Waiting for Godot … ’s canonization

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In which we look at the journey of Faith on the canonization superhighway.  Not for the person being canonized, but for his followers—and not on the storied “fast track.” Canonization is a legal proceeding with your hero on trial, and although you expect that, like George Bailey in “It’s A Wonderful Life,” he will earn his wings (or halo), it can be a weary, soul-testing and sometimes dispiriting process.  For exactly this reason, Pope Francis’ advice for the followers of Archbishop Óscar A. Romero of El Salvador seemed so insightful.  He said we “must have faith that the canonization of Archbishop Romero is proceeding at an appropriate speed.”  Faith.  That’s exactly what you need.  Lots of it.

Imagine the person you admire the most, who preaches love and holiness, is slandered, vilely accused, and based on those smears, unjustly murdered.  Even after his death, some continue to revile him, while you hold on to a belief that, because of Faith, he will be justified, redeemed, vindicated.  That process should sound very familiar.  In a sense, it’s a metaphor for the Christian history of salvation.  Jesus came, preached, was rejected by the world, was accused of political insubordination and executed, but we believe that He did not die and will return in glory.  Although this piece is about Archbishop Romero, it applies to the causes of many saints.  And, although this piece deals with canonization, its lessons can apply to many of the Church’s processes, which can be seen through the lens of politics and palace intrigue, but we must trust that they are guided by the Holy Spirit.

Alright, let’s hop on the time machine.  It’s Sunday, March 12, 1983, less than three years after Archbishop Romero’s assassination.  I live in New York, in a crowded two bedroom apartment with my parents and three brothers.  I’m keeping a diary (no blog yet!).  In my last entry that evening, I write: “I believe I have been in the presence of a saint when I have been in the presence of Archbishop Romero.”  That’s it.  That’s the moment I knew it.  I was 14 years-old at the time.  I did not understand the process, or the requirements for beatification and canonization.  In fact, I wasn’t even thinking that Romero was a martyr—I didn’t really grasp the concept of martyrdom.  So, I wasn’t thinking that he was a saint because he had been killed in hatred of the faith, or because he had been killed at all.  I just fervently believed that he was a saint because I had met him when I was a boy growing up in El Salvador and he came across that way.  I had attended his Masses, had been confessed by him.  I was a witness to his holiness.

Alright, fast forward a couple of years.  It’s winter 1985.  I’m still living in New York, but in a different tenement.  I have found a book, “The Word Remains: A Life of Oscar Romero,” by Fr. James Brockman.  But we are poor and I do not yet know the luxury of buying books at this point in my life.  So, I have to go to the library to read it.  The closest one with a copy is a distant branch of the New York Public Library.  I have to take two buses to get there.  But, I go there on Saturdays for several months, taking the journey to read and re-read Fr. Brockman’s book.  I remember waiting for the bus.  It was so cold that my toes would hurt from the exposure, and I was glad when they went numb.  What was I doing?  What was driving me to make this trip?  The answer is that at the end of my journey, I would have an encounter with holiness, an encounter with Archbishop Romero.  Later, I had the audacity to write a letter to Fr. Brockman, addressed to the book’s publisher (no Google to search for his address).  To my delight, some months later, a letter came back from Fr. Brockman, with whom I was able to exchange correspondence about Romero.  Gingerly, I broached the subject with Fr. Brockman, of whether Romero could ever be declared a saint.  He was unsure, but he told me that he believed Romero was a model of holiness.

It’s now March 1988; a sunny day in Boston.  During college, I am in Harvard Sq., walking toward an address I have found in a newspaper listing, for a gathering to honor Archbishop Romero.  I find the place, right off the square.  It’s small.  Perhaps I expected some big meeting hall.  This place looks like some hole-in-the-wall bookshop.  Plus, I don’t see anything that seems appropriate for the remembrance of an archbishop.  No candles, no crosses, nothing remotely religious or sacred.  Immediately, red flags go up when I spot, well, red flags.  There are communist symbols, pamphlets, materials in support of the Marxist rebels fighting in El Salvador. I draw no closer.  Instead, I turn around and walk away, disenchanted.  I have not found holiness at the end of this outing; I have not found Archbishop Romero.  God is not in the flurry, the fire, or the earthquake.  (1 Kings 19:11-12.)  This is what I will find time and time again in the next couple of decades: distortion and manipulation of Archbishop Romero’s message by those who wish to use it to serve their own political ends.  It is very disappointing and disheartening.

Forward one more year.  It’s August 25, 1989.  I am in Manhattan with my best friend, a Baptist African-American kid who shares my spiritual hunger and whom I am drawing into the Catholic Church.  Five years earlier, the same year I wrote in my diary that Romero was a saint, I had dragged this same friend to St. Patrick’s Cathedral to pay our respects to another fallen archbishop, New York’s own Cardinal Cooke.  But this time, in ‘89, we were in Manhattan on a more joyous note.  We were there for the premiere of the Paulist Pictures movie “Romero,” starring Raul Julia as the archbishop.  A decade after I had last seen my childhood hero, I would see him again, on the big screen.  It was uplifting, at a time when my spirit needed uplifting.  El Salvador was in the midst of its civil war, and I was constantly hearing depressing news from home.  Salvadoran refugees were pouring out of the country to flee the horrors of war.  The movie contained a positive message of valor and holiness amidst this, a glimmer of Hope.

One year forward.  August 1990.  I am in back in El Salvador, for the first time since leaving the country.  It’s not under optimal circumstances; I am there because my grandmother, who raised me as a child, has passed away.  But, at the end of this journey, I find Archbishop Romero.  His likeness is in a big picture on the wall of my grandmother’s bedroom.  I also make time to visit Archbishop Romero’s grave at the Cathedral.  The place is mobbed by faithful, praying for miracles.  As I knew it as a child, the poor know that Romero is a saint before the theologians have confirmed it, and despite the fact that the dictators dispute it.  The tomb is strewn with plaques thanking Archbishop Romero for favors granted.

Now, fast forward one whole decade.  I am back in El Salvador in March 2000 to commemorate the 20th anniversary of Archbishop Romero’s death.  I’m not alone.  Between 100,000 - 500,000 people crowd the square in front of the Cathedral to honor Romero.  The atmosphere is festive.  There is music and fireworks.  By now, the war is over, the country is at peace.  There are still many who whisper that Romero was a communist—the now standard slander against him.  But I am happy to find kindred spirits—not just political agitators, but people who admire Romero for his holiness.  This camaraderie attests to our Faith (John 13:35).  Also—and this is icing—I find that audio recordings and even videos of Romero are popping up on the Internet.  I have not heard Romero’s voice at all in 20 years, but it has been resounding in my head all this time, and now I can hear his voice outside my head, also.

In the time since that trip to El Salvador, I have been back a few more times.  I have met many more people who admire Romero for his spiritual qualities.  There have also continued to be more ups and downs like the ones described.  I have had the singular grace of befriending some of Romero’s family, including his brother, and they are wonderful people (their story is a gripping saga on to itself!).  I started an online community around Romero in 2002, but was kicked out of it by vocal political activists who overran the group.  They accused me of being a right-winger, too religiously conservative, anti-Romero, and even worse.  I saw Romero’s beatification process surge to a near breakthrough in 2005, only to see it fall back to an uncertain status in more recent years.  Then, I started this blog and have had the gratitude of developing into a place for the proper type of reflection on Romero that I have always sought, going back to those trips to the library.  Of course, this last year, with the announcement that Pope Francis has unblocked the beatification process, I feel the gratification of St. Paul when he said, “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.” (2 Tim 4:7.)

Abp. Romero and the Angelus

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Archbishop Óscar A. Romero told his brother Tiberio that the secret to being happy in life was to pray the “Angelus.”  Tiberio recalled that his brother told him that he should make praying three Hail Mary’s in the morning and three again in the evening the axis around which to ground his day.  Tiberio also attested to the efficacy of the practice, saying that he has lived to see old age and developed a strong Marian devotion, thanks to the wise spiritual counsel he received from his brother.  Archbishop Romero gave the same advice he gave his own brother to all the faithful on May 7, 1978, when he announced that he was instituting the recitation of the “Angelus” in the archdiocese of San Salvador.

“With joy I want to announce that beginning this Sunday,” Archbishop Romero said, “at twelve noon we will pray the Angelus on our radio program.”  Archbishop Romero would be glad to hear that the advice he gave his brother Tiberio led to his developing a Marian devotion because, Romero told the faithful, “true Catholics ought to be characterized by this devotion to the Mother of the Church.” 

We can think of three reasons Romero was devoted to the Angelus.  The first is its status as an authentic expression of the sensus fidei: it has a natural internal logic about it that suggests itself.  In fact, the prayer arose just as Archbishop Romero prescribed it to his brother—as three Hail Mary’s, unadorned and unembellished, liturgically or theologically.  This practice is first recorded in monasteries during the 11th Century—the monks would pray three Hail Mary’s during the evening bell.  The three Hail Mary’s invoke the Three Persons of the Trinity, and immediately focus our thoughts, as do all Marian devotions, properly on God.  Later, the practice became more widespread, and the custom arose of saying the Angelus in the morning, at noon, and in the evening—also, helping to naturally break up the day.  One can see the practicality of doing this before the advent of clocks and watches.  Jean-François Millet’s famous painting (shown) depicts peasants praying the Angelus out on a field.  The Angelus as a staple of popular piety, of the simple wisdom of the people of God, and as a perennial spiritual practice in the history of Christianity, would have been enormously appealing to Archbishop Romero.

The second reason Archbishop Romero may have been drawn to the Angelus is his personal Marian devotion.  In this respect, it seems very providential that Archbishop Romero was killed on March 24, 1980, the eve of the Feast of the Annunciation—the event that the Angelus celebrates and memorializes.  Of course, he had no way of knowing this during his life time—but it is fitting.  At the other end of his life cycle, Óscar Romero was born on August 15, 1917—the Feast of the Assumption of the Virgin.  He was born in a province of El Salvador called San Miguel, where an image of Our Lady Queen of Peace was fervently venerated.  In 1921, when Romero was only 4 years old, the image was granted canonical coronation by Pope Benedict XV.  The ceremony was presided by Bishop Juan Antonio Dueñas, the man who later discovered Romero and sent him to the seminary.  When Fr. Romero returned to San Miguel as an ordained priest in the 1940s, he was put in charge of caring for the image of Our Lady.  In 1953, Pope Pius XII proclaimed her the Co-Patroness of El Salvador.  The proclamation was confirmed and expanded by Pope Paul VI in 1966.  Romero remained devoted to Our Lady for the rest of his life.

Finally, Archbishop Romero himself tells us the third reason for his devotion to the Angelus, saying that the faithful should pray the Angelus so that, “united with the Holy Father who prays the Angelus every Sunday in Rome at noon, we might lift up our voices and greet the Virgin as we pray for the many needs of the Church.”  Romero picked up Vatican Radio’s signal on his short-wave radio, and listened to the Pope’s recitation of the Angelus every Sunday.  Archbishop Romero would often work the Pope’s comments into his own Sunday sermons.  “My sisters and brothers, the greatest glory of a pastor is to live in communion with the Pope,” Archbishop Romero declared. “For me,” he added, “this communion with the Pope is the secret of the truth and gives efficacy to my preaching.”  Adding the Angelus to his spiritual repertoire was a very visible way for Archbishop Romero to put himself in tune with the Pontiff, to indicate his intention to follow the Pope’s lead with respect to his magisterium, and to emulate the Holy Father in his spiritual practices.

The reasons for Archbishop Romero’s interest in the Angelus are relevant to us, also.  As a simple prayer that can be recited anywhere, the Angelus is the devotion par excellence for a “poor Church for the poor,” that helps us focus on the spirit of poverty of the Beatitudes.  As a Marian devotion, the Angelus helps us see in Mary’s “yes” to God the openness to the divine will that leads us to a stronger link to our own faith.  Finally, by mirroring the prayers of the Roman Pontiff, the Angelus acts as our badge of loyalty to the Church and to the mission we are called to take up together.

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Mons. Romero y el Ángelus

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Monseñor Óscar A. Romero le dijo a su hermano Tiberio de que el secreto para ser feliz en la vida era rezar el “Angelus”. Tiberio recuerda que su hermano le dijo que hiciera el rezo de tres avemarías por la mañana y tres otra vez por la noche, el eje en torno al cual basara su día. Tiberio también da fe de la eficacia de la práctica, diciendo que él ha llegado a ver la vejez y ha desarrollado una fuerte devoción mariana, gracias al sabio consejo espiritual que recibió de su hermano. Mons. Romero dio el mismo consejo que le dio a su propio hermano a todos los fieles, el 7 de mayo de 1978, cuando anunció que estaba instituyendo el rezo del “Angelus” en la arquidiócesis de San Salvador.

“Quiero avisarles con gusto que desde este domingo”, dijo Mons. Romero, “vamos a rezar juntos el Ángelus, a través de la radio”. A Mons. Romero le agradecería escuchar que el consejo que le dio su hermano Tiberio lo llevó a desarrollar una devoción mariana, ya que, dijo monseñor a los fieles, esta “debe caracterizar las verdaderas personas católicas devotas de la Madre de la Iglesia”.

Podemos pensar en tres razones por que Romero se dedicó al Angelus. La primera es su estatus como una expresión auténtica del sensus fidei: tiene una lógica interna natural acerca que lo sugiere. De hecho, la oración surgió justo como Mons. Romero la recomendó a su hermano, como tres avemarías, sin adornos ni embellecimientos, litúrgicos o teológicos. Esta práctica se registró por primera vez en los monasterios durante el siglo XI, los monjes rezaban tres avemarías cuando sonaba la campana de la tarde. Las tres Avemarías invocan las Tres Personas de la Trinidad, y de inmediato fija nuestro pensamiento, como toda devoción mariana, justamente en Dios. Después, la práctica se hizo más generalizada, y la costumbre surgió de decir el Ángelus en la mañana, al mediodía y por la tarde, también, ayudando a romper el correr del día. Uno puede ver la factibilidad de hacerlo antes del advenimiento de los relojes. La famosa pintura de Jean-François Millet (foto) representa unos campesinos rezando el Angelus en el campo. La característica del Angelus como elemento básico de la piedad popular, de la sencilla sabiduría del pueblo de Dios, y como una práctica perenne en la historia espiritual del cristianismo, habría sido enormemente atractivo para Mons. Romero.

La segunda razón que Mons. Romero se sintió atraído al Angelus sería su devoción personal mariana. En este sentido, es muy providencial que Mons. Romero fuera asesinado el 24 de marzo de 1980, la víspera de la Fiesta de la Anunciación, lo que el Ángelus celebra y conmemora. Por supuesto, no tenía forma de saberlo durante su vida, pero es muy apropiado. Al otro extremo de su ciclo de vida, Óscar Romero nació el 15 de agosto de 1917, en la fiesta de la Asunción de la Virgen. Nació en un departamento de El Salvador llamado San Miguel, donde se venera una imagen de Nuestra Señora Reina de la Paz. En 1921, cuando Romero tenía sólo 4 años de edad, la imagen fue concedida coronación canónica por el Papa Benedicto XV. La ceremonia fue presidida por el obispo Juan Antonio Dueñas, el hombre que más tarde descubrió a Romero y lo envió al seminario. Cuando el Padre Romero regresó a San Miguel como un sacerdote ordenado en la década de 1940, fue puesto a cargo del cuidado de la imagen de Nuestra Señora. En 1953, el Papa Pío XII la proclamó la Co-Patrona de El Salvador. Esto fue confirmado y ampliado por el Papa Pablo VI en 1966. Romero fue devoto de la Santísima Virgen por el resto de su vida.

Por último, el mismo Mons. Romero nos explica el tercer motivo de su devoción por el Angelus, diciendo que los fieles deben rezar el Angelus de modo que, “unidos con el Papa que también lo hace al mediodía en Roma todos los domingos, recemos este saludo a la Virgen orando por tantas necesidades de la Iglesia”. Mons. Romero recogía la señal de la Radio Vaticana en su radio de onda corta, y escuchaba la recitación del Ángelus del Santo Padre todos los domingos. Mons. Romero solía entrelazar algunos de los comentarios del Papa en sus propios sermones dominicales. “Hermanos, la gloria más grande de un pastor es vivir en comunión con el Papa”, declaró Mons. Romero. “Para mí”, agregó, “es el secreto de la verdad y de la eficacia de mi predicación estar en comunión con el Papa”. La adición del Angelus a su repertorio espiritual fue una manera muy visible para Mons. Romero de ponerse en sintonía con el Pontífice, de indicar su intención de seguir el ejemplo del Papa con respecto a su magisterio, y de emular al Santo Padre en sus prácticas espirituales.

Las razones por el interés de Mons. Romero por el Angelus son relevantes también para nosotros. Como una oración sencilla que puede ser recitada en cualquier lugar, el Ángelus es la devoción por excelencia de una “Iglesia pobre para los pobres”, que nos ayuda a centrarnos en el espíritu de la pobreza de las Bienaventuranzas. Como devoción mariana, el Ángelus nos ayuda a ver en el “sí” de María la apertura a la voluntad de Dios que nos ligará más estrechamente con nuestra propia fe. Por último, al duplicar la oración del Romano Pontífice, el Ángelus es nuestra insignia de lealtad hacia la Iglesia y a la misión que estamos llamados a asumir juntos.

Mons. Romero e l'Angelus

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Mons. Oscar A. Romero disse a suo fratello Tiberio che il segreto per essere felici nella vita era quello di pregare l’“Angelus”. Tiberio ha ricordato che suo fratello gli disse di pregare tre Ave Maria al mattino e tre di nuovo alla sera di tutti giorni. Tiberio anche attestato l’efficacia della pratica, dicendo che ha vissuto a vedere la vecchiaia e sviluppato una forte devozione mariana, grazie al consiglio spirituale saggio che ha ricevuto da suo fratello. Mons. Romero ha dato lo stesso consiglio a tutti i fedeli il 7 maggio 1978, quando ha annunciato che stava istituendo la recita dell “Angelus” nell’arcidiocesi di San Salvador.

“Con gioia Voglio annunciare che a partire di questa Domenica”, ha detto Mons. Romero, “a mezzogiorno ci sarà la recita dell’Angelus sul nostro programma radiofonico”. Mons. Romero sarebbe felice di sapere che il consiglio ha dato il suo fratello Tiberio lo ha portato al sviluppo di una devozione mariana, perché, come Romero ha detto ai fedeli, “ogni cattolici dovrebbe essere caratterizzato da questa devozione alla Madre della Chiesa”.

Possiamo pensare a tre motivi perché Romero è stato dedicato alla Angelus. Il primo è il suo status di autentica espressione del sensus fidei: ha una logica interna naturale che si suggerisce. Infatti, la preghiera è sorto proprio come monsignor Romero prescritto al fratello, come tre Ave Maria, disadorna e non imbellita, liturgicamente o teologicamente. Questa pratica viene prima registrata nei monasteri durante il 11 ° secolo, i monaci pregare tre Ave Maria durante la campana della sera. I tre Ave Maria invocano le Tre Persone della Trinità, e subito concentrare i nostri pensieri, come fanno tutte le devozioni mariane, correttamente su Dio. Dopo, la pratica si diffuse, e l’usanza nata di dire l’Angelus al mattino, a mezzogiorno e alla sera, che aiuta anche a rompere naturalmente la giornata. Si può vedere la sua praticità prima dell’avvento degli orologi. Famoso dipinto di Jean- François Millet (foto) dipinge i contadini che pregano l’Angelus su un campo. L’ Angelus come un fiocco di pietà popolare, la semplice saggezza del popolo di Dio, e come una pratica spirituale perenne nella storia del cristianesimo, sarebbe stato enormemente attraente per Mons. Romero.

La seconda ragione Mons. Romero potrebbe stato interessato nel’Angelus è la sua devozione mariana personale. A questo proposito, sembra molto provvidenziale che Mons. Romero è stato ucciso il 24 marzo 1980, alla vigilia della festa dell’Annunciazione, l’evento che l’Angelus celebra e commemora. Certo, non aveva modo di sapere questo durante la sua vita, ma è giusto. All’altra estremità del suo ciclo di vita, Óscar Romero è nato il 15 agosto 1917, festa dell’Assunzione della Vergine. Era nato in una provincia di El Salvador chiamata San Miguel, dove l’immagine di Nostra Signora Regina della Pace fu venerata con fervore. Nel 1921, quando Romero era a soli 4 anni, l’immagine è stata concessa incoronazione canonica da Papa Benedetto XV. La cerimonia è stata presieduta da Mons. Juan Antonio Dueñas, l’uomo che ha poi scoperto Romero e lo mandò al seminario. Quando p. Romero tornò a San Miguel come sacerdote ordinato nel 1940, fu incaricato di prendersi cura per l’immagine della Madonna. Nel 1953, Papa Pio XII la proclamò Co-Patrona di El Salvador. La proclamazione è stata confermata e ampliata da Papa Paolo VI nel 1966. Romero è rimasto devoto alla Madonna per il resto della sua vita.

Infine, Mons. Romero stesso ci racconta la terza ragione per la sua devozione alla Angelus, dicendo che i fedeli devono pregare l’Angelus in modo tale che, “uniti al Santo Padre, che prega l’Angelus ogni Domenica a Roma a mezzogiorno, potremmo sollevare la nostra voci e salutare la Vergine mentre preghiamo per le tante necessità della Chiesa”. Romero raccolto il segnale di Radio Vaticana sulla sua radio a onde corte, e ascoltato recitazione del Papa all’Angelus ogni Domenica. Mons. Romero avrebbe spesso lavorano alcuni dei commenti del Papa nelle sue prediche domenicali. “Cari fratelli e sorelle, la maggior gloria di un pastore è quello di vivere in comunione con il Papa”, Mons. Romero dichiarato. “Per me”, ha aggiunto, “questa comunione con il Papa è il segreto della verità e dà efficacia alla mia predicazione”. Aggiuntare l’Angelus al suo repertorio spirituale era un modo molto visibile per Mons. Romero di mettersi in sintonia con il Pontefice, per indicare la sua intenzione di seguire l’esempio del Papa rispetto al suo magistero, e per emulare il Santo Padre nelle sue pratiche spirituali.

I motivi di interesse di Mons. Romero nei Angelus sono rilevanti anche per noi. Come una preghiera semplice che può essere recitata ovunque, l’Angelus è la devozione per eccellenza per una “Chiesa povera per i poveri”, che ci aiuta a concentrarci sullo spirito di povertà delle Beatitudini. Come una devozione mariana, l’Angelus ci aiuta a vedere nel “sì” di Maria l’apertura alla volontà di Dio che ci porterà ad un collegamento più forte alla nostra fede. Infine, rispecchiando le preghiere del Romano Pontefice, l’Angelus si comporta come il nostro distintivo di fedeltà alla Chiesa e alla missione che siamo chiamati a prendere insieme.

The Pope is not a Marxist

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“As was to be expected,” writes a leading Catholic cleric, the recent papal bombshell document, which “lashes out at social injustice raised to an international level, was bound to find mixed reactions.” He elaborates: “Accusations have came swiftly from the capitalist sector that the ideology [of the new papal document] is Marxist.” 

The cleric is Óscar A. Romero, writing in 1967 in defense of Pope Paul VI’s «Populorum Progressio.»  Paul’s encyclical drew the right’s ire, in part, because it declared that “unbridled” capitalism “paves the way for a particular type of tyranny” of international finance, and because it expressed doubts about free market systems that “present profit as the chief spur to economic progress, free competition as the guiding norm of economics, and private ownership of the means of production as an absolute right, having no limits nor concomitant social obligations.”  «Populorum Progressio,» 26.  (Pope Benedict wrote that «Populorum Progressio» “deserves to be considered ‘the «Rerum Novarum» of the present age’, shedding light upon humanity's journey towards unity.”  «Caritas In Veritate,» 8.  «Populorum Progressio,» Benedict wrote, “illuminated the great theme of the development of peoples with the splendour of truth and the gentle light of Christ's charity.”  Id.)

The same criticisms that were lobbed against «Populorum Progressio» have been made about the Apostolic Exhortation «Evangelii Gaudium» because Pope Francis makes the same points that Pope Paul did.  Most controversially, Pope Francis questions Christians who assume that “trickle-down theories” will right existing economic imbalances, and he condemns the “new tyranny” of global finance, institutional corruption and international debt.  «Evangelii Gaudium,» 54, 56.  These passages have been causing peoples heads to explode, as apparently some Catholic thinkers are not familiar with the social magisterium of the 20th Century Popes.  These arguments were not even new when Paul VI made them in 1967.  After all, it was 1931 when Pius XI declared that, “not only is wealth concentrated in our times but an immense power and despotic economic dictatorship is consolidated in the hands of a few ... This dictatorship is being most forcibly exercised by those who, since they hold the money and completely control it, control credit also and rule the lending of money.”  This “dictatorship,” Pius wrote, “is the fruit that the unlimited freedom of struggle among competitors has of its own nature produced, and which lets only the strongest survive” (i.e., the free market system).  «Quadragesimo Anno,» 105, 107.

Therefore, before you conclude that Pope Francis is a Marxist, take a deep breath.  The words that Fr. Romero wrote 46 years ago apply with equal force today: “the truth is that our wonderful encyclical is neither Marxist nor capitalist. It is neither leftist nor rightist, just on the side of the suffering, of the materially and culturally hungry, on the side of the poor and the weak, on the side of the Gospel.”

Repeat to yourself: the Pope is not a Marxist.  Now, go say three Hail Mary’s.

Romero beatification: green advisory

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For the first time in the history of the canonization cause of Archbishop Óscar A. Romero of El Salvador, the facts warrant Super Martyrio changing its color coded beatification alert status to “green” to indicate that beatification appears, if not imminent, then certainly on the near horizon.  This judgment is based on the significant progress that has been made to remove impediments to the issuance and approval of a decree approving Romero’s martyrdom, after which the Church would be expected to proceed to beatify him.  Super Martyrio makes this finding after considering the following factors, which demonstrate an unequivocally positive climate for beatification:

• The Vatican is now clearly in favor of Archbishop Romero’s beatification:
• The Pope, by all reports, is very favorably inclined.
• The Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith has signed off.
• The Congregation for the Causes of Saints sees no impediment.
• The Salvadoran Bishops Conference is unanimously in favor.
• The Government  of El Salvador is favorably disposed:
• The current Salvadoran president is very favorably disposed toward Romero.
• The major candidates for president in 2014, across the political spectrum, are in favor.
• International and ecumenical support for Romero’s beatification continues to grow.

The only negative factors to consider are the lack of news that a commission of theologians, and a commission of cardinals at the CCS have acted to approve Romero’s martyrdom.  Their approval is required in order to move forward with the process. However, it is possible that progress has been made on this count that simply has not been reported yet.  Additionally, in light of the overwhelming support from Rome, San Salvador, and from other quarters highlighted above, it seems hard to fathom that an internal commission in a dicastery of the Church would put up impediments to Romero’s beatification.  (Additionally, numerous other constituencies within the Church have embraced Romero: the Sant’Egidio Community has adopted Romero as a patron, as have the Carmelites, and the Jesuits have officially endorsed his canonization cause, as have numerous national bishops’ conferences—including the U.S.)

Super Martyrio began tracking Romero’s beatification cause using the color coded system in October 2010, designating the status of the cause under an “amber alert” at the time, to indicate “moderate or slow forward motion.”  The “amber” status was maintained until March 2012, when the condition of the beatification process was downgraded to “red:” “Archbishop Romero’s canonization drive is dormant,” we said at the time.  The situation was restored to amber/yellow in May of this year, shortly after the announcement at the end of April that Pope Francis had lifted the hold order over the cause.

Shortly after Pope Francis was elected, Msgr. Gregorio Rosa Chávez, the Auxiliary Bishop of San Salvador, commented that the stars appeared to be aligning in favor of Archbishop Romero’s beatification.  As far as we can see, the alignment is now complete.

Beatificación Romero: alerta verde

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Por primera vez en la historia de la causa de canonización de Mons. Óscar A. Romero, de El Salvador, los hechos justifican que Súper Martyrio cambie su estado de alerta por la beatificación al color “verde” para indicar que la beatificación parece estar, si no inminente, entonces, ciertamente, en el horizonte cercano. Este juicio se basa en los importantes avances que se han llevado a cabo para eliminar obstáculos a la emisión y aprobación de un decreto que apruebe el martirio de Mons. Romero, después de lo cual se esperaría que la Iglesia proceda a beatificarle. Súper Martyrio llega a este juicio después de considerar los siguientes factores, que demuestran un clima inequívocamente positivo para la beatificación:

• El Vaticano está ahora claramente a favor de la beatificación de Monseñor Romero:
• El Papa, según todos los informes, está muy favorablemente inclinado.
• La Congregación para la Doctrina de la Fe ha dado su aval.
• La Congregación para las Causas de los Santos no tiene inconveniente.
• La Conferencia Episcopal de El Salvador está a favor de manera unánime.
• El Gobierno de El Salvador también lo favorece:
• El actual presidente salvadoreño está muy favorablemente dispuesto hacia Romero.
• Los candidatos a la presidencia en 2014, de todo el espectro político, están a favor.
• El apoyo internacional y ecuménico a la beatificación de Mons. Romero sigue creciendo.

Los únicos factores negativos que debemos tener en cuenta son la falta de noticia de que una comisión de teólogos, y una comisión de cardenales en la CCS hayan actuado para aprobar el martirio. Se requiere su aprobación para seguir adelante con el proceso. Sin embargo, es posible que se haya avanzado en este tema sin haber sido informado. Además, dado el apoyo abrumador de Roma, San Salvador, y de otros sectores mencionados anteriormente, parece difícil imaginar que una comisión interna en un dicasterio de la Iglesia pondría obstáculos a la beatificación de Mons. Romero. (Por otra parte, muchos otros grupos dentro de la Iglesia se han arropado de Romero: la Comunidad de San Egidio ha adoptado a Romero como un patrón, como también los carmelitas, y los jesuitas han respaldado oficialmente su canonización, al igual que numerosas conferencias episcopales, incluyendo la de EE.UU.)

Súper Martyrio comenzó a monitorear la causa de beatificación de Mons. Romero mediante el sistema de alerta de colores en octubre de 2010, cuando se designa el estado de la causa bajo una “alerta amarilla” para indicar un “progreso moderado o lento”. El estado “amarillo” se mantuvo hasta marzo de 2012, cuando el estado del proceso de beatificación fue degradado a “rojo”, cuando dijimos que “el proceso de canonización de Mons. Romero está durmiente”.  La situación fue restaurada al amarillo en mayo de este año, poco después del anuncio al final de abril que el Papa Francisco había levantado la orden de retención sobre la causa.

Poco después de que el Papa Francisco fue elegido, Mons. Gregorio Rosa Chávez, Obispo Auxiliar de San Salvador, comentó que las estrellas parecían alinearse a favor de la beatificación de Mons. Romero. Por lo que podemos ver, la alineación ahora está completa.

Beatificazione Romero: condizione verde

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English | español

Per la prima volta nella storia della causa di canonizzazione di Mons. Oscar A. Romero di El Salvador, i fatti giustificano il cambiamento nel stato di allerta di beatificazione di Super Martyrio al verde per indicare che la beatificazione appare, se non imminente, allora certamente nel vicino orizzonte. Questo giudizio si basa sul significativi progressi che sono stati compiuti per rimuovere gli ostacoli al rilascio e l’approvazione di un decreto sul martirio di Romero, e dopo si aspetta che la Chiesa proceda alla beatificazzione. Super Martyrio rende questo giudizio dopo aver considerato i seguenti fattori, che dimostrano inequivocabilmente un clima positivo per la beatificazione:

• Il Vaticano è ora chiaramente a favore della beatificazione di Mons. Romero:
• Il Papa, da tutti i rapporti, è molto ben disposto.
• La Congregazione per la Dottrina della Fede ha dato la sua approvazione.
• La Congregazione per le Cause dei Santi no ha impedimento.
• La Conferenza episcopale salvadoregna è unanimemente a favore.
• Il governo di El Salvador è favorevole:
• L’attuale presidente salvadoregno è molto ben disposto verso Romero.
• I principali candidati a presidente nel 2014, di tutto lo spettro politico, sono a favore.
• Il sostegno internazionale ed ecumenico per la beatificazione di Romero continua a crescere.

Gli unici fattori negativi da considerare sono la mancanza di notizie che una commissione di teologi, e di cardinali ai CCS hanno agito per approvare il martirio di Romero. La loro approvazione è necessaria per andare avanti con il processo. Tuttavia, è possibile che siano stati fatti progressi su questo conteggio che semplicemente non è stata ancora pubblicata. Inoltre, alla luce della enorme sostegno da Roma, San Salvador, e da altri quartieri evidenziati sopra, sembra difficile capire che una commissione interna in un dicastero della Chiesa avrebbe messo ostacoli alla beatificazione di Romero. (Inoltre, numerose altre gruppi all’interno della Chiesa hanno abbracciato Romero: la Comunità di Sant’Egidio ha adottato Romero come patrono, così come i Carmelitani, ed i Gesuiti hanno ufficialmente appoggiato la sua causa di canonizzazione, come hanno fatto numerose conferenze episcopali nazionali, tra cui l’USA.)

Super martyrio ha iniziato il monitoraggio della causa di beatificazione di Romero utilizzando il sistema di colore nel mese di ottobre 2010, cuando abbiamo designato lo stato della causa con un “allarme giallo”, per indicare “progresso moderato o lento”. Lo stato giallo è stato mantenuto fino marzo 2012, quando la condizione del processo di beatificazione è stato declassato a “rosso” dicendo che “la causa di canonizzazione di Mons. Romero è dormiente.” La situazione è stata restaurata ad ambra/giallo maggio di quest’anno, poco dopo l’annuncio alla fine di aprile, che Papa Francesco aveva revocato l’ordine di tenere sopra la causa.

Poco dopo Papa Francesco è stato eletto, Mons. Gregorio Rosa Chávez, Vescovo Ausiliare di San Salvador, ha commentato che le stelle sembravano allineare a favore della beatificazione di Mons. Romero. Per quanto possiamo vedere, l’allineamento è ora complete.

From Archbishop Romero’s last pastoral letter to «Evangelii Gaudium»

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«ROMERO FOR THE YEAR OF FAITH»  

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In his first apostolic exhortation, Pope Francis proclaims his hope that we will “recover and deepen our enthusiasm, that 'delightful and comforting joy of evangelizing, even when it is in tears that we must sow,' [a]nd may the world of our time ...receive the good news not from evangelizers who are dejected, discouraged, impatient or anxious, but from ministers of the Gospel whose lives glow with fervour, who have first received the joy of Christ.”  [«Evangelii Gaudium,» 10]. Intended to marshal the energies of the ‘New Evangelization,’ the Pope’s text emphasizes the themes that Pope Francis has made well known in his pontificate: evangelization, mission, and social justice.  That same description fairly summarizes Archbishop Óscar A. Romero’s fourth and final pastoral letter, released on the Feast of the Transfiguration in August 1979.

In “The Church’s Mission amid the National Crisis” [Spanish text | English translation], Archbishop Romero posits that the Church’s mission during the Salvadoran political crisis that led to a civil war, required her to renew and intensify her evangelizing activity.  You might say that Romero called for a New Evangelization.  “In the present social and political conditions of this country,” Romero wrote, “the evangelizing of the Salvadoran people cannot simply continue the tradition of preaching and encouraging en masse, or in a moralizing fashion.”  (Compare Pope Francis: “A preaching which [is] moralistic or doctrinaire ... detracts from ... heart-to-heart communication” [«Evangelii Gaudium,» 142.])  Instead, said Romero, the Church’s new evangelization “has to pursue a personalizing education in the faith, one that forms, by means of small groups meeting for reflection, persons who take a critical stance visa-vis the world about them with criteria drawn from the Gospel.”  (Francis: the Church must demonstrate her “concern that the Gospel have a real impact on God’s faithful people and the concrete needs of the present time.” [«Evangelii Gaudium,» 95.])  In sum, Romero’s letter sounds the principal themes of Pope Francis, using the word “evangelization” 55 times, and “mission” 43 times.

The confluence of criteria is explained by a single, common bond between Romero and Francis: the Second Vatican Council.  It was the Council’s mandate to evangelize anew that Pope Paul VI sought to define, when he said, “Let us preserve the delightful and comforting joy of evangelizing, even when it is in tears that we must sow.”  [«Evangelii Nuntiandi,» 80].  Both Romero and Francis draw heavily on Paul’s «Evangelii Nuntiandi.»  Romero cites it more than any other papal document, especially for the proposition that liberation cannot be divorced from transcendence, and Francis has said that «Evangelii Nuntiandi» is “to my mind the greatest pastoral document that has ever been written to this day” (the name of Francis’ new exhortation comes from Paul’s language quoted above, as rendered in Latin).  Both Romero and Francis interpret «Evangelii Nuntiandi» through the prism of the Latin American bishops.  In his fourth pastoral letter, Romero cites to the bishop’s statements at the 1979 Puebla conference a staggering 140 times, and it is well known that Francis’ magna carta is the final document from the 2007 conference at Aparecida. With that knowledge as guide, Romero’s letter reflects a faithful attempt to proclaim the joyful news of the Gospel, in Pope Paul’s words, “even when it is in tears that we must sow.”

Archbishop Romero’s last pastoral letter is memorable for three important contributions in defining the mission of the Church.  Romero was writing about the Salvadoran Church, but the themes can be applied more broadly to the Universal Church:

• Romero condemns the ‘absolutization’ of certain secular principles that draw people apart by creating artificial social divides.
• Romero describes and analyzes the different forms of violence that were arising in El Salvador and evaluates them by the standard of the Church’s theory of just war.
• Romero reminds the faithful that the Church has a fundamental difference of opinion with Marxism about the existence of God, and warns that even casually using Marxist analysis as a reference tool is dangerous, without further authoritative study or guidance from the Church.

According to Romero biographer Fr. James Brockman, Romero used his pastoral letter to teach that the Church “must first of all be itself, be true to its own identity as Church.”  [Brockman, “Pastoral Teaching of Archbishop Oscar Romero,” Spirituality Today, Summer 1988, Vol.40 No. 2.]  The Church, Romero said, “offers only the Gospel, and makes no purely political contribution or one arising from any merely human skill. It preaches the liberating message of the Gospel, God's truth about Christ, about the Church, and about humanity. It denounces sin and error and preaches conversion and the overturning of the idols it finds in society.”  Romero warns about the establishment of “absolutes” on both the right and the left of the political spectrum: “In El Salvador the idols were property and national security on one side and, for some on the other side, the popular organization which for activists could become more important than the people it meant to serve.”  Romero warned against “the absolutization of wealth and private property,” saying that it was “the cause of a great part of our economic, social, and political underdevelopment.”  (Compare Pope Francis: the worsening gap between rich and poor “is the result of ideologies which defend the absolute autonomy of the marketplace and financial speculation” [«Evangelii Gaudium,» 56.])  Importantly, Romero also includes another absolute in his list of offenders: “the absolutization of an organization,” by which he chides the people’s organizations when they became ideological, sectarian, intransigent or fanatical.

According to Fr. Brockman, Romero also teaches in his fourth pastoral letter that, “The Church advocates profound and urgent social change, but through nonviolent means.”  Romero analyzes the different categories of violence that were arising using straightforward terms, “Structural Violence,” “Arbitrary Violence of the State,” “Violence of the Extreme Right,” and does not hesitate to describe violence from the left as “Terrorist Violence” and “Insurrectional Violence.”  After exhausting the categories, “the archbishop of San Salvador reminded the nation that violence was justifiable only in extreme situations when all other alternatives have been exhausted, citing Catholic just war theory.”  [Filip Mazurczak, “Oscar Romero’s Exaggerating Critics,” First Things, March 7, 2013.]  “This is an opportune moment,” Romero implores, “to recall that celebrated phrase of Pope Pius XII on war: ‘Nothing is lost by peace, everything may be lost in war’.”  Finally, Romero warns that pacifism does not mean passivism, and that Christians must remain vigilant about what steps may be required to ensure the establishment of justice.

Romero also understood that many in the popular organizations were swayed by Marxism and he saw the need to opine on the utility of Marxist analysis.  Father Brockman: “Marxist ideas were common coin in the popular organizations, at least at the leadership level, and many people in the Christian communities wondered about the possible uses and dangers of Marxism.”  Archbishop Romero: “Naturally if one understands by Marxism a materialistic, atheistic ideology that is taken to explain the whole of human existence and gives a false interpretation of religion, then it is completely untenable by a Christian.”  This is because, “A Christian's faith must guide his or her whole life, starting from the existence of God, toward a spiritual and eternal transcendence made possible in Christ through the Holy Spirit.”  Fr. Brockman says that “Romero echoed the warning of Paul VI in the apostolic letter «Octogesima Adveniens» against the possible risks of using” Marxism “as a structural analysis of the economic and social order,” pretending to ignore its atheistic propaganda.  “He saw a greater danger in using Marxism as a political strategy for the taking of power, because it could lead to conflicts of conscience about means and methods that might be contrary to Christian ethics and could lead to making the organization an absolute, as he had warned before.”

Mission.  Evangelization.  Social justice.  Whether facing a small, third world country slipping into civil war, or the global community facing the challenges of a new millennium, the pastoral touchstones remain constant.  Archbishop Romero is in tune with Pope Francis because both share the vision of the Council.

Previously in this Blog:

Archb. Romero's 1st Pastoral Letter
Archb. Romero's 2nd Pastoral Letter
Archb. Romero's 3rd Pastoral Letter
Romero's 1st Episcopal Letter