NationMaster - Encyclopedia: Óscar Romero

Óscar Arnulfo Romero y Goldámez (August 15, 1917 – March 24, 1980) was a priest of the Roman Catholic Church in El Salvador. He became prelate archbishop of San Salvador. Download high resolution version (840x1332, 444 KB) Portrait of Archbishop Oscar Romero File links The following pages link to this file: Óscar Romero ... Download high resolution version (840x1332, 444 KB) Portrait of Archbishop Oscar Romero File links The following pages link to this file: Óscar Romero ... August 15 is the 227th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (228th in leap years), with 138 days remaining. ... 1917 was a common year starting on Monday (see link for calendar). ... March 24 is the 83rd day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (84th in Leap years). ... 1980 is a leap year starting on Tuesday. ... Roman Catholic priest LCDR Allen R. Kuss (USN) aboard USS Enterprise A priest or priestess is a holy man or woman who takes an officiating role in worship of any religion, with the distinguishing characteristic of offering sacrifices. ... Saint Peters Basilica in Rome. ... A prelate is a member of the clergy having a special canonical jurisdiction over a territory or a group of people; usually, a prelate is a bishop. ... In Christianity, an archbishop is an elevated bishop heading a diocese of particular importance due to either its size, history, or both, called an archdiocese. ... This article is about the Salvadoran capital city. ...

As an archbishop, he witnessed numerous violations of human rights and began a ministry speaking out on behalf of the poor and victims of the country's civil war. His brand of political activism was denounced by the hierarchy of the Roman Catholic Church and the government of El Salvador. In 1980, he was assassinated by gunshot while consecrating the Eucharist during mass. His death finally provoked international outcry for human rights reform in El Salvador. Human rights are rights which some hold to be inalienable and belonging to all humans. ... A civil war is a war in which the competing parties are segments of the same country or empire. ... 1980 is a leap year starting on Tuesday. ... Jack Ruby murdered the alleged assassin, Lee Harvey Oswald, in a very public manner. ... The Eucharist is either the celebration of the Christian sacrament commemorating Christ’s Last Supper, or the consecrated bread and wine of this sacrament. ... This article discusses the Mass as part of Christian liturgy, in particular the form it has taken in the Latin rite of the Catholic Church. ...

In 1997, a cause for beatification and canonization into sainthood was opened for Romero and Pope John Paul II bestowed upon him the title of Servant of God. The process continues. He is considered the unofficial spiritual patron of the Americas, El Salvador and liberation theology. Outside of Catholicism Romero is honored by other religious denominations of Christendom, like the Church of England through its Common Worship. 1997 is a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... In Catholicism, beatification (from Latin beatus, blessed, via Greek μακαριος, makarios) is a recognition accorded by the church of a dead persons accession to Heaven and capacity to intercede on behalf of individuals who pray in their name (intercession of saints). ... Canonization is the process of making someone into a saint and involves proving that a candidate has lived in such a way that he or she is worthy of sainthood. ... General definition of saint In general, the term Saint refers to someone who is exceptionally virtuous and holy. ... The Servant of God Pope John Paul II (Latin: ), born Karol Józef Wojtyła [1] (May 18, 1920–April 2, 2005), reigned as pope of the Roman Catholic Church and sovereign of Vatican City for almost 27 years, from 16 October 1978 until his death in 2005. ... Servant of God is the title given to a person of the Roman Catholic Church upon whom a pope has opened a cause of sainthood. ... In several forms of Christianity, a patron saint has special affinity for a trade or group. ... The Americas refers collectively to North and South America, as a relatively recent and less ambiguous alternative to the name America, which may refer to either the Americas (typically in languages other than English, where it is often considered a single continent) or to the United States (in English and... Liberation theology is an important and controversial school in the theology of the Roman Catholic Church after the Second Vatican Council. ... Note that this kind of denomination is not that of a coin or banknote. ... This mediæval map, which abstracts the known world to a cross inscribed within an orb, remakes geography in the service of Christian iconography. ... The Church of England is the officially established Christian church in England and acts as the mother and senior branch of the worldwide Anglican Communion as well as a founding member of the Porvoo Communion. ... Common Worship is a series of books of services and prayers, known as a liturgy, published by the Church of England. ...

Career

Romero was born in Ciudad Barrios, the second of eight children. He had to interrupt his education as a child due to a severe illness, and by the age of 12 was working as an apprentice carpenter. In 1931 he went to study at the San Miguel seminary for six years until the family economic circumstances forced him to work in a gold mine for three months. In 1937 he went to study in another seminary in San Salvador for 7 months. He was then sent to Rome to study theology at the Gregorian University where he was ordained as a priest on April 4, 1942, before beginning a doctorate in ascetic theology. In 1943 the war in Europe forced him to abandon his studies and return to El Salvador. He began working as a parish priest in Anamorós but then moved to San Miguel where he worked for over 20 years. He promoted various apostolic groups, started an Alcoholics Anonymous group, helped in the construction of San Miguel's cathedral and supporting devotion to the Virgin of the Peace. He later was appointed Rector of the inter-diocese seminary in San Salvador. In 1966 he began his public life when he was chosen to be Secretary of the Episcopal Conference for El Salvador. He also became Director of Orientation, a conservative, catholic newspaper. In 1970 he was appointed assistant Bishop to Luis Chávez y González, a move not welcomed by the more radical elements of the priesthood. He took up his appointment as Bishop of the Diocese of Santiago de María in December 1974. A carpenter is a skilled craftsman who performs carpentry -- a wide range of woodworking that includes constructing buildings, furniture, and other objects out of wood. ... 1931 is a common year starting on Thursday. ... San Miguel is an important city in El Salvador. ... A seminary is a specialised university-like institution for the purpose of instructing students in religion, often in order to prepare them to become members of the clergy. ... General Name, Symbol, Number Gold, Au, 79 Chemical series transition metals Group, Period, Block 11 (IB), 6, d Density, Hardness 19300 kg/m3, 2. ... Mine can refer to a number of things: Mines are tunnels used in mining for extraction of resources. ... 1937 was a common year starting on Friday (link will take you to calendar). ... City motto: Senatus Populusque Romanus – SPQR (The Senate and the People of Rome) Founded 21 April 753 BC mythical, 1st millennium BC Region Latium Mayor Walter Veltroni (Democratici di Sinistra) Area - City Proper 1290 km² Population - City (2004) - Metropolitan - Density (city proper) 2,546,807 almost 4,000,000 1... Roman Catholic priest LCDR Allen R. Kuss (USN) aboard USS Enterprise A priest or priestess is a holy man or woman who takes an officiating role in worship of any religion, with the distinguishing characteristic of offering sacrifices. ... April 4 is the 94th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (95th in leap years). ... 1942 was a common year starting on Thursday (link will take you to calendar). ... An ascetic is one who practices a renunciation of worldly pursuits to achieve spiritual attainment. ... 1943 is a common year starting on Friday. ... Mushroom cloud from the nuclear explosion over Nagasaki rising 18 km into the air. ... World map showing location of Europe A satellite composite image of Europe Europe is geologically and geographically a peninsula, forming the westernmost part of Eurasia. ... Alternate meaning: See Apostle (Mormonism) The Christian Apostles were Jewish men chosen from among the disciples, who were sent forth (as indicated by the Greek word απόστολος apostolos= messenger), by Jesus to preach the Gospel to both Jews and Gentiles, across the world. ... Alcoholics Anonymous (known commonly as A.A. or AA) is a world-wide fellowship of alcoholics whose primary purpose is to carry the message of recovery from alcoholism through the Twelve Steps. ... A cathedral is a Christian church building, specifically of a denomination with an episcopal hierarchy (such as the Roman Catholic Church or the Anglican churches), which serves as the central church of a bishopric. ... Overview Devotion Album Cover Devotion is a music album by CCM artist, Newsboys, released in November 2004. ... 1966 was a common year starting on Saturday (link goes to calendar) Events January January 1 - In a coup, Colonel Jean-Bédel Bokassa ousts president David Dacko and takes over the Central African Republic. ... The word Episcopal is derived from the Greek επισκοπος epískopos, which literally means overseer; the word, however, is used in religious terms to refer to a bishop. ... 1970 was a common year starting on Thursday. ... A bishop is an ordained member of the Christian clergy who, in certain Christian churches, holds a position of authority. ... In some Christian churches, the diocese is an administrative territorial unit governed by a bishop, sometimes also referred to as a bishopric or episcopal see, though more often the term episcopal see means the office held by the bishop. ... December is the twelfth and last month of the year in the Gregorian Calendar and one of seven Gregorian months with the length of 31 days. ... 1974 is a common year starting on Tuesday (click on link for calendar). ...

Archbishop

On February 23, 1977 he was surprisingly appointed Archbishop of San Salvador. While this appointment was welcomed in government circles and with disappointment by those radical priests who feared that with his conservative reputation he would put the brakes on their liberation theology commitment to the poor. I took this picture myself. ... I took this picture myself. ... February 23 is the 54th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. ... 1977 was a common year starting on Saturday (the link is to a full 1977 calendar). ... In Christianity, an archbishop is an elevated bishop heading a diocese of particular importance due to either its size, history, or both, called an archdiocese. ... Liberation theology is an important and controversial school in the theology of the Roman Catholic Church after the Second Vatican Council. ...

On March 12 progressive Jesuit priest and personal friend Rutilio Grande, who had been creating self help groups among the poor campesinos, was assassinated. Romero urged the government of Arturo Armando Molina to investigate the crime but they ignored his calls. The press, which was censored, also remained silent. A new tension was noted with the closure of some schools and the absence of Catholic priests in official acts. In his response to this murder he revealed a radicalism that had not been evident before. He began to speak out against the poverty, social injustice, assassinations and torture taking place in the country. He began to be noticed internationally, with a nomination for the Nobel Peace Prize in 1979. In February 1980 he was given an honorary doctorate by the Catholic University of Leuven. On his visit to Europe to receive this honor he met Pope John Paul II, and expressed his concerns at what what was happening in his country. His stance led to a confrontation with the Pope, a staunch anti-communist, who expected priests to speak out against communist dictatorships and support those governments – democratic or not – that fought against them. Romero argued that it was problematic to support the government in El Salvador because it legitimized the terror and assassinations. March 12 is the 71st day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (72nd in Leap years). ... The Society of Jesus (Latin: Societas Iesu), commonly known as the Jesuits, is a Roman Catholic religious order. ... Campesino means simple farmer in Spanish. ... Colonel Arturo Armando Molina was President of El Salvador between July 1, 1972 and July 1, 1977. ... Censorship is the systematic use of group power to broadly control freedom of speech and expression, largely in regard to secretive matters. ... Nobel Peace Prize (where Nobel is pronounced with the stress on the second syllable) is one of five Nobel Prizes requested by the Swedish industrialist and inventor Alfred Nobel. ... 1979 is a common year starting on Monday. ... 1980 is a leap year starting on Tuesday. ... The Catholic University of Leuven, founded in 1425, is now the names of two Belgian universities, after the original university split in 1968: the Dutch-speaking Katholieke Universiteit Leuven, Leuven, Belgium, and the French-speaking Universit catholique de Louvain, Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium This is a disambiguation page — a navigational... The Servant of God Pope John Paul II (Latin: ), born Karol Józef Wojtyła [1] (May 18, 1920–April 2, 2005), reigned as pope of the Roman Catholic Church and sovereign of Vatican City for almost 27 years, from 16 October 1978 until his death in 2005. ... Communism - Wikipedia /**/ @import /skins/monobook/IE50Fixes. ... Benito Mussolini and Adolf Hitler were two of the 20th centurys most notorious dictators. ...

In 1979 the Revolutionary Government Junta came to power amidst a wave of human rights abuses from paramilitary right-wing groups, from left-wing guerrillas, and from the government. Romero spoke out against U.S. military aid to the new government and wrote to President Jimmy Carter in February 1980 warning that increased military aid would "undoubtedly sharpen the injustice and the repression inflicted on the organized people, whose struggle has often been for their most basic human rights". Carter, concerned that El Salvador would become "another Nicaragua", ignored the plea. 1979 is a common year starting on Monday. ... ... Wikiquote has a collection of quotations by or about: United States Wikinews has news related to this article: United States United States government Official website of the United States government - Gateway to governmental sites White House - Official site of the US President Senate. ... Order: 39th President Vice President: Walter Mondale Term of office: January 20, 1977 – January 20, 1981 Preceded by: Gerald Ford Succeeded by: Ronald Reagan Date of birth: October 1, 1924 Place of birth: Plains, Georgia First Lady: Rosalynn Carter Political party: Democratic James Earl Jimmy Carter, Jr. ... 1980 is a leap year starting on Tuesday. ...

While celebrating mass at a small chapel near his cathedral, Romero was shot to death while he was giving a sermon in which he called for soldiers to disobey orders that violated basic human rights. It is believed that his assassins were members of Salvadoran death squads, including two graduates of the School of the Americas. This view was supported in 1993 by an official UN report, which identified the man who ordered the killing as Major Roberto D'Aubuisson, who later founded the Nationalist Republican Alliance (ARENA), a political party which came to power in 1989 and still rules today. A death squad is an extra-judicial group whose members execute or assassinate persons they believe to be politically unreliable or undesirable. ... The Western Hemisphere Institute for Security Cooperation (WHISC), formerly School of the Americas (SOA), is a US Army facility at Fort Benning in Columbus, Georgia, USA. It is a training facility operated in the Spanish language especially for Latin American military personnel. ... Major Roberto DAubuisson Arrieta (August 23, 1944–February 20, 1992) known as Chele, was a Salvadoran politician and military leader who founded the Nationalist Republican Alliance (ARENA), which he led from 1978 to 1985. ... The Nationalist Republican Alliance (Spanish: Alianza Republicana Nacionalista or ARENA) is a conservative political party in El Salvador. ... 1989 is a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Legacy

The rite of visitation and requiem was attended by over one million pilgrims from all over the world. Forty civilians were killed by security forces during the events. Even after burial, people continued to line-up to pay homage to their martyred prelate.

On the tenth anniversary of the assassination, the sitting prelate archbishop of San Salvador appointed a postulator to prepare documentation for a cause of beatification and canonization of Romero. The documents were formally accepted by Pope John Paul II and the Congregation for the Causes of Saints in 1997 and Romero was given the title of Servant of God. The process continues today with further investigation of the heroicity and martyrdom of Romero. Upon the declaration of heroicity and martyrdom, it is expected that Romero will achieve the title of Venerable. Thereafter, miracles must be attributed to Romero in order to become declared Blessed and added to the Liturgy of the Hours. Headline text In the Roman Catholic Church, a postulator is a church official who presents a plea for canonization or beatification of a person they think should become a saint. ... Governing the Roman Catholic Church, the Pope makes use of the Roman Curia, the administrative apparatus of the Holy See. ... 1997 is a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Servant of God is the title given to a person of the Roman Catholic Church upon whom a pope has opened a cause of sainthood. ... In the Eastern Orthodox Church, Venerable (Greek: Όσιος for men and Οσία for women) is a title attributed to saints that had lived a monastic or eremitic life, and it is considered equal or sometimes superior to plain Saint. In the Church of England, Venerable is the title given to... According to many religions, a miracle is an intervention by God in the universe. ... Blessed is a dancehall album by Jamaican musician Beenie Man, released in 1995 (see 1995 in music). ...

Many suspect that the delay in the declaration of heroicity and martyrdom is due to the fact that Romero is closely tied, but not directly involved, to the liberation theology movement espoused especially by the Jesuits of Latin America. The charge has been dismissed by the Congregation for the Causes of Saints explaining that Romero has not yet met certain criteria to move on to the next levels of the inquests, a process which people forget has historically taken decades to pursue.

The work of Romero was honored by various other religious denominations of Christendom, most notably by the Church of England and its Anglican Communion. In July 1998, the Church of England unveiled a statue depicting Romero at the west door of Westminster Abbey in the City of London in the United Kingdom, as part of a monument in memory of 20th century Christian martyrs. The Church of England and its Anglican Communion also added to its liturgical calendar a memorial commemoration celebrated annually on March 24. (The liturgical calendar is similar to the Roman Catholic calendar of saints.) The Anglican Communion is a world-wide organization of Anglican Churches. ... July is the seventh month of the year in the Gregorian Calendar and one of seven Gregorian months with the length of 31 days. ... 1998 is a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated the International Year of the Ocean. ... The Collegiate Church of St Peter, Westminster (Westminster Abbey), a mainly Gothic church, on the scale of a cathedral, is the traditional place of coronation and burial site for English monarchs. ... This article is about a small section of central London. ... (19th century - 20th century - 21st century - more centuries) Decades: 1900s 1910s 1920s 1930s 1940s 1950s 1960s 1970s 1980s 1990s As a means of recording the passage of time, the 20th century was that century which lasted from 1901–2000 in the sense of the Gregorian calendar (1900–1999 in the... The term Christian means belonging to Christ and is derived from the Greek noun Χριστός Khristós which means anointed one, which is itself a translation of the Hebrew word Moshiach (Hebrew: משיח, also written Messiah), (and in Arabic it is pronounced Maseeh مسيح). ... Historically, a martyr is a person who dies for his or her religious faith. ... March 24 is the 83rd day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (84th in Leap years). ... The calendar of saints is a traditional Christian method of organising a liturgical year on the level of days by associating each day with a saint, and referring to the day as the saints day of that saint. ...

Ecumenical movements following the traditions of liberation theology were spread worldwide upon the death of Romero. The influence of Romero's teachings of a moral obligation to raise people out of poverty as a mission charged by God inspired the creation of classes, schools and community organizations. Churches named in honor of Romero also were established including a New York City church called "Saint Romero of the Americas".[1] (http://www.sanromero.org). The New York City church, like many others, blend traditional religious teachings taught in an ecumenical spirit, with social justice values to defend disenfranchised people. Midtown Manhattan, looking north from the Empire State Building, 2005 New York City (officially named the City of New York) is the largest city and largest metropolitan area, by population, in the United States. ...

Romero in popular culture

The film Romero (1989) was based on his life story. It was directed by John Sacret Young and starred Raúl Juliá. Romero is a film depicting the life of assassinated Salvadoran Archbishop Óscar Romero, played by Raúl Juliá. Richard Jordan and Ana Alicia also appeared in the film. ... Raúl Juliá Raúl Rafael Juliá y Arcelay ( March 9, 1940– October 24, 1994) was a Puerto Rican actor who lived and worked for many years in the United States. ...

Also, salsa singer Rubén Blades wrote and sings the song "El Padre Antonio y el Monaguillo Andrés", a song in which an idealist Spanish priest arrives to a Latin American country, giving sermons in which he condemns violence, talks about love and justice, and at the end is murdered during a mass. Blades has said he wrote this song referring to Romero, so that "the death of Romero is not forgotten". Salsa may have one of the following meanings. ... Rubén Blades Rubén Blades (born July 16, 1948) is a Panamanian salsa singer, songwriter, actor and politician. ... Latin America consists of the countries of South America and some of North America (including Central America and some the islands of the Caribbean) whose inhabitants mostly speak Romance languages, although Native American languages are also spoken. ... This article discusses the Mass as part of Christian liturgy, in particular the form it has taken in the Latin rite of the Catholic Church. ...

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Career

Archbishop

Legacy

Romero in popular culture

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External links

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Archbishop

Legacy

Romero in popular culture

Quotations

See also

External links

Career