(Vatican Radio) The Secretary for Relations with States of the Secretariat of State
of the Holy See, Archbishop Dominique Mamberti gave an interview to Vatican Radio
on Wednesday, in which he discussed the Church’s freedom and institutional autonomy,
with reference to four cases decided by the European Court of Human Rights on the
15th of January, and two others still before the Court. With regard to
the four cases decided by the Court – only one of which was decided in favour of the
complainant – Archbishop Mamberti spoke of the complexity of questions relating to
freedom of conscience and religion, in particular in European society marked by the
increase of religious diversity and the corresponding hardening of secularism. He
discussed the danger posed by a moral relativism that imposes itself as a social norm,
and explained that the Church seeks to defend individual freedoms of conscience and
religion in all circumstances, especially in the face of such danger. Listen:
Archbishop
Mamberti addressed the need of respect for freedom of conscience regarding morally
controversial subjects, such as abortion or homosexuality, saying that respect for
freedom of conscience and religion is a condition for the establishment of a tolerant
society in its pluralism. He warned that the erosion of freedom of conscience is symptomatic
of a form of pessimism with regard to the capacity of the human conscience to recognize
the good and the true. The Archbishop went on to say that it is the Church’s role
to remind people that the true source of human freedom is found in the ability of
each and every person to distinguish good from evil, and an obligation to act in accord
with those determinations.
Asked about the context of a Note on the Church’s
freedom and institutional autonomy, issued some time ago by the Holy See’s Mission
to the Council of Europe in connection with two cases currently before the European
Court of Human Rights involving the Orthodox Church of Romania and the Catholic Church
(the Sindacatul “Pastorul cel Bun” versus Romania and Fernandez Martinez
versus Spain cases), Archbishop Mamberti explained that the note was prepared
in order to explain the official Church teaching on her freedom and institutional
autonomy. The Note does so, on the basis of four principles: 1) the distinction between
the Church and the political community; 2) freedom in relation to the State; 3) freedom
within the Church; 4) respect for just public order.
Archbishop Mamberti notes
that the juridical principle of the institutional autonomy of religious communities
is widely recognized by States which respect religious freedom, as well as by international
law. “In both cases,” he said, “the rights to freedom of association and freedom of
expression were invoked in order to constrain religious communities to act in a manner
contrary to their canonical status and the Magisterium (the Church’s official teaching
authority).” Archbishop Mamberti said that these cases call into question the Church’s
freedom to function according to her own rules and not to be subject to civil rules
other than those necessary to ensure that the common good and just public order are
respected. “The Church,” he explained, “asks that religious communities in general
be recognized as spaces for freedom, by virtue of the right to religious freedom,
while respecting just public order.” The full text of the interview and the Note follow.