Mayhem in Mexico
03.09.2009
Danger and death
South of the border down Mexico way there is danger and death.
Eight of my 31 years as a Columban priest have been spent in the city of Ciudad Juarez, Mexico, which has become one of the world’s most violent cities as a result of the drug wars which have engulfed Mexico.
Recently we received word that three of our parishioners had been stoned to death in a gully not far from the Church. One of the victims, Mario Lopez Roma, was well-known to us because he served in the Confirmation program in recent years.
Mario was 21 years of age when a group of well-armed men dragged both him and his future brother- in-law to the gully where both, after brutal torture, were stoned to death in the early hours of the morning.
On the following day we went to pray at the execution site along with his father and younger brother. That still grisly site will remain forever in my memory.
As a priest I am a witness to all that is noble in the human spirit. I am also a witness to that cruelty which human beings seem to excel in... at times.
Suffice to say that I have new insight into the stoning martyrdom of St Stephan, given the appalling nature of this mode of death.
Our parish of Corpus Christi has been the scene of many executions during the past year... along with the 1,605 people executed in 2008 in Juarez and the 700 already killed in the first half of 2009.
Some days after the funeral my colleague Fr Denis O’Mara and I accompanied by the immediate families of the dead, plus some of the good people of the parish celebrated an outdoor Mass next to the now infamous gully for the repose of the souls of the dead men.
As we say in Australian English... ‘the place gives me the creeps!’
However, we felt it important to bring the symbols of Christ’s love for us to such a place and to console the parents and friends of the dead men.
In the midst of such a violent city, we wanted to remind people that the commandment “Do not kill” was still in effect - hadn’t been cancelled - that each person’s life is a priceless gift from God, never to be done away with cruelty and with total disregard.
In our Parish Council meetings we often reflect on our fears about the outrageous killings which occurs amongst this truly noble, brave and welcoming people. Please pray for the Mexican people as they respond to the Lord’s invitation to love and forgive even in the midst of injustice, impunity and corruption.
The Drug Wars
The Drug Wars on the US/Mexican border are destroying so many young lives.
In a recent Sunday morning I was approached by a young, tearful woman who asked me to pray for a special intention. I agreed to do so and enquired if she wished to share the nature of her request with me.
She replied that she had the trunk of her husband’s body - recently executed in the ongoing Mexican Drug War - but was unable to find his head! For that reason she wanted the prayers of the community for her intention.
Never before had I been approached for prayer about such a distressful need!
In the eight years that I have been parish priest of Corpus Christi in Rancho Anapra, I have been a witness to the nobility, deep faith and humour of the Mexican people… and also the consequences of human violence and cruelty.
I ask myself, ‘How do people survive, how do they cope with these major disasters in their lives?’ The only reply is through their practical faith in the Good Lord and the solidarity of the Catholic community.
The ongoing Drug Wars in Mexico have produced a large number of fatal casualties with more than 2,500 casualties in our city of Ciudad Juarez alone during the last 18 months. On a recent tranquil night, I was informed of the death by stoning of three young parishioners in a gully not far from the church.
No one knows for sure why they were killed, and many for prudence sake, don’t want to know, starting with myself! Some people have said that they were killed because of drug-related trafficking. Others have said that the drug traffickers were angered by the young men’s custom of helping people to cross the US/ Mexican border, thus incurring the attention of the vigilant Border Patrol and thereby putting the heat on the drug traffickers.
How many tears have been shed in our city? Impossible to count. It’s unlikely that this war will end, given the high stakes involved and the profits for those at the centre of the drug distribution. One of my parish neighbours shared with me the thought that our city has a fair bit of suffering to experience yet.
Still and all… there is and always has existed in this famous of Mexican cities a profound bravery and determination amongst the people to live, create and participate in the life of the Catholic faith community. I am privileged to be a part of that indomitable Mexican spirit to live with dignity and to overcome the desperate and violent challenges that face us.
Fr Kevin Mullins has lived in Anapra for eight years. Previously he worked in Chile. He was ordained in 1978.
Read more stories from the September, The Far East
