For those of you that haven't heard the Grand Orient de France has "concern" over the visit of French President Nicolas Sarkozy to the Vatican. Below the article is translated from the link:
A visit to the Vatican by [French President] Sarkozy "disturbed" the Grand Orient of France.
The Grand Orient of France announced Wednesday in a statement its "concern" over the visit of Nicolas Sarkozy to the Vatican where, according to the Freemasons, the President has "reaffirmed his particular view of religion."
Nicolas Sarkozy met for the first time on December 20 at the Vatican with Pope Benedict XVI in an audience devoted to the international situation. On the occasion of his appointment as honorary canon of the Basilica of Saint John Lateran [an honorary title given to French Presidents], the President spoke of "positive secularity" to illustrate "the contribution of the Catholic Church, among other religious and spiritual needs, to inform our choices and build our future."
In their statement, the Freemasons expressed their "concern over any desire to present religion as being a constituent part of political identity and citizenship, which could lead to a serious change in the French republican model."
"If history has made France 'the eldest daughter of the Church,' in contrast, the Republic has managed to make a saving emancipation against religion, forging, often with difficulty, the concept of secularism," said the principal association of Freemasons [in France].
"Our Republic is a secular Republic. Secularism is the way we live together despite our differences." writes the Grand Orient of France, which "calls upon all progressive people to remain more than ever vigilant against a change in the Law of 1905 [regarding separation of church and state], which would represent a real danger to the Republic."
Click here for article
No comments:
Post a Comment