Duterte agrees to stop talking about Catholic Church in meeting with CBCP

MANILA, Philippines — President Rodrigo Duterte and Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines President Romulo Valles agreed Monday to refrain from issuing statements related to the Church in an effort to ease the tensions sparked by the chief executive's controversial remarks on God. 

Duterte and Valles had a private meeting in Malacañang as the president is facing a barrage of criticism for saying that God is "stupid" for letting temptation corrupt his work.

The meeting started at around 4 p.m. and lasted for 30 minutes, according to Duterte's longtime aide Christopher Go. 

"PRRD (President Rodrigo Duterte) agreed to a moratorium on statements about the Church after the meeting," presidential spokesman Harry Roque said in a statement. 

It was not the first time the president vowed to be quiet on his quarrel with the Catholic Church, the religious group of more than 80 percent of Filipinos. 

In a speech delivered last June 28, Duterte promised to "shut up" on his issues against the clergy and claimed that he was just "shaking the tree" when he made the provocative remarks about God. 

The promise, however, did not prevent Duterte from taking pot shots on the Church in his succeeding speeches. 

Last week, Duterte said he would resign immediately if someone could prove that the God of Christians exists. He also asked religious leaders to be "neutral" when it comes to the government because of the separation of church and state. 

Duterte also warned members of the clergy not to use God when criticizing him, saying he would not hesitate to cite the Supreme Being when he hits them back. — Alexis Romero