Romero

With their ancestral lands lost to the Spanish conquerors, the indigenous were at the mercy of the plantation owners and their managers. The owners allowed the indigenous to live on the land for work. They were fed and received modest wages when profits surged.

During poor times if a field worker complained he or she received the wrath of the mayor who would dispatch troops to keep the workers in line by beating, dismemberment, death, disappearance. When the indigenous told their priest of their plight, the priest told the workers their rewards were in heaven and to accept their plight.

With the collapse of the coffee prices during the depression of the 1930’s, the situation deteriorated to the point of civil war. Communism was gaining popularity around the world and El Salvador was no exception. A communist FMLN led a rebellion in the West of the country. The government troops stopped this rebellion by killing the fighters, their families, their communities; it was an ethnic cleansing, 32,000 people were slaughtered. From this point forward the documented indiscriminate killing of men and women is common knowledge and recorded in many periodicals and museums. The church remained steadfast in its position.

A new breed of priest began to take the message of the gospel to the rural people. What they heard from the people and what they witnessed caused them to rise up and question what the church had been teaching. The church was receiving complaints from the plantation owners, political powers, priests and the common man. When it was time for a new leader, Romero was appointed to be Archbishop of San Salvador. The church, political and economic powers breathed a sigh of relief: “We can control him”.

With the assassination of Father Rutilio Grande, an activist priest, Romero is transformed. His passion for the oppressed and marginalized, the rich and powerful flourished within him. He was the Archbishop of all Salvadorans. Romero preached God’s Word in application: this is how God’s people should live together. Romero was more on the order of John the Baptist. Each broke the mold by breaking out of 500 years of silence and sharing good news.

In death, Romero’s popularity and message continue. Our hearts are touched by Romero’s transformation, his courage and the continued strength of God’s voice that flowed freely from his heart during his time of persecution. Romero is contagious, study with care.

David y Nancy