Wednesday, July 28, 2010

Saints, Martyrs, Catholics, and Rules

Father Stanley Rother spent 13 years in Guatemala. He was a parish priest in a small town named Santiago Atitlan. Near-constant wars - including one that lasted 36 years - made Santiago Atitlan a risky place to live.

Father Rother returned to Oklahoma in 1981, but returned to Guatamala some months later: "after recognizing that his heart was with the people," as the Catholic News Agency (CNA) put it.

Then, on July 28, 1981, three men broke into the mission rectory and killed him.

Martyr? Maybe

Is Father Stanley Rother a martyr? A saint? Those are good questions. I don't have answers, because Rome hasn't spoken on the matter yet.

I'm a Catholic, and we've got - what else? - rules about this sort of thing.

Father Rother certainly has a sort of cheering section:
"...The local archbishop expressed his conviction during the homily that the missionary is both a martyr and a saint...."
(CNA)
Does that mean the archbishop is on one side, and Rome on another? No. It means that the local archbishop thinks that Father Rother is a martyr and a saint. Which wraps up the archdiocese-level work in the canonization process. Next step: Rome. The Holy See.

It's Just a Popularity Contest!

Wrong.

I've written about saints before. Bottom line, a saint isn't recognized as a saint until he or she has been linked to two verified miracles. And yes, miracles happen.

I'll grant that the process of declaring someone to be a saint depends on at least a few people who are more-or-less at the grassroots level getting the ball rolling. But no amount of hoopla and publicity is going to change the process - apart from letting the folks at the Holy See know that there's a lot of hoopla and publicity about Joe Doaks, or whoever is being hyped.

Back to Father Rother. The last two paragraphs of that CNA article are a pretty good summation:
"...Citing a 'spontaneous outpouring of prayer and devotion,' in Guatemala and in the U.S. since his death, Archbishop Beltran said, 'We believe and we are convinced that Father Rother was martyred and is now a saint in heaven.'

"To make beatification possible, the postulator must now prove to the Vatican congregation for saints that Fr. Rother was killed solely for his faith, that his death was violent and that he accepted such a death for the faith."
(CNA)
Key points:
  • There's been a "spontaneous outpouring of prayer and devotion" to Father Rother's memory
  • Father Rother's death
    • Was violent
    • May have been only because of his faith
      • Or, not
    • May have been something he accepted for the faith
      • Or, not
Don't get me wrong: There's an archbishop who says that Father Rother was a martyr and a saint. I'm just some Catholic layman. My view is that odds favor the archbishop being right about Father Rother.

But the archbishop is, as far as I can tell, doing this by the book: he's decided that the evidence favors the idea that Father Rother is a saint and a martyr. Now the archbishop is passing the matter on to Rome for consideration.

I'm waiting to see what Rome says about Father Rother.

That's just how we work.

Somewhat-related posts:In the news:

2 comments:

Elizabeth Mahlou said...

The daughter of a friend has spent a number of years in Guatemala -- Peace Corps, I believe. My friends visited her several times. I know that they said it was a little unsafe there, but I guess I did not realize that such violence was going on.

Brian H. Gill said...

Elizabeth Mahlou,

I imagine it depends on who you are, and where you were in Guatemala: as is the case in so many other places.

Your point is well-taken: we often don't realized quite what's going on elsewhere - good and bad.

Like it? Pin it, Plus it, - - -

Pinterest: My Stuff, and More

Advertisement

Unique, innovative candles


Visit us online:
Spiral Light CandleFind a Retailer
Spiral Light Candle Store

Popular Posts

Label Cloud

1277 abortion ADD ADHD-Inattentive Adoration Chapel Advent Afghanistan Africa America Amoris Laetitia angels animals annulment Annunciation anti-catholicism Antichrist apocalyptic ideas apparitions archaeology architecture Arianism art Asperger syndrome assumptions asteroid astronomy Australia authority balance and moderation baptism being Catholic beliefs bias Bible Bible and Catechism bioethics biology blogs brain Brazil business Canada capital punishment Caritas in Veritate Catechism Catholic Church Catholic counter-culture Catholicism change happens charisms charity Chile China Christianity Christmas citizenship climate change climatology cloning comets common good common sense Communion community compassion confirmation conscience conversion Corpus Christi cosmology creation credibility crime crucifix Crucifixion Cuba culture dance dark night of the soul death depression designer babies despair detachment devotion discipline disease diversity divination Divine Mercy divorce Docetism domestic church dualism duty Easter economics education elections emotions England entertainment environmental issues Epiphany Establishment Clause ethics ethnicity Eucharist eugenics Europe evangelizing evolution exobiology exoplanets exorcism extremophiles faith faith and works family Father's Day Faust Faustus fear of the Lord fiction Final Judgment First Amendment forgiveness Fortnight For Freedom free will freedom fun genetics genocide geoengineering geology getting a grip global Gnosticism God God's will good judgment government gratitude great commission guest post guilt Haiti Halloween happiness hate health Heaven Hell HHS hierarchy history holidays Holy Family Holy See Holy Spirit holy water home schooling hope humility humor hypocrisy idolatry image of God images Immaculate Conception immigrants in the news Incarnation Independence Day India information technology Internet Iraq Ireland Israel Italy Japan Jesus John Paul II joy just war justice Kansas Kenya Knights of Columbus knowledge Korea language Last Judgment last things law learning Lent Lenten Chaplet life issues love magi magic Magisterium Manichaeism marriage martyrs Mary Mass materialism media medicine meditation Memorial Day mercy meteor meteorology Mexico Minnesota miracles Missouri moderation modesty Monophysitism Mother Teresa of Calcutta Mother's Day movies music Muslims myth natural law neighbor Nestorianism New Year's Eve New Zealand news Nietzsche obedience Oceania organization original sin paleontology parish Parousia penance penitence Pentecost Philippines physical disability physics pilgrimage politics Pope Pope in Germany 2011 population growth positive law poverty prayer predestination presumption pride priests prophets prostitution Providence Purgatory purpose quantum entanglement quotes reason redemption reflections relics religion religious freedom repentance Resurrection robots Roman Missal Third Edition rosaries rules sacramentals Sacraments Saints salvation schools science secondary causes SETI sex shrines sin slavery social justice solar planets soul South Sudan space aliens space exploration Spain spirituality stem cell research stereotypes stewardship stories storm Sudan suicide Sunday obligation superstition symbols technology temptation terraforming the establishment the human condition tolerance Tradition traffic Transfiguration Transubstantiation travel Trinity trust truth uncertainty United Kingdom universal destination of goods vacation Vatican Vatican II veneration vengeance Veterans Day videos virtue vlog vocations voting war warp drive theory wealth weather wisdom within reason work worship writing

Marian Apparition: Champion, Wisconsin

Background:Posts in this blog: In the news:

What's That Doing in a Nice Catholic Blog?

From time to time, a service that I use will display links to - odd - services and retailers.

I block a few of the more obvious dubious advertisers.

For example: psychic anything, numerology, mediums, and related practices are on the no-no list for Catholics. It has to do with the Church's stand on divination. I try to block those ads.

Sometime regrettable advertisements get through, anyway.

Bottom line? What that service displays reflects the local culture's norms, - not Catholic teaching.