Case Study: Latin America and the Catholic Church

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Case Study: Latin America and the Catholic Church Deborah Knowles HIST 410 Contemporary History DeVry University December 8, 2013 In 1983, Nicaragua was in the midst of a Contra war, so the John Paul II Papal visit was well anticipated by the reform-minded Catholics, who hoped that he would support their efforts by speaking out against the Sandinistas. Prior to his visit several citizens including priests and nuns had been killed by the Contras, who were reportedly being funded by the United States (Newpower, 1983). It is also important to note that Archbishop Oscar Romeo who had been an active voice for many had also been killed while delivering Mass. So, many were hopeful that the Pope would acknowledge them and some of the other priests who were speaking out against repression and poverty. The Sandinistas were so sure that he would facilitate peace and denounce America’s support of the Contras, they encouraged and provided transportation for about 800,000 persons to see the Pope (Hoyt, 1983). However, their dreams would not be realized. The Pope told the people not to promote violence and even though he acknowledged Archbishop Romero as a martyr, he basically said do not follow in his footsteps and do not allow his memory to be a politically oriented one. He also chastised some other priests for holding political positions and telling them that is not their path. He further stressed unity of the Church as the way to promote peace and asked the people to abandon their “…unacceptable ideological commitments…”for the faith (Hoyt, 1983). At this point, the crowd became impatient because they above all wanted to hear prayers for the people that had been murdered on the very spot that they were gathered, but none was offered. Finally, his visit according to Newpower (Newpower, 1983), there was even more tension between church and state and amongst Catholics.

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