UNITARIAN CALL

FOR THE DEMONSTRATIONS TO BE HELD ON THE 4TH CENTENNIAL

OF THE SACRIFICE OF GIORDANO BRUNO

SUBMITTED TO TRIAL BY THE UNIVERSAL HOLY INQUISITION

FOR THE FREE IDEAS ON PHILOSOPHY, ART AND SCIENCE

HE PROFESSED IN ITALY AND EUROPE,

BURNT ALIVE AT THE STAKE IN CAMPO DE' FIORI SQUARE IN ROME

ON FEBRUARY 17TH, 1600, BY ORDER OF THE HOLY OFFICE

IN THE HOLY YEAR OF JUBILEE,

UNDER THE REIGN OF CLEMENT THE 8TH,

PONTIFF OF THE HOLY ROMAN CHURCH.

 

Campo de' Fiori (Rome) is a square where, during the dominion of temporal power by the Church, the Pope-King had the heretics put to stake, men and women that didn't bend to the Inquisition and to clerical absolutism.

Here, in 1889, the heart of popular Rome erected the memorial dedicated to Giordano Bruno, celebrating it every year with public demonstrations that were forbidden only during the fascist period.

With the Holy Year 2000, the Church is self-glorifying before the world, sanctifying its own mission, absolving itself for all misdeeds committed, reaching unsurpassed cheek with the canonization of the last Pope-King, Pious the 9th, who repressed the Roman Republic of 1849 in a bloodbath. He excommunicated the leagues of craftsmen, workers and peasants at birth.

2000's Jubilee for Vatican funds represents one more lavish endowment of the Italian State, jointly managed by the Catholic hierarchies, Rome's town Council, and the governments of Prodi and D'Alema - a gift to the Church of 3 billion US$, used for self-celebrating triumphs, cleaning-up churches, convents transformed in hotels, and to militarize Rome with the purpose of boycotting protests or social, unionist, political and cultural activities, in order to hide-up old and new poverty, harassing the homeless and immigrants, and leaving the desolation of the outskirts undisturbed.

Jubilee's liturgical pretentious display demonstrates that this event is not at all a path of penitence and reconciliation. Cries of "my fault" about some past crimes do not hinder reiteration of modern crimes. No request of pardon has indeed been addressed:

· to the whole world while setting out for new, bloody crusades; for violation and destruction of cultures; for the practice of slavery; for tortures caused; for death-sentence systematically inflicted;

· to the population of Third World kept in hunger while hampering all project of rational demographic development or birth-control;

· to the women, vexed by papal anathema, in particular about abortion;

· to the homosexuals pursued and denigrated for being different;

· to the victims, to the "desaparecidos" kins, to the resisters to bishops and generals of Argentina, Chili, Croatia and catholic dictators in the whole world;

· to free minds and lovers, because they persist living in "sin";

· to the roman citizens, for the devastating environmental impact imposed to their city, reduced into "Holy City", destination of pervasive and obsessive tourism.

Aware of different feelings and identities actually existing in the secular and libertarian archipelago, we have thought best to scatter the program over three days, in Rome, from February 17th to 19th, 2000, with different peculiarities each day.

On February 17th, memorial celebrations, to be realized with a mass-demonstration in Campo de' Fiori square, following the secular and militant tradition that for 400 years has handed down to us Giordano Bruno's example of coherence and courage in defense of free thought, facing the oppression and obscurantism of his slaughterers.

On February 18th, the aspect of analysis will prevail, with speeches and testimonials on the theme "Artists against Jubilee", in a theater or University hall.

On February 19th, a social, great demonstration will be held in the same square, with international participation in order to remind in the Holy Year 2000, that the Roman Catholic Church remains the same.

Heretics ever since, we are not interested in the martyr for freedom's commemoration of institutional liturgies, more so if celebrated by institutions subdued to vested interests. For this reason, political support and presence are not welcomed.

To honor the figure of Giordano Bruno we acknowledge and point out its being up-to-date. We call to intellectuals, students, workers, anticlerical, freethinkers, active opponents, atheists to mobilize during the three days of celebration.

 

Secular and Libertarian Committee - Rome, Italy

 

 

International participation and support is welcomed.

 

Pleas join this call by contacting: E-mail: giordanobruno2000@libero.it

or anticlericale@abanet.it

 

Fax: (....) 06 4745322; phone: (....) 06 78348283.

 

SITO INTERNET:

www.abanet.it/papini/index.htm

 

 

 

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