Who would guess that the year of the 70th anniversary of the Spanish Civil War (see our previous topics, The Passion of Spain and New Martyrs Recognized) would bring more than symbolic reminders of the great Spanish political drama? Probably, few would have thought that Spaniards would once again choose inept leaders, moved by fear, and pride, and hatred, as they did in the infamous days of the Second Republic, but that is what they did when they chose José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero as their prime-minister.
First, he surrendered to the Muslim terrorists; then he pandered to the "gay" lobby; then, he pledged to persecute the Church's school system and finances; now, after compromising with the Basque terrorist nationalists, he surrenders to the Catalan anticlerical extreme-left nationalists. Not all nationalisms are good; or rather, one would not go too far to say that all nationalisms are bad and idolatrous, and are essentially different from the virtue of patriotism.
Among the factors which led to the Civil War of 1936-39, one of the most important was the rabid nationalism of Catalonia. Now, Catalonia had not considered itself as a nation before the 19th century; there had never been a "nation" called Catalonia, though Catalan had been spoken in the Iberian Peninsula since the 10th century, the period in which the Romance languages became more clearly distinguishable. Catalan had been the main language in the kingdom of Aragon, which stretched from the Ebro to Calabria, but Catalans had always considered themselves as part of those glorious Hispanienses who had expelled the brutal Caliphs.
It is easy to verify that Catalan has always also meant Spaniard: read the names of the defenders of Spanish integrity and its Catholic spirit, and you will find many Catalan, and Basque, and Galician surnames -- proportionately many more than from the Castilian-speaking peoples.
The insurrection which started the Crusade for the defense of Catholic Spain in July 1936 was driven by a Catalan (Goded Llopis, born in the colony of Puerto Rico from Catalan parents) and a Galician (Francisco Franco Bahamonde...). The great leaders of the Spanish Church during those terrible years were Catalans: Cardinal Gomá y Tomás, born in the province of Tarragona; Cardinal Plá y Deniel, born in Barcelona...
On the other hand, while Basque nationalism had been mostly linked to the Catholic Church in the Basque regions, Catalan nationalism had always been intensely anticlerical*. And this hatred for Christianity and Christian values is clear in the recent "Statute" (Estatut) for the Autonomous Community of Catalonia, which breaks the delicate balance achieved by the regions, the central government, and the different social currents in Spanish society (particularly the Catholic Church) in the negotiations which led to the Constitution of 1978. The center-right Spanish parties have been concerned with the use of the name of "nation", for the first time, in the legal text. But that is not the main problem.
The main problem is that, in the new "Statute", anticlericalism rises again its ugly head and declares what a "politically correct" Constitutional text (for that is what the "Statute" is) must look like. A few excerpts:
"All persons have the right to live with dignity the process of their death"
"The public powers must promote the equality of different partnership stable unions, regardless of the sexual orientation of its members."
"The public powers must promote the equality of all persons, regardless of their origin, nationality, sex, race, religion, social condition, or sexual orientation, as well as promote the eradication of racism, antisemitism, sexophobia, homophobia, and any other expression which attempts on equality and dignity."
"The public powers must see that the free decision of the woman is foremost in all cases which may affect her dignity, integrity, and physical and mental welfare, especially regarding her own body and her sexual and reproductive health."
"The public powers must protect social, cultural, and religious sociability among all persons in Catalonia, and the respect of the diversity of beliefs and ethical and philosophical convictions of all persons, and must promote intercultural relations through incentives, and the creation of environments of reciprocal knowledge, dialogue, and mediation."
Let there be no doubt: what is in stake is not the unity of Spain but the survival of Catholicism in the Iberian peninsula. The Spanish spirit has always been multiethnic -- but Catholic, always Catholic, always a Crusader spirit, as the Reconquista itself was a Crusade, as the Civil War itself became a Crusade after the Republican hosts massacred priests and nuns, and burned chapels and convents. But this Spain of many Spains has surrendered its soul and approaches death, under pressure, betrayed by its leaders, abandoned by a mostly "progressive" clergy, deceived by newfound wealth. Its dead body will soon be ready to be partitioned.
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* This was true in the early decades of both movements, but, while the clergy in the Basque lands still largely supports the Basque nationalist movement, the latter has become not only extremely violent, but secular and anticlerical. This historical background, nonetheless, explains several intersting aspects of the development of the Civil War in "Euskadi" (the Basque Country).
