La Paz, Bolivia, Apr 22, 2008 / 12:51 pm
The Archbishop of Santa Cruz, Cardinal Julio Terrazas Sandoval, said Bolivian President Evo Morales’ criticism of the Church could be due either to his being misinformed or to his desire to receive praise from the people.
“To us it seems the president has been completely misinformed about what the presence of the Church means,” he said, “and about what the presence of the Church means when we seek dialogue.” “What Morales has said is either the result of misinformation from those around him or of the enthusiasm that comes when there are people applauding him. That enthusiasm makes you say more than what you should,” the cardinal said.
He called on Bolivians to be calm and to trust in God. “It’s important that we live this message with optimism, with enthusiasm, without losing our calm, it doesn’t matter if they slap us on one cheek, let us offer them the other. We cannot separate ourselves from this way of speaking of truth and always working for it,” the cardinal said.