By: Dr Janez Juhant
With the approaching Easter holiday of the Lord’s Resurrection, the provocateurs through the public media are even more flamingly inflating the deviations of the religious or those responsible in the Church, in order to overshadow our holidays, to rob us of hope, saying that we are all (equally) bad.
In fact, the rulers, with this and all the ceremonies of civil society, only create the appearance that they are working. The Prime Minister’s involvement in unexplained deals, the accumulation of plans and the lack of tangible results are worrying. That is why slips in the Church, mutual reckoning between clerics who either do not see or do not want to see that propagandists are taking advantage of superficial and problematic statements to diminish the reputation of the Church come in handy. Let’s be clear: we must not tolerate or advocate abuse anywhere. But let’s be consistent: the same criteria apply to everyone in the country and society. That is why we expect the media to be equally critical of all public office holders, not that only the “untouchables” should be able to do whatever they want. That is why class enemies are created to cover their work, and the most appropriate target for this is the people of the Church. It is no coincidence that the current government has settled on a contribution for the social insurance of priests. Even the views of the Jesuits in two left-wing newsletters confirm such intentions, which are directed more by the desire for sensation and diminishing the reputation of the Church than benevolence and commitment to the true renewal of the Church. Unfortunately, we in the Church are not capable of constant dialogue and critical words in order to prevent possible abuses and to nip any arbitrariness in the bud.
That is why clerics, including bishops, find it difficult to find a common language for regulating internal church matters and also for forming an appropriate relationship with the authorities. The united presence of Catholics in these challenging moments is very important and we should not allow ourselves to be challenged by manipulators, but in right-wing parties and civil society, including the Church, respond appropriately and decisively to this and prevent the leftists in power from starting morality, religion and the foundations of man and family. Unfortunately, even believers in our country and around the world fall for this uncritically for party or personal benefits. There is a need for united resistance against the educational, legal, and other arbitrary orders of this government and the rape of children, adolescents, and parents with examples of a rainbow man and illusions of a bright future without work and suffering. Let us not allow them to destroy the independent man, so that he may be robbed of his possessions and reduced to a submissive servant. As Comrade Švejk said: “I surrender to the company.” Švejk replied: “If you surrender to the company, everyone will get a little, but if the whole company surrenders to you, you will be up to your neck in the mud.” The leftist agenda is pushing us deeper and deeper into the quagmire, and the question is who will swim out. In Slovenia, half-defunct violent structures created obedient citizens, and they are now slowly waking up. But there are still brake mechanisms operating in society and the Church to maintain servility to leftists and their structures. That is why Jenull and Kovač are “hotshots”, and Rupar is a “disturbing element”, even though the pensioners cling to the latter like lifelines, similar to many affected in Ljubljana from Primc. The Prime Minister has now invented yet another hate speech, which supposedly should be prosecuted in public, even though it was invented and most widely spread by leftists. The government is thus trying to divert attention from real economic, social, and political problems.
Now the former pastor from Preska, Franci Klobčič, has finally experienced an acquittal, but the media did not accompany him with pomp, as they persistently wrote about his alleged and guilty verdicts, which were built on flimsy indictments and evidence. Their background was opposition to the successful operation of the pastor, also because of the kindergarten. Let’s also remember that in 1951, in the same parish, opposition to the priest Valentin Oblak turned into hatred and his rich priestly life was extinguished by shooting…
Despite everything, there is no need for us in the Church to panic. Let’s sit together and review burning problems and direct them toward solutions. Could the abolition of godfathers – when everything in society is abolishing established customs and traditions – bring blessings to the confirmands? Still others spread speculation about these or those “suitable” bishops, etc. There is a lot of good will among the religious laymen and clerics – let’s come together and come to an agreement and direct them to faith and trust in Christ, so that the Church will be the salt of the earth and the leaven of the world. What else are synodal processes for if we cannot coordinate efforts in faith together. Obviously, there is still too much introspection, selfishness, and a lack of listening for dialogue. We could also make better use of the potential of believers and use them to consolidate solutions so that the Church will be recognisable and active in opening up to the problems and contacts of people of our time, which is what the last council wanted. May leading Catholics never remain isolated and powerless against the dark and organised Slovenian and global left-wing conspiracy against religion and the Church!
It is not useful to accuse those responsible for (mis)delusions in the Church, but it is necessary to speak carefully and soberly about the shadows and prevent them from going down in history. With consistency and transparency, we all become more human, authentic, and direct, and open to dialogue with the people of today, as Tomaž Halik pointed out at the synod in Prague. So, let’s deal less with ourselves and in faith and trust together with spiritual strength build our future from faith in the Risen One. If God is with us, who can be against us?