Download or read book The Catholic Church and Politics in Nicaragua and Costa Rica written by Philip J. Williams and published by University of Pittsburgh Pre. This book was released on 2010-11-23 with total page 245 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Unlike most recent studies of the Catholic Church in Latin America, Philip J. Williams analyzes the Church in two very dissimilar political contexts-Nicaragua and Costa Rica. Despite the obvious differences, Williams argues that in both cases the Church has responded to social change in remarkably similar fashion. The efforts of progressive clergy to promote change in both countries have been largely blocked by Church hierarchy, fearful that such change will threaten the Church's influence in society.