Nicaraguan Cardinal Leopoldo Brenes said that the “dialogue” with the government of President Daniel Ortega “should never stop,” when asked about the actions that the Sandinista president has taken against the Catholic Church.
Brenes, who attended a meeting of the Latin American and Caribbean Episcopal Council (Celam) on Monday, told the agency Rome Reports that despite the government’s remarks “the gospel tells us that we should always pray for those who criticize us, for those who say things against us.”
“We seek how to have a calm heart in the face of these things and pray. Dialogue should never stop, we have experience, in Nicaragua there has been a war and dialogues have been held”, she emphasized.
On September 15, Pope Francis assured that a “dialogue” is being maintained with Managua, however days later Ortega attacked the Catholic Church and Pope Francis during a public speech for questioning democracy in Nicaragua.
“Who elects the priests? Who elects the bishops? Who elects the Pope? How many vote for cardinals?” Ortega said during the 43rd anniversary of the National Police.
Onslaught against the Church continues
During 2022, the administration of President Ortega has sentenced a bishop to house arrest, while some 10 are in maximum security cells and under investigation.
The Ortega government has also denied entry to the country at least several priests critical of the president, and some 55 more have gone into exile, said the Nicaragua Never Again Collective, an organization based in Costa Rica.
“We want to see what the Lord is asking of us, because I am priests who have not been able to return to Nicaragua, what are they discovering or what do we discover? That perhaps the Lord is sending them to another mission”, Cardinal Brenes said in this regard.
Criticism of Cardinal’s position
After Cardinal Brenes’ announcement, various organizations questioned the religious’s comments. “When did the dialogue start? It is contradictory to us that he affirms that while in Nicaragua he remains totally silent in the face of the increase in persecution against the church and its priests,” questioned the Nicaraguan Center for Human Rights (Cenidh).
Nicaraguan activist Bianca Jagger also asked “what dialogue is Cardinal Leopoldo Brenes referring to?”
“What dialogue is Cardinal Leopoldo Brenes referring to? What kind of dialogue do you have with Ortega and Murillo, the dictators who are merciless in persecuting the Catholic Church in Nicaragua and who keep Monsignor Álvarez kidnapped and have 11 priests and seminarians in prison?” the activist wrote on Twitter.
The Ortega government has not ruled on a dialogue with the Nicaraguan Church, with whom it broke relations since 2018, when protests arose against it and accused the clergy of “coup plotters.”
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