Deutsch
English
Français
Español
PolskiSub menu: Services
Services / Index of Authors
Laporte, Christian
3 articles of this author have been cited in the European Press Review so far.
Beatification divides Spain
Christian Laporte ponders the Catholic Church's attitude towards Franco's regime. "We had to wait for a Polish Pope for the Catholic Church to honour those who chose Franco's side. Neither Jean XXIII, nor Paul VI, nor Pie XII wanted to hurry things. According to historians the latter Pope was not the least bit reticent towards Franco's regime... while Paul VI quite simply ordered the suspension of the beatification process and the canonisation that had been begun. The wind had turned under Jean-Paul II: less than four years after investing Saint Pierre's throne, he announced to Spanish archbishops that he was going to make up for lost time. Better still he was going to do everything in his power to canonise Josemaria Escriva de Balaguer, the founder of Opus Dei who had clearly chosen Franco's side, despite it must be said, some of its members suffering in turn from Franco's excessive nationalism."
» full article (external link, French)
More from the press review on the subject » Domestic Policy, » Religion, » Spain
The lion, symbol of Belgian courage
Belgium is marking the 175th anniversary of the accession to the throne of the first Belgian king, Leopold the First, a year after the Belgian state's founding in 1830. Journalist Christian Laporte recalls the importance to Belgians of the lion symbol. "A state without symbols would be merely a nation without reference points, with citizens in search of an identity. It would suffer from a severe lack of recognition, both domestically and outside its borders. ... The lion of Belgium is the country's oldest symbol. It appeared in 1583. ... Why a lion ? It is a courageous animal like the Belgians described by Caesar. Charles Quint spoke of the 'country of lions' to characterise the Belgian part of the empire. The symbol was launched for posterity: it was there during the separation of the northern and southern provinces in 1585, and one happened upon it again at the time of their independence, in 1648. 'Leo Belgicus' was in fine fettle back then - some 50 versions of it were identified."
» to the homepage (external link, La Libre Belgique)
More from the press review on the subject » History, » Belgium
King Albert II and separatism
"Albert II has been very reckless," writes Karel Rimanque, a professor of constitutional law. He offers his reaction to the speech delivered by the king on Tuesday, January 31 in which he castigated those who advocate separatism in Belgium. "Was it really necessary to make remonstrations in such plain terms to the authors of the Warande Manifesto [an appeal issued last November calling for Flanders to be independent]? More seriously, did he have to wag an accusatory finger at the entire Flemish political class, whose only fault is to want more autonomy? ... I can understand his concern, but I would gladly refer him back to the speeches of his late brother, who rallied all sides together by underscoring the virtues of solidarity."
» full article (external link, French)
More from the press review on the subject » Domestic Policy, » Belgium
Bookmark this page at
© 2005-2010