Subsidy cuts will force Catholic schools to close, says Nicaraguan bishop

Sep 15, 2008 / 13:35 pm

Bishop Jorge Solorzano of Matagalpa warned last week Catholic schools in Nicaragua would be forced to close if the State decides to cut school subsidies.

Speaking to Aid to the Church in Need, Bishop Solorzano said school tuition may have to be increased in order to cover the expenses and since many families will be unable to absorb the increases, Catholic schools may be forced to closer their doors.

During his first visit to ACN, the bishop said Church-State relations in Nicaragua are cordial, but there are some negative tendencies such as the cutting of state subsidies, which also affect other Church institutions such as hospitals.

The Nicaraguan bishops said the main challenge facing the country is the fight against poverty—Nicaragua is the second poorest country in the region—a greater evangelization of the people and the protection of unborn life.

The president of the Nicaraguan Bishops’ Conference, Archbishop Leopoldo Brenes of Managua, said that in the fight against abortion women play an important role and therefore the Church makes a special effort to offer them pastoral assistance at parishes.

“Women have rights, but so do children,” Archbishop Brenes said, underscoring the importance of combating so-called therapeutic abortion, which could open the door to the legalization of abortion on demand.

Bishop Solorzano added that international organizations and industrialized countries are exercising enormous pressure to get abortion legalized, but that Nicaraguans “are a people that loves life.”