The Catholic Church and the Politics of Accommodation in Honduras

Political History and Disparities in Safe Motherhood Between Guatemala and Honduras

“…Honduran Church leaders and their conservative allies in civil society have been less obstructionist with respect to the cause of safe motherhood specifically. Guatemalan Archbishop Mariano Rossell was hostile to the democratic, social reform-oriented, governments of Juan José Arévalo and Jacobo Arbenz that led the country from 1944 to 1954, issuing pastoral letters warning the faithful of the growing influence of communism in the country (Cardenal 1990b;Brett 2002). He welcomed the restoration of military rule in 1954 by Castillo Armas and offered strong support for succeeding military administrations.…”

“…He welcomed the restoration of military rule in 1954 by Castillo Armas and offered strong support for succeeding military administrations. Subsequent archbishops were also staunch defenders of the military regimes (Cardenal 1990b). These governments reciprocated by amending the constitution to restore Church privileges such as tax exemption and a declaration that the teaching of religion in schools was in the national interest (Cardenal 1990b).…”

“…Subsequent archbishops were also staunch defenders of the military regimes (Cardenal 1990b). These governments reciprocated by amending the constitution to restore Church privileges such as tax exemption and a declaration that the teaching of religion in schools was in the national interest (Cardenal 1990b). In 1953 archbishop Rossell opened the door to even greater Church influence on politics by inviting Opus Dei, an arch-conservative Catholic organization, to establish a presence in Guatemala (Cardenal 1990b).…”

“…Moreover, the Honduran Church's conservatism has been tempered by a long tradition of social activism on behalf of the poor. Church leaders have pushed for social reform, land redistribution, and economic justice (Shepherd 1993;Cardenal 1990a). The Church organized several institutions in the 1960s to serve these causes.…”

“…These included rural "Schools by Radio," originally set up for education but evolving into agents of radical reform, and the Christian Social Movement, an umbrella group of student, religious, and other organizations pushing for change in the countryside that eventually involved nearly one-quarter of the population (Shepherd 1993). In the face of state pressure in the 1970s, leaders of the Church hierarchy backed down from this radicalism (Cardenal 1990a); however, they continued to act as monitors and critics of the state (Melendez 1992). When the state promoted pro-poor social policies, such as the development of maternal health services in the 1970s and 1980s and support for safe motherhood in the 1990s, Honduran church leaders either supported these initiatives or refrained from interfering.…”