Church and gov’t should collaborate, not clash— Cardinal Rosales

Collaboration — no other way to go.Cardinal Gaudencio Rosales, the retired Archbishop of Manila, said the effectiveness of serving the people can only be enriched if the Church and the government work together. Church and State leaders must always work together because they are serving the same people, Rosales said over Manila archdiocese-run Radio Veritas on Thursday. It cannot be done separately because, whether rich or poor, the Church and the State serve the same people, he said.The prelate said dialogue and respectful collaboration are still essential even if the Church and the government serve people differently. The State helps the people materially while the Church does so spiritually and morally. They are linked to each other in helping the people, he said.President Rodrigo Duterte has been at loggerheads with the Church, whose leaders he has tagged as hypocrites for criticizing his bloody war on drugs.The bishops, on the other hand, said they cannot remain silent as the body count in the administration’s drug war reaches nearly 9,000.CBCPNews