Where is the Church of the Tarragona Council?

What has become of the Catalan Church at the end of the last century? To mention just a few of those who are no longer with us, I'm talking about the Church of Bishops Pont i Gol, Deig, Camprodon, Guix, and Carrera. Of Archbishop Torrella and Cardinal Jubany. I'm talking about that Church of the Totosaus and the Alcaldes. Of the Huguets. Of the Marquises, Vilanova and Raguer, monks of Montserrat. And I'm not lying to the laity so as not to turn the entire article into a list of names.

I'm also thinking, of course, of that Church that Jordi Llisterri described in The wounds of the Catalan Church. The division of the diocese of Barcelona and the imposed bishops (2005), which has always sought to Hispanize the diocese. But, above all, if I speak now it is because the 4th of this month of June marks exactly thirty years since the official closing ceremony of the great Provincial Council of Tarragona, without practically anyone having remembered it. And I also say this, still, because of the embarrassment that the Abbey of Montserrat made with the presence of the Spanish king, I don't know if he was invited by the abbot, the Patronato de la Montaña (Mountain Trust) – presided over by Salvador Illa –, the 2025 Foundation, or if he invited himself.

I tried to describe that Church in the chronicles of the Council in theToday, later published in 1995 in Council with a cover and handcuffs. The Catalan Church through its council. And recently Pep Martí has made a good portrait of the current one in Digital NationIn any case, what I can say with certainty is that in the last quarter of the 20th century, there was a powerful Catalan Church. Diverse, heterogeneous, and conflictive, but it was there. It was the one that had been deeply marked by the Second Vatican Council. It had been mobilized in 1967 in the campaign We want Catalan bishops. Who had spoken in Christian roots of Catalonia with courage in 1985. And which had made its theological and pastoral vitality visible at the Tarragona Provincial Council held over eight intense weekends in 1995. Incidentally, it closed with a short speech by the Vatican nuncio Mario Tagliaferri to denounce "exacerbated nationalisms", in the style of that of Fe de Ven. The nuncio outraged the bishops themselves, a long list of personalities and even the always prudent president Jordi Pujol, unlike what Felipe VI will now provoke. And, although the resolutions taken to the Vatican by the bishops were already the result of great prudence - "to avoid future frustrations", they said - they did not deserve the recognitio up to a year later.

The history of that council and the years that followed has often made me think about the post-Process. From the first bold signals in 1991 to convene a provincial council or the proposal to create a Catalan Episcopal Conference—that is, to become independent from the Spanish one—by Bishop Deig at the UCE of Prada de Conflent, to the excellence of the innovative proposals in the development of the council. Incidentally, with a very relevant role played by the then abbot of Montserrat, Sebastià Bardolet. And then, the internal and external resistance, the fears, the sabotage, the betrayals, and the failure and frustration of many due to the indolence in implementing the agreements. And, finally, after a few gray and sad years, the oblivion to which it has been condemned.

It would be too easy to draw a parallel between the Republican Left, which has made Salvador Illa president of the Generalitat, and the current abbot of Montserrat, who invites Felipe VI to commemorate the millennium of Montserrat. But it's obvious that the general mood of the country dictates this. Furthermore, the recent statements by Abbot Manel Gasch, whether intentionally or not, suggest it. At the Vanguard Forum on the 10th, the abbot pledged to "talk to everyone" and "listen to everyone," expressions that were once harmless and that are all too reminiscent of the current government's slogan to distance itself from the independence movement of previous governments. And to say that now Montserrat "has to withdraw from that protective role it played in the 1960s and 1970s," followed two weeks later by the visit of the monarch who blessed the violent repression of the 1-O referendum, is a real pain in the ass. In fact, it's not about stopping politics: it's about engaging in new politics, which, I fear, will push Montserrat into a growing irrelevance as it fills with tourists.

I don't know to what extent the current and almost complete renewal of bishops will reverse the situation and make a Catalan Church visible again, or what kind. The role of the new bishops of Tortosa, Girona, Sant Feliu, Lérida, La Seu d'Urgell, and, soon, Barcelona and Terrassa, is still a mystery, but, looking at their profiles, they offer some hope. In particular, it is said that the new bishop of Lleida, Father Daniel Palau, is well-versed in the Provincial Council of Tarragona. We hope he helps.