Los Angeles Archbishop
José H. Gómez and L.A. Mayor Eric Garcetti were among the
dignitaries on hand for the unveiling of a statue of the slain Archbishop Óscar A. Romero of El Salvador in L.A.’s McCarthur Park on Saturday, November 23,
2013. “I’m blessing a new memorial to the great
martyr, Archbishop Óscar Romero,” Gómez had tweeted to 10,000 followers
before the ceremony. In the culminating
moment of the unveiling, which featured speeches from local pols, Archbishop Gómez
sprinkled holy water on the two meter bronze statue of a praying Romero before
a large Saturday morning crowd (photo). Mayor Garcetti
told the crowd, “This is more than a
monument of a man. This is a monument
that salutes courage.”
Gómez said in a statement that “Archbishop Romero filled the hearts of Salvadorans with faith and
strength. He reminded us that real peace
is based on justice. More than 30 years
later, his testimony inspires all of us to build a better world, a world that
promotes human dignity and the common good for the human family.” As the leader of the most populous diocese in
the United States, Archbishop Gómez is a leading figure of the U.S. Church and
the most prominent Latino in the U.S. hierarchy. He was ordained as a priest in Opus Dei.
Carlos
Vaquerano, a leader of the local Salvadoran community responsible for
erecting the monument told the Spanish language newspaper La Opinión that
Archbishop Romero’s beatification process “exemplifies
his work. He was a man of faith, he was
not a politician,” said Vaquerano.
Archbishop Romero is also being
memorialized in his native country, where Salvadoran President Mauricio Funes
announced that he will rename the state room in the presidential manor to honor
Romero. The designation would be the
latest in a string of honors for Romero launched by the Funes government, the
most prominent of which have been the naming of a central highway artery after Romero, the creation of a “Romero tour,” and the dedication of a mural of
Romero at the international airport.
There are also efforts underway to erect a Romero statue in a park in Rome.
There are also efforts underway to erect a Romero statue in a park in Rome.
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