JUBILEE YEAR for the CENTENNIAL of BLESSED
ROMERO, 2016 — 2017
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Ricardo Urioste
rang the bell at the entrance of the Major Seminary of San José de la Montaña,
expecting that a guard or clerk would open the door. To his surprise, the door opened
quickly, as another cleric was leaving when Father Urioste was arriving.
It was none
other than Msgr. Oscar A. Romero, who had recently been appointed Archbishop of
San Salvador. “Hello!”, Fr. Urioste exclaimed,
somewhat taken aback by the surprise encounter. Msgr. Romero answered with a
plea: “Help me.”
It was the same
words that the new archbishop had addressed to other priests such as Fr. Fabian
Amaya and Fr. Jesus Delgado, whom Romero had explicitly asked for help in
gaining the trust of the clergy. The choice of Msgr. Romero, then bishop of
Santiago de Maria, and not Msgr. Arturo Rivera Damas, auxiliary bishop in the
archdiocese for almost two decades, had received a cool reception and Romero’s
conservative reputation alienated the progressive clergy of the Archdiocese
even more.
As we
commemorate the 40th anniversary of the installation of Oscar Romero as 4th Archbishop
of San Salvador this February 22nd, perhaps the principal point to recall
is the meekness of Msgr. Romero which was able to conquer the aloofness of the
clergy. “I was impressed by his humility,
a characteristic that always distinguished him,” recalls Msgr. Ricardo
Urioste, the priest who met him at the door of the seminary, and went from
being an opponent of his appointment to one of his closest collaborators.
Jose Siman, a
committed lay person in the Archdiocese, remembers hearing similar words from
the new archbishop: “Help me, I need
help, I will not be able to do this alone, I need your support.” The effect
was the same within the laity as it was amongst the clergy—according to Siman: “the attitude pleased people”.
It was the same
attitude Romero had struck as Bishop of Santiago de Maria, where Romero, while
investigating a pastoral house that the government accused of being subversive,
had pleaded in a meeting with the clergy—including the accused—“Help me to see things clearly!”
Even before
assuming his post as Archbishop, Romero had already hinted at his outlook as a
friend and defender of the clergy, when he said in an interview with La Prensa Gráfica published twelve days
before he took over: “The
government should not consider a priest who takes a stand for social justice as
a politician or subversive element, when he is fulfilling his mission in the
politics of the common good.”
The trial by
fire would come the next month. In the “Single Mass” for the assassination of
his friend Fr Rutilio Grande, Romero felt cheered and protected by his clergy. “The lowliest member of the family, chosen by
God to be a sign of unity—this bishop—graciously thanks you for joining him in
giving the awaiting world the Church’s word,” he said addressing the crowd
of 100,000 gathered. “My own weaknesses and
my own inabilities find their complement, their power, and their courage in
these united priests.”
In fact, it had been Romero’s virtue that brought about that unity.
In fact, it had been Romero’s virtue that brought about that unity.
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