Church criticizes TEPJF ruling against Carlos Aguiar and Sandoval Íñiguez

The Mexican Catholic Church on Sunday criticized the ruling of the Electoral Tribunal of the Judicial Power of the Federation (TEPJF) that found several ministers of worship guilty of proselytism, including the Archbishop Primate of Mexico, Carlos Aguiar. The Catholic Church is respectful of the provisions of the civil power, since it exists with the purpose of preserving order and seeking the common good; however, on this occasion, it does not agree with the criteria expressed in its judgment by the TEPJF,” he said in his editorial of the weekly “Desde la fe”. The institution referred to the ruling that this week “found guilty some ministers of worship” of the Catholic Church for “having impacted with their personal sayings in the federal electoral process last year,” when Mexico renewed the Chamber of Deputies and 15 governorships. The highest court ordered the Ministry of the Interior to sanction the ministers, including Aguiar and the archbishop emeritus of Guadalajara, Juan Sandoval Íñiguez, who warned that “if those in power win, the dictatorship will come, we will be very poor, as is Venezuela, as is Cuba.” Despite the fact that in Mexico the Constitution prohibits in its article 130 that religious leaders “proselytize,” the Catholic Church argued on Sunday that “the ministers judged expressed themselves from their personal sphere.” They pointed out points of social improvement to take into account when the faithful decided their vote, in total exercise of freedom of expression and the citizen exercise to which they are entitled,” the editorial defended. The Church of Mexico, the second country with the most Catholics in the world, has had disagreements with President Andrés Manuel López Obrador (AMLO) and his party, the National Regeneration Movement (MORENA). The religious institution criticized last year “federal legislators of the ruling party” because “they have insisted on promoting an agenda very loaded with ideology.” In addition, videos were released in which priests promoted the vote for the ultraconservative Solidarity Encounter Party (PES), which openly campaigned against abortion, the rights of the LGBT community and what it calls “a gender agenda.” In the editorial “From the Faith,” the Catholic institution now insisted that “it is the church’s job to bring the Gospel to all people.” Read more: Leonardo Schwebel receives death threats after insulting anti-vaccines “In that sacred mission, everyone is exhorted to change their lives for the better, also every ruler and politician, without making a difference by partisan colors,” he said. Guanajuato is present at FITUR 2022 in Spain

Original source in Spanish