CAFOD celebrates beatification of heroic Romero

The beatification of Oscar Romero on Saturday 23 May will provide overdue recognition for "one of the great heroes of the 20th Century", says the aid agency CAFOD, which closely supported his work.

"Archbishop Romero's words and actions are at the heart of everything that CAFOD does, and we are delighted about his beatification," said Chris Bain, CAFOD's Director. "He was an extremely brave man, who was inspired by his faith to fight not just poverty but injustice, to give a voice to the voiceless.

"The reason that CAFOD staff and supporters, like many Catholics around the world, continue to hold him in such high regard is obvious. He didn't simply talk about the need to love your neighbour, but courageously denounced the violence and named the injustices that plagued his country. He reminded us that Christ is found in people living in poverty, and that we cannot ignore the suffering of our brothers and sisters in need.

"He may not be a household name for non-Catholics in the UK, but he was one of one of great heroes of the 20th Century. He deserves to be commemorated alongside the likes of Martin Luther King and Mahatma Gandhi as a peacemaker who sacrificed his life standing up to injustice. I hope that his beatification will give him the wider recognition he so richly deserves."

Oscar Romero was the Archbishop of San Salvador from 1977 until he was assassinated in 1980. He was initially regarded as a conservative choice, but he became increasingly outspoken about human rights violations in El Salvador - particularly after the murder of his close friend Father Rutilio Grande. After repeatedly condemning poverty and injustice, he was shot dead while celebrating Mass on 24 March 1980.

35 years later, Archbishop Romero will be beatified - or declared "Blessed" - on 23rd May as a prelude to being made a Saint. CAFOD staff including Clare Dixon, the agency's Head of Latin America, will attend the celebration in San Salvador.

CAFOD has a long history of working with Archbishop Romero and promoting his legacy. In the 1970s, CAFOD supported Romero's famous radio broadcasts, which - at a time when the press was heavily censored - were often the only means by which people in El Salvador knew the truth about the atrocities occurring in their country. When Romero's radio station was blown up, CAFOD provided funding to rebuild it.

After Romero was martyred, the aid agency's staff successfully petitioned Lambeth Council to rename the Brixton street where their office was located 'Romero Close'. And when CAFOD moved to a new office in 2009, it was named 'Romero House'. Today, CAFOD continues to work in El Salvador, helping farmers to improve their crops, assisting communities in reducing the risk of disasters, supporting people living with HIV, building peace, defending human rights and trying to create a more just society.

Chris Bain said: "I think Archbishop Romero would be pleased to see some of what is happening in El Salvador today. In 2013, one socially-minded government peacefully succeeded another, and they are consciously trying to implement policies that Romero would approve of: fiscal reform, free school uniforms and books for children, funding for cooperatives, more social programmes.

"But El Salvador remains a country in the grip of inequality, and the legacy of the civil war continues to cause divisions. All around the world hundreds of millions of people live in poverty or under oppressive regimes. The world as a whole desperately needs more figures like Romero - leaders with the courage and faith to stand up for the poor against injustice."