Oscar Romero was not a proponent of Liberation Theology. There were priests who were proponents of this heresy who he suspended because they were. Please don't confuse, "It is sinful to kill the innocent civilians." with this philosophy.
Poche, He was liberation theology... all the way.Saint Óscar Arnulfo Romero y Galdámez (15 August 1917 – 24 March 1980) was a
prelate of the
Catholic Church in
El Salvador who served as the fourth
Archbishop of San Salvador. He spoke out against poverty, social injustice, assassinations, and torture amid a growing war between leftist rebels and government and right-wing forces.
[3] In 1980, Romero was αssαssιnαtҽd while celebrating
Mass in the chapel of the Hospital of Divine Providence. Though no one was ever convicted for the crime, investigations by the UN-created
Truth Commission for El Salvador concluded that the extreme right-wing politician, founder of
ARENA and death squad leader
Roberto D'Aubuisson had given the order.
[4]During Romero's beatification,
Pope Francis stated, "His ministry was distinguished by his particular attention to the most poor and marginalized."
[5] Hailed as a hero by supporters of
liberation theology inspired by his work, Romero, according to his biographer, "was not interested in liberation theology" but faithfully adhered to Catholic teachings on liberation and a preferential option for the poor,
[6] desiring a social revolution based on interior reform.
Up to the end of his life,
his spiritual life drew much from the spirituality of Opus Dei.
[7] While seen as a social conservative at his appointment as archbishop in 1977, he was deeply affected by the murder of his friend and fellow priest
Rutilio Grande a few weeks after his own appointment and subsequently developed into an
outspoken social activist. In 2010, the
United Nations General Assembly proclaimed 24 March as the "International Day for the Right to the Truth Concerning Gross Human Rights Violations and for the Dignity of Victims" in recognition of the role of Archbishop Romero in defence of human rights.
Romero actively denounced violations of the human rights of the most vulnerable people and defended the principles of protecting lives, promoting human dignity and opposing all forms of violence. In 1997,
Pope John Paul II bestowed upon Romero the title of
Servant of God, and a cause for
beatification and
canonization was opened for him. The cause stalled, but was reopened by
Pope Benedict XVI in 2012. He was declared a martyr by
Pope Francis on 3 February 2015, paving the way for his beatification on 23 May 2015. Pope Francis canonized Romero as a saint on 14 October 2018.
His successor, the incuмbent Metropolitan Archbishop of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of San Salvador, El Salvador, Archbishop
Jose Luis Escobar Alas, has asked Pope Francis to proclaim Archbishop Saint Romero a
Doctor of the Church, which is an acknowledgement from the Church that his religious teachings were orthodox and had a significant impact on its philosophy and theology.
[8]Latin American church groups often proclaim Romero an unofficial
patron saint of the
Americas and El Salvador; Catholics in El Salvador often refer to him as
"San Romero", as well as
"Monseñor Romero". Outside of Catholicism, Romero is honored by other
Christian denominations including
Church of England and
Anglican Communion through the Calendar in
Common Worship, as well as in at least one
Lutheran liturgical calendar. Archbishop Romero is also one of the ten 20th-century martyrs depicted in statues above the Great West Door of
Westminster Abbey in
London. In 2008, Europe-based magazine
A Different View included Romero among its 15 Champions of World Democracy.
[9]
Topic: Fr. Oscar Romero (Read 1348 times)