Posted on 07/17/2006 6:55:08 AM PDT by Pyro7480
Plan to beatify martyrs of Spanish civil war attacked
The Pope has provoked controversy with plans to beatify 168 Catholic martyrs of the Spanish civil war.
Historians believe that about 10,000 priests, brothers, nuns and laity were killed during the civil war from 1936-39, as Leftists fighting to defend Spain's secular republic tried to wipe out what they saw as Catholic resistance.
Beatification, a step towards sainthood, will help preserve the memory of those victims. But as Spain wrestles with conflicting versions of its history in the run up to the 70th anniversary of the start of the civil war next week, members of the committee for the Recovery of Historical Memory yesterday called on the Vatican to do more to clarify the Church's role in the bloodshed. Last month the Vatican agreed to open its archives to allow historians access to documents from 1922 to 1939.
However, many have called for the release of all records relating to the Church's actions under the dictatorship of General Franco, who died in 1975.
The Spanish Church was a powerful ally of Franco. Every house and classroom had a crucifix, and priests often wielded more influence than judges or police officers.
Scary isn't it! (especially to secularists). I didn't see this posted, but this is just another part of the culture/religious war going on in Spain.
Catholic ping!
I always find it funny how secularists/atheists attack the Catholic Church about the Spanish Inquisition, yet they never look at their own house.
I would estimate that more people were killed by the Spanish Communist government in the 1930s than in the entire 300-400 years of the Spanish Inquisition.
Beatify the martyrs.
Zapatero (quoting his master Stalin): "How many divisions does the Pope have?"
Benedict XVI: "More than twelve legions of angels. Matthew 26:53."
I wonder how life would be today if the other side won.
It is my opinion that someday history will view Franco in a kinder light. A close reading of history reveals him to be a friend of the west, his unwise alliances with Hitler and Mussolini aside.
Shouldn't this be up to the Pope, led by the Holy Spirit, as to who gets beatified? All this demanding from secularists and people today who aren't even part of the Church for us to hand over records, open up archives, blah.. blah.. blah.. before the Saints can be declared is getting a little annoying.
Wipe out resistance to defend the secular state?
Those apostate wierdos in England have no end to the wierdness they will employ to give no credit to Catholicism. The secularists were on offense, not defense; hence, they attacked "resistance."
Spain would have been a satellite of the Soviet Union during WWII and the Cold War.
Not a good outcome.
Plainly so:
Deaths from the Inquisition: 3,000, or about .2/yr.
Deaths from the Commies in Spain: 10,000, or about 2,000/yr.
My understanding is that Franco was hardly a friend of Hitler's; just that he prefered Hitler to Stalin. He could fairly be said to have been rather more friendly to Mussolini.
True. "The enemy of my enemy is my friend".
VALENCIA?!! I KNEW that name sounded familiar! I found out recently, that it was the home of the Holy Grail. Who knew? It never was missing. Turns out the legend of King Arthur, warlord of the rear vanguard of the Roman Empire in England, was conflated with King Arthur, heir to the British Throne of Richard III.
Franco had to save Spain from the two great evils of the Twentieth Century, the Communists and the Nazis. The communists in Spain were never interested in liberal government. The “Republic” was no more a republic than the Peoples’ Republic of China. They were closing down the democratic institutions to consolidate their control just like all communist usurpers do. They brought in the soviet advisors and took Stalin’s aid. Make no mistake, Franco prevented a far greater evil than the civil war.
By far the most significant issue concerning Spain during WWII was whether the German Army would be allowed to march across Spain to take Gibralter. Had Hitler taken the Rock he would have closed the Mediterranean and sealed Britain's fate. The war would have taken a completely different turn and God knows what would have resulted. Franco dismayed Hitler and Mussolini when he stalled them and ultimately refused to let the German divisions that were sitting on the Spanish border enter Spain. Those pictures that show Hitler and Franco being all chummy were actually the scene of a precarious balancing act Franco was conducting to string Hitler along. By their fruits you will know them; Franco never allowed Hitler to march through Spain. Franco stood between Spain and totalitarian Communism and Nazism, each of which murdered tens of millions of innocent people and enslaved millions more. Francisco Franco saved countless lives and led his country toward the democratic society it is today. Although it took a bitter and deadly civil war, Spain was spared totalitarianism in both Communist and Nazi forms. The Spanish leader did not try to establish a permanent fascist state and orchestrated the transition from his rule to a democratic one. I say include Franco in the list of candidates for sainthood!
"I say include Franco in the list of candidates for sainthood!"
ITA!!! And Queen Isabel and Christopher Columbus too!
VIVAT HISPANIA!!!
Didn't Franco say that when he died, the socialists would come back? Franco had his faults, be Spain would be much worse off if he had lost the civil war.
Hitler and Mussolini were the only ones who would give him any help. The rest of the west was horrified that the Christians and Catholics in Spain would actually resist the dechristianization process that was going on. The were supposed to aspotasize or die.
Franco wanted to supply anti-tank guns to the Hungarian Freedom Fighters, but he lacked planes with the range to get them there. The US refused to make refueling facilities available.
The leftists who create 'history' will never forgive him crimes such as that.
Love the logic -- Hey! You can't beatify those religious people we killed in cold blood because they were religious and did not like us killing them for that --
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