The 'fascist sphere' cannot find the soul of Catalonia

The data is from 2023, but it has circulated widely now because the General Directorate of Religious Affairs of the Catalan government released it in a recent press release (and the media have activated their copycat mechanisms, let's be honest). I choose the headline ofDigital alert"Catalonia, a soulless region: two out of ten Catalans don't know what is celebrated at Christmas." I understand that this statistic is scandalous, but it doesn't illuminate the reality, since it doesn't distinguish between those who are unaware of the date attributed to the birth of Jesus Christ because they profess another faith and those who have a problem with their level of education. The Directorate General speaks of religious illiteracy, but I would say that we simply have the extension of a generally poor level of education (or the effect of so many years of abstract nativity scenes in Plaça Sant Jaume, which is entirely possible). I don't profess any spiritual beliefs, and I consider religions to be sinister power structures, but it would be absurd to deny that they have shaped world culture and that knowing their symbols and images helps us understand our surroundings and our fellow human beings. The fact that almost a third of young people answer the question incorrectly suggests that we are experiencing the effects of educational plans that confuse (necessary) secularization with the absurd eradication of cultural heritage.

That said, the news has been exploited, and it's important to remember that the source is biased. As is often the case with the births of the first Catalans of the year, the comments on these Christmas articles ended up attracting the worst of the worst, because they allowed for a double dose of Catalanophobia and Islamophobia, all in one fell swoop. We don't know if they have the same level of ignorance in La Rioja or the Canary Islands, but the usual suspects have already been able to unleash their anti-Catalan hate speech. The remedy against this press is the same as always: have the patience of Steve Jobs. (That was him, wasn't it?)