The National Assembly crucifix, installed during the Duplessis government before the Second World War, has become a flashpoint in Quebec’s debate over a Charter of Quebec Values. The charter would ban religious head coverings and other obvious signs of religious affiliation from public sector workers and workplaces, but makes a specific exception for the National Assembly’s crucifix on the grounds of its historical value as a marker of Quebec’s heritage.
Quebec’s legislators should treat the crucifix with “the respect due to a fundamental symbol of Catholic faith,” said the bishops.

The bishops have squelched a rumour that they have asked the provincial government to remove the massive crucifix and are annoyed that politicians and journalists continue to refer to it as a relic of Quebec’s past, an object of its cultural heritage and history.

“The crucifix represents the ultimate act of love, of Christ giving His life for the salvation of the world,” the bishops declared on their web site.

“He is revered by millions of Christians of all nations, and the vast majority of Quebecers. This is not a museum piece or just a reminder of the past or a token of heritage.”

In an Oct. 9 press release the bishops said they would respect a democratic decision to remove the crucifix. Given that it was originally placed in the National Assembly’s Blue Room by a vote of elected members, it would require a similar vote to take it down.

Quebec’s daily La Presse reports that the minority Parti Quebecois government is now considering removing the crucifix so that its Charter of Quebec Values does not appear to favour Christianity.