Haiti....The Bishops Put It Into Perspective

With the race already underway to make the most idiotic comments about the the awful earthquake in Haiti, the Spanish Church could not be left behind. The bishop of San Sebastian, José Ignacio Munilla, has hit the headlines today for remarking that bad though the earthquake is, it's not as serious as the spiritual situation of the Spanish people! Obviously it's not easy for a bishop to explain anyway why God has suddenly decided so many Haitians must die. He now claims that he was misinterpreted as he was talking from a theological point of view, so that's alright then.

The recently appointed Munilla has already had his share of controversy, as the decision to give him the job is widely regarded as having been a move by the Spanish church to impose central control over their Basque followers. Munilla is from the more ultra wing of an already hardly moderate institution, and many Catholics in the Basque Country have opposed his appointment. He is on the other hand very popular amongst right wing Catholics in Madrid who see him as someone who will crack down on any signs of Basque nationalism amongst the clergy. Given the attention he has already captured he might need to spend a period in silent contemplation.