El Salvador: Campaign for Oscar Romero’s sainthood

Members of the Salvadoran government confirmed that they would advocate for the sainthood of Archbishop Oscar Romero. Yet the odds of Romero’s beatification are slim since he espoused liberation theology, a doctrine denounced by Vatican leaders including Pope Benedict XVI. In addition, some have criticized the government’s move as a “smoke screen” since they refused to accept responsibility for Romero’s murder:

“The state can't accept responsibility because there was a clear person responsible for the killing, and that person was tried,” (Security and Justice Vice Minister Astor) Escalante said.

Romero spoke out against social injustice and the heavy handedness by the Salvadoran government during his brief time as archbishop. He was much beloved by the people, yet on March 24, 1980 he was assassinated in a killing planned by senior government officials.

Sources- Yahoo! News, Wikipedia, Catholic Herald

Image- CathNews