10,000 Rightist Words

The Pope last week was not represented by an official delegate in Rightist Spain, though he had given de facto recognition to the Salamanca Government by accepting the credentials of General Franco's Charge d'Affaires to the Vatican (TIME, Sept. 6).

There was, however, a "provisional, semiofficial" Vatican representative in Salamanca--Isidoro Cardinal Goma y Tomas. Last week he ordered circulated to every Catholic bishop in the world an extensive letter, 10,000 words long, signed by himself, one other cardinal, six archbishops, 35 bishops, and five vicars capitular which did more than any ambassadorial recognition to show how far down the line the Vatican is willing to go with Franco's cause.

The letter declared that the Rightist revolt against the Madrid Government was "legitimate"; the February 1936 election which put a Leftist coalition in power was unjust "because of the arbitrary annulment of votes." Russia was responsible for the revolution: "Immediately after the triumph of the People's Front, the Russian Komintern . . . financed it with extraordinary amounts of money. . . . The work of destruction was realized to cries of 'Long Live Russia.' In the shadow of the international Communist flag . . . Russia has grafted herself onto the governmental army . . . she aimed . . . at implanting the Communist regime."

Stressed by cardinals, archbishops and bishops is the "horrible barbarity" of the Leftists: "Many [Rightists] had their limbs amputated . . . their eyes were put out ... they were ripped open from top to bottom, burned or buried alive, chopped to death with axes. . . ."

The Leftists, declared the prelates, showed little consideration for the Church: "Tombs and churchyards have been profaned. . . . The people have played football with the skull of the great Bishop Torras y Bages. . . . We calculate that about 20,000 churches and chapels have been destroyed or totally plundered. . . . [Priests] were hunted with dogs; were pursued across the mountains. . . . They were killed without trial most times. . . . The honor of women has not been respected, not even of those consecrated to God."

While "Marxist-held Spain is living without God" the Rightist regions enjoy "the tranquillity of internal order under the protection of a real authority. . . . Divine Worship is celebrated profusely and new manifestations of Christian life abound and flourish. . . ."

Reason why the Church puts its trust in the Rightists: "The Church, in danger of perishing totally at the hands of Communism . . . feels herself protected by a power which until now has guaranteed the fundamental principles of all society. . . . We affirm that the war has not been undertaken to build up an autocratic state over a humiliated nation, but simply that the national spirit should arise with the strength and the Christian liberty of older times."

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