Saints? What’s the Point?
If you visit the small, Central American country of El Salvador, you’ll notice in prominent places huge images of Oscar Romero, sometimes alongside an image of Ernesto “Che” Guevara.
“Che” is a hero to many leftists in Latin America. An Argentinian by birth and a medical school graduate, he joined Fidel Castro in the Cuban revolution and later attempted to foment revolution in South America. He was killed by the Bolivian military in 1967. He became a “ubiquitous countercultural symbol of rebellion,” according to Wikipedia.
And, it is said, the association in the popular mind between the leftist causes of people like Guevara and Oscar Romero, the murdered archbishop of San Salvador, is the reason the Catholic Church took so long to canonize Romero.
Gunned Down
Many Salvadorans believe the archbishop, who was gunned down while saying Mass in 1980, should have been canonized long before now. But others within the Church argued that Romero’s martyrdom was for political, not religious reasons. And, many believe, that has kept the canonization from happening. Until now.
In a Vatican ceremony a few weeks ago, Pope Francis declared Romero a saint alongside Paul VI, who was pope from 1963 to 1978.
Although I admire both men, I’m not enamored of the idea of rushing to make saints out of people who lived in the last 100 years or so. Especially popes. Much more time is needed to determine the merit of those proposed to be saints. Recent canonizations are good examples of the wisdom of waiting.
Paul VI, for whom I feel a particular affinity because he granted my petition to be dispensed from my promises as a priest, wrote the encyclical “Humanae Vitae.” Although it beautifully expressed the ideals of marriage and family life, it prohibited for Catholics the use of artificial birth control.
That prohibition has been almost universally ignored by Catholics and history may show it to be the first major breach in contemporary history between Catholics and the church’s teaching authority. Nevertheless, Catholics come down on both sides of this issue and I believe it’s not yet settled. And neither should the saintliness of Paul VI be.
A case could also be made about the recent canonization of John Paul II, pope from 1978 to 2005. He has been accused of supporting Father Marcial Maciel, the founder of the Legion of Christ religious order, whom the Polish pope held up as a model for the faithful.
“… Maciel was revealed to have sexually abused boys and young men,” according to Wikipedia. “After his death, it came to light that he had also maintained relationships with at least two women, one of whom was a minor. He fathered as many as six children, and allegedly abused two of these children as well.”
Pope John Paul II is also accused of acting too slowly to acknowledge and act on other clergy abuse.
I believe the jury is still out on these issues and it would be better to wait at least 100 years after a person’s death to declare the person a saint. I also believe sainthood shouldn’t be limited to Catholics and that more laypeople should be considered.
Heroes of the Faith
So what’s the point of “making saints,” anyway? I see it much like a “hall of fame” such as sports heroes have. Saints are the heroes of the faith, people to look up to, admire and emulate. Growing up Catholic, I much admired – and tried to emulate – my three namesakes, St. Thomas the Apostle, St. Thomas Aquinas and St. Thomas More.
Although I saw no need for the rush in naming Oscar Romero a saint, I think he is someone to be greatly admired for our time. He was courageous in defending the poor and disenfranchised against a corrupt government and their allies in the oligarchy who violated their rights and unjustly jailed, abused and killed them.
But he was also a man of deep faith, who practiced and preached the faith fearlessly. In my view, he was also a prophet, and my experience in his country shows that at least one of his “prophecies” has undoubtedly been fulfilled.
“I do not believe in death without resurrection,” he said. “If they kill me I will rise again in the people of El Salvador.”
