This week we take a deep dive into Spain's growing political and social polarization, exploring reasons for widespread discomfort since the 2023 general election, corruption scandals, the rise of Vox, regional independence movements, and the historical roots that are fuelling distrust and division.

As always, we offer intentions and prayers to hold — calling for tolerance, truthfulness from political actors, fair and transparent institutions, compassionate social discourse, and responsible media, among other suggested areas for attention.

Prayers and intentions start at 17 minutes 35 seconds.

Suggested Intention Focus for this week

This week, as political and social polarisation in Spain intensifies to a point rarely seen since the time of the country’s Civil War of the 1930’s, we suggest holding as our main intention:

We will that the hearts and minds of all Spaniards will be moved to ease the bitter, emotionally charged differences that are fuelling angry dialogue, protest and the risk of civil disobedience in Spain.

Please join us in holding this.

Mentioned in this episode:

Our episode on polarisation in society, ‘Unmasking the Global Authenticity Crisis,’ can be heard at https://www.heartfulimpact.com/e/unmasking-the-global-authenticity-crisis/.

Chapter markers:

00:00:00             Introduction

00:01:40             The Polarization of Spain

00:05:26             Historical Context

00:12:26             Regional Identities and Their Impact

00:17:35             Intentions for Healing

Sources referenced in this episode:

https://blogs.lse.ac.uk/europpblog/2020/07/30/who-are-vox-and-who-are-their-voters/

https://blogs.lse.ac.uk/europpblog/2023/08/14/why-spains-democratic-transition-continues-to-shape-its-politics/

https://civil-protection-humanitarian-aid.ec.europa.eu/what/civil-protection/national-disaster-management-system/spain_en

https://ecipe.org/blog/spain-split-and-talk-quantifying-regional-independence/

https://egrove.olemiss.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=3610&context=hon_thesis

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Catalan_independence_movement

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_and_regional_identity_in_Spain

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vox_(political_party)

https://encompass-europe.com/comment/political-trust-in-the-european-social-survey

https://feps-europe.eu/left-contemporary-spain/

https://freedomhouse.org/country/spain/freedom-world/2024

https://freedomhouse.org/country/spain/freedom-world/2025

https://latinoamerica21.com/en/spain-a-fragile-minority-government-increases-polarization/

https://politicalquarterly.org.uk/blog/why-spanish-politics-is-becoming-more-polarised/

https://rals.scu.ac.ir/article_15184_1c67c371b608da01bfc03442e4cbed23.pdf

https://research.library.fordham.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1072&context=international_senior

https://reutersinstitute.politics.ox.ac.uk/digital-news-report/2025/spain

https://scholarworks.seattleu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1008&context=intl-std-theses

https://theconversation.com/how-spains-voters-and-political-systems-have-kept-the-far-right-out-of-power-for-now-249743

https://theconversation.com/passion-and-pain-why-secessionist-movements-rarely-succeed-85097

https://theloop.ecpr.eu/spains-electoral-maze-winners-trends-and-the-road-ahead/

https://warontherocks.com/2017/10/what-political-science-tells-us-about-the-risk-of-civil-war-in-spain/

https://worldpopulationreview.com/country-rankings/trust-in-government-by-country

https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2025/6/8/tens-of-thousands-take-part-in-anti-government-protest-in-madrid

https://www.atlanticcouncil.org/in-depth-research-reports/books/demographic-shifts-in-spain-call-for-reinvigorated-reforms/

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-46422036

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-47937031

https://www.centracs.es/revista/article/download/117/159

https://www.centracs.es/revista/article/download/117/159

https://www.cia.gov/readingroom/docs/CIA-RDP84S00555R000200020003-7.pdf

https://www.economist.com/europe/2025/07/26/pedro-sanchez-is-fighting-for-his-political-life

https://www.edelman.com/trust/2025/trust-barometer

https://www.eppgroup.eu/what-we-do/with-eu-countries/spain/catalan-independence-is-a-threat

https://www.europarl.europa.eu/RegData/etudes/IDAN/2025/767186/EPRS_IDA(2025)767186_EN.pdf

https://www.gisreportsonline.com/r/divided-spain/

https://www.gwi-boell.de/en/2020/06/26/rise-vox

https://www.historyworkshop.org.uk/activism-solidarity/navigating-the-catalan-crisis-independence-in-context/

https://www.kew.org.pl/en/2024/11/02/post-election-spain-persistent-polarization-and-political-turmoil/

https://www.lamoncloa.gob.es/lang/en/presidente/news/Paginas/2025/20250728-political-year-assessment.aspx

https://www.oecd.org/en/publications/government-at-a-glance-2025-country-notes_da3361e1-en/spain_57f4ebd0-en.html

https://www.realinstitutoelcano.org/en/commentaries/what-mays-local-and-regional-elections-tell-us-about-politics-in-spain/

https://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2017/10/catalan-referendum-spain-independence/541656/

https://www.veriangroup.com/news-and-insights/how-respondents-in-spain-value-democracy-and-the-rule-of-law

https://www.weforum.org/stories/