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From Fides ServiceJune 16, 2009
The Mexican Bishops' Conference has issued a
statement in which they decry the murders of a priest and two seminarians, which
took place on June 13 in Ciudad de Arcelia (Guerrero) and sent their condolences
to Bishop Maximino Martinez Miranda of Ciudad Altamirano, the Seminary and the
families that are suffering as a result of this occurrence and the irreparable
loss of their loved ones.
The statement reads: “We also decry the violence that is plaguing our country
and we ask the corresponding authorities on all levels of government to conduct
a prompt investigation and to find out who has been responsible for this
cowardly crime.” They end by asking everyone to join in prayer for the Diocese,
the Seminary, and the families, “that the Lord may give them strength and
consolation soon.”
The victims were Fr. Habacuc Hernandez Benitez, 39 years of age, Vocations
Coordinator for the Diocese of Altamirano, along with two young men: Eduardo
Oregón Benítez, 19, and Silvestre González Cambrón, 21, both of Ajuchitlan
(Guerrero). The three were killed on their way to a meeting for Vocations
Ministry on Saturday evening in Arcelia, Tierra Caliente (Guerrero). According
to the Director of the Police Investigation Department, around 7pm on Saturday,
they were driving in a pick-up truck, down one of the main streets of Argelia,
when all of a sudden another car approached them and forced them out of the
truck, firing on them with several 9 mm caliber bullets.
A wake was held for them at the Seminary of Ciudad Altamirano and on Monday,
their bodies were taken to their hometowns. On Sunday, Archbishop Felipe Aguirre
Franco of Acapulco, after celebrating a Mass at the Church of “Nuestra Señora de
la Soledad,” gave a press conference in which he affirmed that the specifics of
the case remain unknown. “It is a low blow to Guerrero and for the Church of the
Diocese of Altamirano; we are grieved by the death of the priest and the young
men,” the Archbishop said.
“We become hostages in this violent confrontation of getting even with those
above us, this is also contagious among people, as they imitate these violent
acts and they want to live as if it were a jungle,” said Archbishop Aguirre
Franco. He also explained that in that part of the country, the law of settling
differences and getting even is with a gun and bloodshed. “It is a society that
is 'Cain-izing' itself with brothers killing brothers.” He also mentioned that
the armed forces are 'not enough' in resolving the problems of drug trafficking
and violence, which is why there should be activities that address the problem
in its entirety, especially as it seems the area is entering into an endless
war.
The Archdiocese of Mexico City also issued a statement denouncing the death of
the priest and seminarians in Guerrero. “Any act of violence is deplorable in
and of itself, even more so when it concerns persons consecrated to God, which
increases the guilt of the murderers,” the statement said. Thus, the
corresponding authorities are asked to perform a thorough investigation for the
crime and to punish those responsible according to the Law. The Archdiocese also
mentioned its prayers to God “for the eternal rest of the victims of this
cowardly crime” and unite themselves to the suffering of the faithful of Ciudad
Altamirano and the Archdiocese of Acapulco. (RG)
