Not always the Pope (…) has all the data in his hand to be able to judge precisely a person or situation. The case of Archbishop Oscar Arnulf Romer, ordinary of San Salvador, comes to mind. For months, defamatory information about him came to the Vatican, portraying him as a communist, if not a diversionary, distorting the reality of what he was doing, his social commitment to the poor, his courageous denunciations against the government, against death squadrons, the perpetrators of intimidating crimes. This information was supported by almost all the Bishops of El Salvador, including the Nuncio at the time.
When Archbishop Romero went to the audience with the new Pope on May 7, 1979, he took with him a “memorandum” with all the evidence for his defense, and asked John Paul II to discuss his situation on the basis of this document. He clearly had no confidence in the information that was coming to the Vatican.
In the meantime, the Holy Father has understood exactly, regardless of the documentation received, how things are actually presented. He advised the Archbishop to maintain balance and prudence and advised him to deepen the unity of the episcopate. But also, he expressed support for his evangelical courage and his criticism of the Salvadoran regime. And so, not only he had a fundamentally positive impression of his encounter with him, but also, he helped him by conveying his comments and reflections in the Roman Curia.
A year later, when Archbishop Romero was barbarically murdered at the altar while he was celebrating a holy Mass, the Holy Father was deeply shocked. And, to show how he valued him, he went to pray on his grave during a visit to El Salvador (despite pressure and reluctance from the leadership of the Council of the Latino-American Episcopate). And, then during the jubilee ceremony at the Coliseum, commemorating the martyrs he wanted the name of Archbishop Romer to be included in prayer for Christians who gave their lives out of love for Christ and brothers and sisters in America.
With the permission of Cardinal Stanisław Dziwisz – “At the side of the Saint”
St. Stanislaw BM Publishing House, Krakow 2013
