Political Influence
The Catholic Church has great influence on Philippine society and politics. One typical event is the role of the Catholic hierarchy during the bloodless People Power Revolution of 1986. Then Archbishop of Manila, Jaime Cardinal Sin called on the public to march along Epifanio de los Santos Avenue and force dictator Ferdinand E. Marcos to step down which occurred after seven million people responded.
In 2001, Cardinal Sin expressed his dismay over the allegations of corruption against Philippine president Joseph Estrada. His call sparked the second EDSA Revolution dubbed as "EDSA Dos". Estrada resigned after 5 continuous days of protest.
On the death of Pope John Paul II in 2005, President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo declared three days of national mourning. She attended the Pope's funeral in the Vatican.
Recent political turmoil in the Philippines widened the rift between the state and the Church. Arroyo's press secretary Ignacio Bunye called the bishops and priests who attended an anti-Arroyo protest as hypocrites and 'people who hide their true plans'.
The church strongly opposes the Reproductive Health Bill, which was commonly known as RH Bill. It led to the division of opinion of the country's populace since 80% of the population are Catholics.
Read more about this topic: Roman Catholic Church In The Philippines
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“Men conceive themselves as morally superior to those with whom they differ in opinion. A Socialist who thinks that the opinions of Mr. Gladstone on Socialism are unsound and his own sound, is within his rights; but a Socialist who thinks that his opinions are virtuous and Mr. Gladstone’s vicious, violates the first rule of morals and manners in a Democratic country; namely, that you must not treat your political opponent as a moral delinquent.”
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