longer have any public meaning for the government. The government merely sees citizens as individuals, no matter whether they believe or not."

One consequence, the cardinal complained, was that the state was taking over the church's tasks. As a result the political establishment, rather than society at large, was now defining social values and norms. The cardinal referred specifically to marriage, a topical issue here because the Netherlands is soon to become one of the first countries in the world to allow civil marriage between people of the same sex. On April 1 the mayor of Amsterdam, Job Cohen, will officiate at the civil marriages of four same-sex couples in the town hall.

Cardinal Simonis also said that the secularization of Dutch society had led to widespread ignorance about the church. "I'm just happy when people don't say cannibal [instead of 'cardinal'] to me. That's happened before."

Cardinal Simonis complained that Prime Minister Kok had refused to meet him for the past three years. The cardinal contrasted the Dutch premier's apparent lack of interest in religious matters with the views of the new U.S. president, George W. Bush, who has called on Jews, Muslims and Christians to re-establish values and norms. "That's a noise you no longer hear in the Netherlands," the cardinal said.

Asked about the practice of some Catholic priests who are blessing same-sex marriages, Cardinal Simonis expressed surprise that this was happening in the Netherlands. "I can imagine that there are priests who feel they have no choice when asked to bless such a marriage. In their heart they do not want to, but otherwise they will lose the believers. I know of one such priest, whom I have called to account." (About 80 percent of Catholic priests in the Netherlands are not respecting their church's ban on the blessing of same-sex marriages outside church walls, according to a survey by the University of Utrecht in co-operation with the newspaper Gay Krant. About half the priests surveyed have no problem with same-sex marriage ceremonies inside church buildings.)

The cardinal also rejected suggestions, often stated in the Netherlands, that the Roman Catholic teaching was rigid. "The [Roman Catholic] Church world-wide has its moral basis in scripture and tradition," he said. "We may sin, because humans are sinful, but the rules must remain."

The church could not be democratic, he added. "We [Roman Catholics] are called to be orthodox believers. There is no other choice. Orthodoxy belongs to the essence of [Christian] belief."

Responding to the church leader's criticisms, Prime Minister Kok said that the cabinet listened to all sections of society, but ultimately took responsibility for drawing up the nation's laws. Kok stressed that major differences of opinion between the cardinal and members of the cabinet, including himself, would continue on issues such as euthanasia, abortion and gay marriage.

The premier added that members of the cabinet were willing to hold discussions with the Catholic bishops' conference. "I will shortly phone the cardinal myself to invite him for a cup of coffee."

About 34 percent of the Netherlands' 15 million citizens are Roman Catholic. About 27 percent are Protestant and 3 percent Muslim, with 2 percent belonging to other faiths. About 36 percent have no religious affiliation.

Copyright © 2001 ENI.

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