In honor of the feast day of Archbishop Oscar Romero

Of all the Christian martyrs of the 20th century, none to me, is as brave and as stalwart as Oscar Romero. He and the people he served were persecuted by the government, an oligarchy of the richest families of El Salvador in reality, and also persecuted by the Catholic Church in Rome. Pope John Paul II's experience of Communist rule in Poland blinded his eyes to the evils of unchecked and unbridaled Capitalism. John Paul II and Cardinal Ratzinger look with great suspicion on this man of the Church whose only purpose in life was to served the spiritual needs of his people. Oscar Romero and the Catholics of El Salvador were cast adrift in a sea filled with ecclesiastical suspicion and the brutal, murderous persecution of the El Salvadorian government. Yet the Church of El Salvador did not sink nor surrender to the raging seas around them. The bullet from a coward ended his life as Romero held aloft the consecrated blood of Jesus, his own blood mixed with the blood of the Lord he loved so greatly. This man should have been made a saint, decades ago. It is ironical the Pope who stood in the way of his canonization will be made a saint very soon. We all know who the real saint is ... Below are some incredible things St Oscar Romero (at least in my personal calendar of saints) told his people in his homilies.

Among the events of this week, which, of course, are many, one stands out for me with a sense of gratitude, the celebration of my birthday, through which I have understood once again that my life doesn't belong to me, but to all of you. August 21, 1977

I have never believed myself to be the leader of a people, because there is only one leader: Jesus Christ. Jesus is the fountain of hope. I base what I preach on Jesus. In Jesus is the truth of what I am saying. August 28, 1977

The church today does not rely on any power, on wealth. Today the church is poor. Today the church knows that the powerful reject her, but that she is loved by those who put their faith in God…. This is the church that I want. A church that does not rely on the privileges and the worth of earthly things. A church ever more detached from earthly things, human things, so that she can judge them more freely from her perspective of the gospel, from her poverty. August 28, 1977

Blessed are the liberators who put their strength not in weapons, not in kidnapping, not in violence, nor in money, but rather know that liberation must come from God; it will be the wonderful coming together of the liberating power of God and the Christian effort of human beings. October 30, 1977

I want to clarify one point. The news of death threats to my person have been much repeated…. I want to assure you, and I ask your prayers that I be faithful to this promise, that I will not abandon my people, rather I will run the same risks with them that my ministry requires. November 11, 1979

Romero, Oscar A. (2011-07-17). Through The Year With Oscar Romero: Daily Meditations (Kindle Locations 1722-1725). St. Anthony Messenger Press. Kindle Edition.