There were massacres of Catholic clergy and churches, monasteries and convents were burned with severe impact to the rich Spanish historical and artistic heritage. Twelve bishops, 283 nuns 2,365 monks and 4,184 priests were murdered
That's from Wikipedia, discussing the Spanish Civil War and the harsh anti-clericalism of the Communist/Socialist forces.
Shortly after his election in 2004, Socialist Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero ended a quarter-century of cozy church-state relations by blocking mandatory religious classes in public schools. He then took wider aim, saying his government would relax abortion laws, ease restrictions on divorce, legalize gay marriage and permit gay couples to adopt children.
That's from this morning's WaPo.
Spain, it would seem, has always had a powerful anti-Catholic bias in its citizenry, and it's raising its ugly head these days. Consider this outrage, which is something I think Howard Stern wouldn't even do:
Things got particularly nasty [between the Spanish government and the Spanish Catholic Church] when the media joined the fray. A radio station sent reporters into confessionals with hidden microphones and broadcast unsuspecting priests warning against the evils of birth control, homosexuality and surfing the Internet.
All this dissension against the RCC in a predominately-Catholic country. What's behind it? Good old Latin hot-headedness? Moorish blood whose Jungian collective unconscious has a residue of anti-Catholicism? Corruption in a powerful church that leads to resentment? I don't know the answer, but I suspect the international interest in Spain will continue to increase, just as it did in the 1930's.
