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Article: Colombia's baffling reality: of Garcia Marquez, the Medellin conference, cocaine cartels and civil war.(ESSAY)
- Article from:
- National Catholic Reporter
- Article date:
- March 3, 2006
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2006 National Catholic Reporter. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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After the War of a Thousand Days in 1899, the only difference between the two major political parties in Colombia was that liberals went to 5 o'clock Mass to avoid being seen and conservatives went to 8 o'clock Mass so that people would believe them to be believers. At least that was what Gabriel Garcia Marquez's grandparents told him.
Besides underscoring the hypocrisy of politicians, this piece of Marquesian irony also points out the important role that religion has played in the history of Colombia and still plays today. With 95 percent of the population baptized Catholic, Colombia is one of the most Catholic countries in Latin America. It is also the most ...