The Catholic Church

1
The Catholic Church

• An Obstacle to Democratic Consolidation?

2
Overview of the Catholic Church

• History in Latin America
• Role under military regimes
• Role in democratic transitions

3
The Democratic Era

• The Vatican
• Vatican Council II in their proper spheres, the
  political community and the Church are mutually
  independent and self-governing.
• Pope John Paul II 1979-today
• The global role of the Vatican and the Catholic
  Church
• Developed countries
• Developing countries and Latin America

4
The Democratic Era

• Domestic influence of the Church in Latin America
  
• Bishops
• Lay Catholics
• Liberal Catholics faith should be a matter of
  private affairs, and something that unites people
  in a general sense
• Integral Catholics reject the notion that
  spheres of life lie beyond the reach of
  religious regulation
• Public opinion
• Political parties

5
Gender Relations in Latin America

• Military regimes ? democratization
• Women as political agents
• Human rights movements
• Popular movements
• Feminist movements

6
Gender Inequality

• Economic context
• Class inequalities
• Economic crisis
• Labor force participation
• Social context
• Machismo
• Domestic violence
• Womens health

7
Gender inequality

• Legal context
• Discriminatory laws
• Ineffective laws, poor regulation
• Political context
• Achievements of the 1990s
• Womens political participation
• Legislative changes
• Challenges that remain

8
Discussion on the Church and Gender

• Democratic consolidation
• Is the Catholic Church an obstacle to
  consolidation? (The cases of Chile and Bolivia)
• Should the Church be just another interest
  group?
• What is the intersection between economic
  problems and inequality, and womens rights?