Pope Francis Confirms Martyrdom of Salvadoran Archbishop Oscar Romero

On February 3rd Pope Francis confirmed the martyrdom of Salvadoran Archbishop Oscar Romero, when he was assassinated while saying mass on March 24, 1980, as an “act of hatred” for his Roman Catholic faith. This follows the finding of martyrdom by the nine-member Commission of theologians of the Church’s Congregation for the Causes of Saints and by a commission of cardinals and bishops. [1]

Archbishop Vincenzo Paglia, president of the Pontifical Council for the Family and the chief advocate for Archbishop Romero’s cause for beatification and sainthood, acknowledged that Archbishop Romero had been viewed by many over the years as a “bishop of the revolutionary left, of the Marxist culture.”

However, Archbishop Paglia added, “meticulous research erased all doubts and prejudices that many had within the church and in El Salvador.” As a result, “it was clear to us that killing a priest on the altar is a message for the whole church, a political message against a religious man.” Indeed, Archbishop Romero’s message stemmed directly from the Bible, and “today Romero is an enormous help to Francis’s vision of the church — their voices sound like one, a poor church for the poor.”

Last month Pope Francis quoted Romero: “Giving life doesn’t only mean to be killed. Giving life, having the martyr’s spirit, means giving while doing our duty, in silence, in prayer, while we honestly fulfill our duty.”

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[1] Pianigani, Pope Francis Honors Óscar Romero, Salvadoran Archbishop, as Martyr, N.Y. Times (Feb. 3, 2015),  This blog contains many posts about the life and death of Archbishop Romero.