The Catholic Church in the Venezuelan Conflict: Positive Neutrality and the Peril of Principles

David Smilde, Tulane University
Hugo Perez Hernaiz, Universidad Central de Venezuela

Since the failed 2016 Venezuela negotiations mediated by the Vatican, both the Vatican and Venezuela’s national Catholic Church hierarchy have maintained what they call “positive neutrality.” By this they mean the effort to engage leaders on both sides of the conflict while pushing for democratic elections, humanitarian aid and political dialogue. They denounce the Maduro government for its bleak human rights record and denial of Venezuela’s humanitarian crisis. They also criticize the opposition for violent protests and unwillingness to negotiate. Our research confirms that the Church has a level of approval and moral authority in Venezuela that crosscuts political powers. That gives it the potential to alter a conflicted equilibrium. But this moral authority is fragile, and both the Venezuelan Church and the Vatican jealously guard it. Having been defied once by Maduro, the Pope may be disinclined to back another mediation that might fail. Yet the Church continues to position itself as a potential peacemaker in the conflict.

No extended abstract or paper available

 Presented in Session 178. Politics and Social Change in Catholic Contexts