Filipino politician says he will risk excommunication--which is not threatened
May 26, 2011
A prominent Catholic politician in the Philippines has said that he ready to risk excommunication in order to promote an aggressive family-planning bill that the nation’s bishops have adamantly opposed.
Edcel Lagman, the main sponsor of the legislation in the Filipino parliament, seemed intent on creating the impression that he has been threatened with excommunication. But he has not—a spokesman for the bishops pointed out.
Msgr. Juanito Figura, the secretary-general of the episcopal conference, said that “there’s no threat of excommunication to him, the president or anybody.”
Leaving aside the question of formal excommunication, Bishop Arturo Bastes of Sorsogon added that Lagman’s public statement shows that the political leader wants to “separate himself from the Church.”
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Further information:
- Lagman excommunicated himself, says bishop (ABS-CBN)
- The Filipino excommunication that isn't (In the Light of the Law)
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