+gt;I have read a number of articles recently which refer to +quot;clerical facism+quot; +

>I have read a number of articles recently which refer to "clerical facism"
>one in regard to the government of Croatia and another in relation with
>some member of the RR in the US.  Does anyone know the history of this term
>or where I can find more information about it?  I get the impression it
>originally had to do with a strain of Vatican politics in the Balkans or
>the Berlin Vatican Concordat during WWII.

The history of clerical fascism is fascinating and is an untold part of
the beginnings of WW II.  Most Catholic conservatives, and many other
conservatives as well, saw fascism as a bulwark against godless atheistic
communism, not only for its atheism, but because its promise was an
upheaval of society, where the privileges of the rich would be lost.  For
now, it doesn't matter that the promises were lies, the clergy and the
rich were opposed to any such change.

The Vatican had no problem making a deal with Mussolini and later with
Hitler.  The Pope never could bring himself to explicitly condemn Hitler
and Germany for their persecution of the Jews.  The famous encyclical Mit
Brennender Sorge [I've probably blown the German] condemns persecution,
but never mentions Germany, or Jews.

It was in Spain that the Church supported Franco's fascism the most.  The
Church had been behind the aristocracy and was thoroughly hated by the
people.  When the REpublic came in, the church was disestablished and its
priviliges removed.  Just like christians hereabouts, they assumed that
their privileges are the way things should be and considered them
"rights".  Well, FRanco promised to restore them, so the church supported
Franco and his rebellion against the legitimate government of Spain. 
Hitler and Mussolini used Spain as a training ground and learned many
valuable lessons in tactics and weaponry to be used later.

Conservative Catholics in many countries like France, Britain, the US and
elsewhere in Europe no doubt did much to persuade people that there was no
need for alarm about Hitler and the Nazis, and greatly contributed to a
general lack of preparedness.

The specific country you're looking for is Croatia, which, in the Balkan
tradition, used WW II to settle its centuries old scores against the
Serbs.  The Croatian fascist puppet state enthusiastically cooperated with
the Nazi genocide of the Jews, and managed to run its own personal
extermination of Serbs on the side.  Not only were thousands murdered, but
children were forcibly baptised as Roman Catholics.  One of the priests
who arranged many of the forced baptisms is on the way to sainthood.

I don't want to portray the Serbs as innocent victims, the history of the
region is too complex for that.  Later, Yugoslavia was mostly run by
Serbs, who had the main positions of power in the Communist party, as it
had been the Communists who mostly fought against the Nazis.  They then
took revenge on the Croats, only restrained by Tito, when Tito died it
wasn't long until what just happened, happened.

--
Maybe I'm damned if I don't,                                  Greg Erwin
and maybe I'm damned if I do;          http://infoweb.magi.com/~godfree/
all I know is if I gotta be damned,            ai815@freenet.carleton.ca
I'd rather be damned with you.  --Meat Loaf             godfree@magi.com