President Rodrigo Duterte lambasted the Catholic Church again on Monday, suggesting that the public should stop going to churches and pray instead at their own chapels at home.
“You build a chapel in your own house and pray there. You do not have to go to church to pray for these idiots,” said Duterte in his speech during the groundbreaking of a bulk water supply project in Davao City.
At the event, he asked if there were any bishops present, and dismissed their teachings as “archaic.”
“Are there bishops here? I would hit you on the nape of the neck. The Catholic Church even the Caloocan Bishop Pablo Virgilio David, [are] clinging on to a belief which was 3,000 years ago,” he said.
He also noted that while he considers some priests as his friends, he does not encourage people to offer money to bishops.
The President then accused some Catholic bishops of asking the government for vehicles.
“They would ask for cars from the government, knowing fully well that it is corruption, as there is a separation of church and state. And you have the balls, brave as you are, to ask [for] property of the government. Then they would speak [against the government] you motherf**k*r who are you,” he said.
Also, without supporting his claim, Duterte accused David of being into illegal drugs.
“I suspect that you could be involved in drugs,” said Duterte, who threatened to cut off the bishop’s head if he was found to be selling illegal drugs.
“I’m telling you, David. I am doubtful that you make rounds during the night. I am doubtful mother f**k*r you’re into drugs,” Duterte said.
The Caloocan-based prelate was quick to dismiss Duterte’s accusations and urged the President to take “fruit shakes.”
“No sir, I’m not into drugs of any sort, whether legal or illegal. [I have] never been. I only help in rehabilitating people addicted to drugs. I partner with the anti-drug abuse councils/offices of the local government units of Caloocan, Malabon, and Navotas in this endeavor,” he said.
“Thank God I am not even taking any maintenance drugs yet. I only take vitamins with fruit shake blended with malunggay in the morning. You might want to try it, Sir. It will do you a lot of good. God bless you,” the Church leader added.
Duterte’s latest tirade against the Church came after he accused David of pocketing church offerings for use by his family.
David, who also serves as the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines’ vice president, has already denied the President’s accusation.
The head of the CBCP-Episcopal Commission on Migrants and Itinerant People, Balanga Bishop Ruperto Santos, called Duterte’s remarks “irresponsible and heartless.”
Opposition Senator Paolo Benigno Aquino IV said the President’s renewed attacks on the teachings of the Catholic Church should serve as a wake-up call for Filipinos “to fight for God.”
“If you really love your country, if you love your family, if you love your God, you have to fight for them,” Aquino said.
Another opposition senator, Leila de Lima, called Duterte’s attacks on David “slanderous.”
“It is vintage Duterte. He destroys the reputation of those who oppose him and those who fight for the victims of his rule. Bishop Ambo is his latest victim,” said the senator, who is detained on drug charges.
In responding to Duterte’s earlier accusations, David said the allegations came from a “sick” man and asked the public to pray for the President. He also said he had been taught by his parents not to steal.
“People who are sick sometimes do not know what they are talking about, so we should just bear with them,” the bishop said.
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