Dominican Republic: Trujillo Is No Benefactor

Since the day 14 months ago when they signed a pastoral letter calling for “freedom of conscience, press and assembly,” Dictator Rafael Trujillo has spared no effort to beat the Roman Catholic bishops of the Dominican Republic into submissive silence. Two months ago, dismayed by personal threats and public incitement against the church, the Dominican bishops informed Trujillo that they wished “to continue cooperating.” As a token of capitulation, the dictator demanded the title “Benefactor of the Church,” a distinction last conferred on Holy Roman Emperor Frederick Barbarossa in 1167.

Trujillo put on a big campaign for the honor, including parades, a flood of letters to the editors of his controlled press, and large donations to church projects. At least one of the bishops wanted to compromise, but in the end all five agreed to hold out. In a letter whose text was suppressed for more than two weeks, they wrote: “It is beyond our powers to grant or support the proposal, because the Holy See reserves to itself the right to grant such titles.” They concluded with an artful sentence that Trujillo was free to construe as he pleased: “We are sure, however, that God, the infallible recompenser, will not let merit go unrewarded.”