Pinochet, franco ontvingen zegen Opus Dei
Verite - 08.10.2002 17:18
Al vaker is het Vaticaan in het nieuws geweest als het gaat om het in bescherming nemen van fascisten en zelfs openlijke steun.
Nu Opus Dei
Background: Opus Dei ("Work of God") was founded in 1928 by a young
Spanish priest named Josemaria Escriva de Balaguer in response to a
divine command.(2) He founded this Catholic lay organization to
"tell men and women of every country and of every condition, race,
language, milieu, and state of life...that they can love and serve
God without giving up their ordinary work, their family life, and
their normal social relations."(1) Opus Dei displays features of a
cult, however, including worship of the founder--known as the
"Father"--and self-mortification by its followers.(3) Josemaria
Escriva wrote his most famous book, called "The Way," a compendium
of 999 "maxims" that became Opus Dei's spiritual handbook.(3) He
also saw himself as a latter-day knight, leading the faithful into
battle against godless communism.(3) Msgr. Escriva, whom Pope John
Paul II called "an unforgettable figure," died in 1975.(1) In 1981,
a beatification process was begun in Rome.(4) Msgr. Alvaro del Portillo,
who had spent 40 years as Msgr. Escriva's chief aide, was named the
first Prelate of Opus Dei in 1982.(1,3,4)
Ascetism, anticommunism, a rigid hierarchicalism, religious militancy
and secrecy have become the distinguishing marks of the organization.(3)
Opus Dei has followed a deliberate policy of keeping its membership,
hierarchy, rituals and rules hidden.(3) In an interview for the Catholic
diosesan newspaper, the Brooklyn Tablet, Fr. Angel de la Parte Paris
observed that Opus Dei professes a fundamentalist theology, condemns
Liberation Theology, has no concern for social problems, leaves little
freedom to an individual's conscience, and is associated with secular
power structures.(5)
Opus Dei finds a strong supporter in Pope John Paul II. Barry James,
in an article published in the Los Angeles Times, says that the Pope
is "giving clear indications of his esteem for the conservative
Opus Dei as a force that could regenerate lax moral values in the
West and stand as a bulwark against communism."(2) The Pope has
also taken part in the ordination of an Opus Dei priest.(1,2) In
1982, Opus Dei received the status of personal prelature by decision
of Pope John Paul II. The personal prelature status means that the
organization is more autonomous, more flexible, and answers directly
to the Pope through Msgr. Alvaro Portillo rather than through a
bishop.(1) According to Penny Lernoux, The Nation's Latin American
correspondent, Opus Dei forms part of a powerful group of Catholic
organizations of U.S. origin that promote the Pope's political
agenda.(6)
Opus Dei has a hierarchical organization. Numeraries--a select
group of people who belong to the middle or upper classes--hold a
university degree, must be unmarried, and must pledge vows of
poverty, chastity, and obedience. Below the numeraries are the
associates, who have the same obligations as the numeraries, but
come from the working class. A final category consists of
"co-operators," or sympathizers, who can be Catholics or
non-Catholic. This class division is rigorously enforced.(3)
To join Opus Dei, according to Msgr. Alvaro del Portillo, it is
necessary that "each person must have received from God the
specific vocation to dedicate himself (herself) to the specific
aims of Opus Dei, and must meet the requirements necessary to
undertake responsibly the commitments involved in that dedication."(4)
Membership with Opus Dei requires a contract which spells out the
rights and the obligations which the members assume.(1)
Opus Dei has some 73,000 members in eighty-seven countries, the
largest number being in Spain and Latin America. It also influences
487 universities and high schools, 52 radio and television stations,
694 publications, 38 news and publicity agencies, and 12 film
distribution companies.(3)
The group has received criticism for being connected to powerful
institutions and for entering the field of education for the middle
and upper classes.(2) Critic John Roche, a professor at Oxford
University, has said, "I am convinced [Opus Dei] is a sect, a cult,
a malignant growth upon the body of the church."(2)
Countries: Members in 80 countries, including: AR, AS, AU, BE, BN,
BR, CH, CN, CO, CR, EC, ES, FR, GE, GT, HK, HO, ID, IT, IV, JA, KE,
ME, NG, PE, PH, PT, PU, SP, SG, SZ, UG, US, VE, ZA.(1,7)
Funding: Funding comes from the tithing practice and voluntary
donations of its members. "Co-operators" also donate to Opus Dei.(1,3,7)
Activities: According to Opus Dei, its main purpose is the general
mobilization of Catholic lay men and women with the aim of making
them clearly aware of their rights and responsibility in fulfilling
their duties as consistent Catholics.(4) This religious task is
carried out by Opus Dei members taking part in all human activities:
social, cultural, and scientific.(4) In their professional and
familiar surroundings, members carry out a constant personal
apostolate on a one-to-one basis with those around them.(4)
Opus Dei works with worker groups in Spain, Argentina, Colombia,
and Brazil; with youth clubs in Kenya, Nigeria, Japan, Puerto Rico,
England, Canada, Australia, Portugal, Mexico, Belgium, Ecuador,
Kenya, and Spain; with students in Costa Rica, Australia, Austria,
Spain, the United States, England, Nigeria, Belgium, Uruguay,
Philippines, Italy, Venezuela, Chile, Colombia, Canada, Ecuador,
and Switzerland; with universities in Spain, Peru, and Colombia;
and with women's study centers such as the Escuela Tecnica de
Hosteleria y Hogar Montemira in El Salvador, and others in Mexico,
France, Canada, Colombia, Ecuador, Spain, Philippines, Peru, Brazil,
United States, England, Argentina, and Italy.(7)
Spain: Opus Dei has its main base in Spain, where it has raised the
largest contributions and enjoyed the most substantial political
and economic influence. Opus Dei retained a strong influence on
Spain's banking system and industry.(3) The Spanish branch has the
largest membership (24,000, some 5,000 of whom are numeraries), the
biggest network of centers and schools, including Pamplona's University,
and a business school in Barcelona with ties to Harvard University.
Opus Dei members claim to control more than 150 companies and
financial entities known as the "Holy Octopus."(3) Critics allege
that Opus Dei served the Franco dictatorship and works through
right-wing parties in Spain.(2,3)
El Salvador: It entered in El Salvador in 1958. In 1985, the
Catholic church appointed two non-native bishops. One of them, Fr.
Fernando Saenz, is a member of Opus Dei. Acconding to the Salvadoran
Jesuit magazine, Estudios Centroamericanos, these appointments
showed the Vatican's determination to control socially activist
sectors in the church.(3,6) Opus Dei supports right-wing political
groups in the country through its religious courses and schools,
and through newspapers, magazines, and television outlets
influenced or owned by members in El Salvador.(3,6)
Guatemala: Opus Dei runs a dormitory for male students who attend a
university but receive additional education through the group. Opus
Dei holds seminars "to change attitudes" of workers of all religions
in Guatemala.(8) They also have programs for women and business
owners and run a worker center called "el Centro de Formacion y
Capacitacion Obrera Kinal."(8)
United States: U.S. membership remains small, at approximately 3,000.
The U.S. branch was founded in Chicago by a Spanish priest in 1949.
Opus Dei has established several student centers in Chicago, New
York City, Milwaukee, San Francisco, Indiana, and Washington D.C.(3)
A priest from the American Catholic church said that Opus Dei is a
"devious, antidemocratic, reactionary, semi-fascist institution,
desperately hungry for absolute power in the church. It ought to
be forced either to come out into the open or be suppressed."(3)
Private Connections: Opus Dei is inseparably linked to the priestly
Order of the Holy Cross, whose President General is the Prelate of
Opus Dei.(4)
U.S. Address: Opus Dei, 330 Riverside Drive, New York, NY 10025.
Phone: 914-235-1201.
Sources:
1. Russel Shaw, Working for God The World Over: What is Opus Dei,
U.S. Information Office, 1985.
2. Barry James, "Unusual and Powerful Lay Organization Stirs Criticism
in Roman Catholic Church," Los Angeles Times, Oct 7, 1985.
3. Penny Lernoux, People of God: The Struggle for World
Catholicism, New York: Viking, 1989.
4. Prelate of Opus Dei, "20 Questions for Msgr. Alvaro del Portillo,"
brochure, 1985.
5. Maryknoll Justice and Peace Office, "Salvadoran Military Cheer
New Bishops," News Notes, vol. 12, no. 1, 1987.
6. Penny Lernoux, "Opus Dei and the Perfect Society," The Nation,
April 10, 1989.
7. Dominique Le Tourneau, El Opus Dei, Barcelona: Oikos-tau S.A.
Editiones, 1986.
8. Interview with Fr. Julio Ortiz, June 4, 1987.
GroupWatch was compiled by the Interhemispheric Resource Center,
Box 4506, Albuquerque, NM 87196.  http://www.irc-online.org/
GroupWatch files are available at http://www.pir.org/gw/
Group: Opus Dei / Work of God
File Name: od.txt
Last Updated: 6/89
Principals: Msgr. Alvaro del Portillo (Prelate).(1)
Category: Religious
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