Honduras: The Latest Developments - 7/17/2009

First, we are pleased to report that Enrique Ortez Colindres, the coup government's foreign minister who called President Obama a "negrito", has resigned, citing pressure from the U.S. Embassy. The U.S. Embassy says it didn't exert any pressure for him to resign even though it did protest his slur against the president.

The New York Times reports that some progress is being made in negotiations over the future of Honduras but that the central issue of the presidency is unresolved. Micheletti has said he will step down...but not if Zelaya comes back as president, which he is threatening to do shortly.

Massive blockades by Zelaya supporters are going on at this time and, in an act of solidarity, FMLN sympathizers are blockading several customs points on the El Salvador-Honduras border to affect trade. The curfew was lifted for a few days but has now been reimposed.

Meanwhile, the Comité de Familiares de Detenidos Desaparecidos en Honduras (COFADEH), which is keeping systematic track of these matters, has issued a preliminary report (.doc) showing over 1,155 cases of human rights violations since the coup began. 59 people have been injured or beaten and one demonstrator, 19-year-old Isis Obed Murillo Mencías, was killed by a shot in the head. There have been more than 1,000 people detained, most of them for curfew violations associated with public demonstrations. Additional human rights violations involve impeding or threatening members of the media and shutting down radio stations.

As for the Catholic hierarchy in Honduras, a Zenit article titled "Church Not Taking Sides in Honduras, Says Cardinal" is fairly lathered with His Excellency's bias against the Zelaya administration. Excerpting with added emphasis:

"The Church," [Cardinal Óscar Rodríguez Maradiaga] added, "is not on anyone's side. The Church seeks reconciliation, peace, the search for understanding through dialogue."

Oh, yeah? What about:

"The prelate noted that among the "followers of the preceding regime, there are also many Catholics acting in good faith, since they do not have all the information."?

And:

"Political parties can be legitimate, can have a different way of thinking, but this does not in any way justify a violation of the law," he continued. "If we look back, we find that no law has been respected because the first one in violating it is the highest authority." ?

"Not taking sides"?? Check out what His Excellency said in another interview with Die Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung as reported by John Rosenthal of American Spectator:

Rodríguez said that it was "absurd" to qualify Zelaya's removal as a military coup, noting that "there is not a single military official that in any way belongs to the [current "de facto"] government." Accusing Zelaya not only of violating the Honduran constitution, but also of misappropriating international development aid, he insisted that the aim of negotiations "cannot be to bring about Zelaya's return to Honduras and his restoration to the President's office. The man has shown that he is dishonest and incapable of governing within the limits of the constitution."

"During the crisis, the parliament and the justice system have shown that they are functioning well," Cardinal Rodríguez told the FAZ, "Now everything depends on strengthening these institutions and not following the path taken by Venezuela, Bolivia or Ecuador in systematically discrediting democratic institutions."

And in another interview with El Mundo as reported by Reuters, Rodriguez said of Zelaya:

"He doesn't have any authority, moral or legal...The legal authority he lost because he broke laws and the moral authority he lost with a discourse full of lies. The most patriotic thing he could do is stay away. Anything else is just trying to impose Hugo Chavez's project at all costs."

Por favor, Monseñor Cardenal, deje de mentir porque no estás engañando a nadie. No one is fooled by your "non-aligned" rhetoric.

A couple of happy endings...

A couple of updates on some of our prior blog postings:

1. Remember Águeda Domíguez? She was the legal immigrant from El Salvador who was beaten by a police officer in Manassas Park back in February during a routine traffic stop because she didn't understand English and refused to sign the citation he gave her. Well, according to El Tiempo Latino today, Domínguez was found innocent of all traffic charges after a trial yesterday. She is still considering whether to file a complaint against the police department for her mistreatment.

2. And what about Zach Bonner, the 11-year-old kid from Florida who started out in May to walk all the way to Washington, DC to raise money for homeless children through his Little Red Wagon Foundation? According to the Washington Post, after 650 miles, Zach made it to the Capitol. "The walk has raised about $50,000, Zach's mother says, some of which will go to a playground at an emergency foster-care shelter in Tampa and for bedding, computers and other supplies at Sasha Bruce Youthwork, which helps runaways and homeless youths in the District. Some of it they spent along the way, on projects at homeless shelters..." Now that the walk is over, Zach is encouraging people to write to President Obama and ask him to remember the needs of the estimated 1.3 million homeless children in America.

Thousands more people forced to flee from Colombia’s armed conflict

A new report from Amnesty International on the increase in number of internally displaced persons as a result of the violence in Colombia. For the record, it should be added that the Uribe administration was quick to respond that AI's numbers were inflated. According to Armando Escobar of Acción Social, the presidential agency for displacement, 180,000 Colombians were forced to leave their home because of violence in the country in 2008, fewer than half the number given by Amnesty. Escobar suggests that the rise is a statistical artifact caused by a ruling by the State Council that allowed people that had been displaced in an earlier year to register. The same ruling ordered children of displaced families to be registered as well, something that was not done before.


Amnesty International
16 July 2009

Between 3 and 4 million people in Colombia have now been forced to leave their homes because of the country's long-running armed conflict. At least a further 500,000 are believed to have fled to neighbouring countries.

The number of internally displaced people in Colombia is now amongst the highest in the world. The number is still rising according to a new Amnesty International document, published on Thursday.

Everything left behind: Internal displacement in Colombia says that around 380,000 people were forced to flee their homes in 2008. That is an increase of over 24 per cent from 2007, according to the figures supplied by human rights organization CODHES (Consultoría para los Derechos Humanos y el Desplazamiento).

"The dire humanitarian situation in Colombia is one of today's most hidden tragedies, and belies claims by the Colombian government that the country has overcome its troubled past," said Marcelo Pollack, Deputy Director of Amnesty International's Americas programme.

Most displaced people are escaping violence arising from Colombia's 40-year-long internal armed conflict. Guerrilla groups, paramilitaries and the security forces have targeted many of them deliberately. Often, the aim is to remove whole communities from areas of military, strategic or economic importance.

The great majority of those affected are Indigenous Peoples, Afro-Descendants and campesinos, many of whom live in areas of interest to the parties to the conflict.

Much of the wealth accumulated by the paramilitaries and their backers in politics and business has been based on the misappropriation of land through violence or the threat of violence. Some estimate that between 4 and 6 million hectares of land owned by thousands of campesinos, Indigenous Peoples and Afro-descendants have been stolen this way.

Most displaced people have to flee their homes very suddenly, in situations where their lives were under imminent threat. Some become separated from their families or communities and are forced to leave, taking only what they can carry. Most go on to face discrimination wherever they go and no prospect of ever being able to return home.

A displaced person told an Amnesty International delegate in Colombia: "It was my turn to get out of the area. The violence had worn me down. The PM [paramilitaries], the army and the guerrillas are all there. [One of these groups] sent me a note saying they were going to kill me. One night a guy with a weapon came to my house. He gave us a fright. It was 8 o’clock at night. He was up to no good. He was circling round the house with a weapon, none of the family saw him but a neighbour did. They told us, you’d better get out. I left with my family, including my eldest daughter and her son. There are seven of us altogether."

Amnesty International has called on all parties to the conflict to respect the right of civilians not to be dragged into the conflict.

The organization has also urged the Colombian authorities to take effective measures to prevent forced displacement, improve the protection of civilians and to identify and return all stolen lands and other assets to their rightful owners or their families.

"Until the Colombian authorities acknowledge the very real effects of the conflict, the human rights of millions of people have little chance of being protected," said Marcelo Pollack.

FULL TEXT OF AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL REPORT:

• Everything Left Behind: Internal displacement in Colombia
  
• Todo Queda Atrás: Desplazamiento Interno en Colombia
  

Let's give Obama a chance to reduce the abortion rate

Last night, I got my conference registration materials for Camino a Emaús: The Word of God and Latino Catholics at the end of this month at Notre Dame and receiving them -- plus some other stories -- made me think again of the polarizing brouhaha surrounding President Obama's Commencement Address at that institution. I'm glad to be able to support Notre Dame in a small way by attending this conference since they showed themselves to still be a beacon of academic freedom.

One of the main protagonists in that donnybrook was Randall Terry, the leader of Operation Rescue, who is continuing his divisive tactics by disrupting the confirmation hearings for Judge Sonia Sotomayor. Terry, unlike anyone else, thinks he knows Sotomayor's position on abortion, thinks he knows that for a fact she will never vote in a way that overturns Roe v. Wade. This is simply not a conclusion that can be reached from the available evidence. There is no decision pattern in this matter that can be relied on to predict how this nominee might rule if she makes it to the U.S. Supreme Court and in the hearings, Judge Sotomayor has steadfastly refused to "rule" on hypothetical cases presented to her by various senators. Meanwhile, Terry's tactics again only serve to drive a wedge between the pro-life movement and minorities -- in the case of his anti-Obama actions, African Americans, and in this case, Hispanics who overwhelmingly champion Judge Sotomayor's candidacy.

Pro-life Catholics need to stop, take a deep breath, give President Obama a chance and not jump to conclusions.

Perhaps we can take some guidance from our Pope who managed to have a very cordial meeting with President Obama where he did bring up bioethical issues and even presented the President with a copy of Dignitas Personae, the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith's instructions on this matter in addition to his own latest encyclical Caritas in Veritate. According to Vatican spokesman Rev. Federico Lombardi, SJ, Obama confirmed that "he has every intention, with the commitment of the government, to reduce as much as possible, the number of abortions."

Of course, the ink was barely dry on the Vatican press statement about the meeting before conservative American Catholics leaped into the fray. Deal Hudson, the director of the Morley Institute for Church & Culture, accused Obama of "misleading" the Pope and said that his new health care bill would actually increase abortions.

The conservatives are so hot to promote their mistrust of President Obama's will to reduce the number of abortions that the headline for the Catholic News Agency story on Dr. Regina Benjamin, Obama's nominee for Surgeon General reads "Catholic surgeon general nominee supports Obama abortion stance, White House says". While the White House did say that, we are stunned that the CNA would believe them over Monsignor Michael L. Farmer, the rector at the cathedral in Mobile, Alabama where Dr. Benjamin had served as a lector, who is also quoted in the article as saying that he does not “explicitly” know the nominee’s position on abortion and other life issues, but that to his knowledge she has been “in conformity with the Catholic Church." The article goes on to quote the White House spokesperson as saying of Dr. Benjamin that, like Obama, "she believes that this is an issue where it is important to try and seek common ground and come together to try and reduce the number of unintended pregnancies." The retired Archbishop of Mobile, Msgr. Oscar Lipscomb has also said that, to the best of his knowledge, Dr. Benjamin's positions are consistent with those of the church.

Several major Catholic health organizations have expressed pleasure at the nomination. Lloyd Dean, CEO of Catholic Healthcare West, said: "I am delighted that President Obama has selected Dr. Benjamin for this important position." He added: "As national health care reform continues to move forward in our nation's capital, she will be a strong voice for efforts to improve the health and well being of all in need." Sr. Carol Keehan, CEO of the Catholic Health Association, opined that "this nation is so fortunate to have Regina (Benjamin) as surgeon general."

Dr. Benjamin is founder and CEO of Bayou La Batre Rural Health Clinic in Bayou La Batre, Ala. She is renowned for her outreach to the poor, seeing patients regardless of their ability to pay for her services. When her clinic was destroyed by Hurricane Georges in 1998 and again by Hurricane Katrina in 2005, Benjamin personally financed a significant portion of its reconstruction.

Benjamin grew up attending Mass at the Shrine of Holy Cross Church in Daphne, Ala., which is in the Mobile Archdiocese. Benjamin's mother helped found the historically African-American parish on land procured by Benjamin's grandmother. For years the parish was run by the Josephite priests and today is staffed by the Missionary Society of St. Paul.

"If you look at her resume, she could have made a ton of money," Sister Keehan said. "Instead she chose to stay in one of the poorest communities in Alabama to take care of people."

Pope Benedict XVI awarded Benjamin the Pro Ecclesia et Pontifice Cross, a papal honor, in 2006. Lipscomb said Benjamin was nominated for the papal honor "first of all for her strong Catholic faith." The archbishop added that Benjamin's compassionate care for the poor also was a significant factor in her receiving the honor. "In the medical profession she has been outstanding, particularly for poor people," he said.

Lipscomb expressed delight at Dr. Benjamin's nomination to the post of Surgeon General. "She is a person who has a great sense of responsibility and is authentic in her Catholicism."

Flash: Maybe President Obama is sincere in wanting to reach out to pro-life Catholics and try to find a common ground in reducing the number of abortions by methods other than criminalizing them. Shouldn't we at least give him a chance?

Gay altar server files human rights complaint against bishop

Just in case anyone thought I was exaggerating when I suggested in my previous post that gay people are being excluded from the Catholic Church ...

Peterborough bishop faces human rights complaint
Written by Michael Swan,
The Catholic Register,
July 9, 2009

Peterborough Bishop Nicola De Angelis and 12 parishioners at St. Michael’s parish in Cobourg, Ont., face an Ontario Human Rights Tribunal (not the 'Commission', as previously reported) complaint that could cost the parishioners $20,000 each and the diocese of Peterborough $25,000 plus legal fees.

Jim Corcoran brought the complaint after he was asked to give up his position as an altar server at Sunday Masses. Corcoran was dismissed from all duties on the altar after 12 parishioners wrote a letter to De Angelis questioning the presence of a gay man serving at the altar of St. Michael’s.

“There are laws in Ontario,” Corcoran told The Catholic Register. “Those laws say that it is unlawful to discriminate against people for a number of reasons, one of which is sexual orientation.”

“There’s no evidence at all to suggest that we were trying to be discriminatory or that we have some sort of distaste for people of same-sex orientation, or any of this,” said Gerry Lawless, one of the 12 who complained to De Angelis about Corcoran’s presence on the altar.

De Angelis has forwarded a copy of the complaint and the parishioners’ letter to his lawyer.

De Angelis and the 12 parishioners have until July 28 to respond to Corcoran’s complaint. Both sides have opted for mediation. Sixty-five to 70 per cent of Ontario Human Rights Tribunal complaints are resolved through mediation, avoiding the tribunal process. Only if mediation is unsuccessful will the complaint go on to a tribunal hearing.

Corcoran claims the 12 parishioners have misinterpreted entries on his blog (http://steannes.blogspot.com/) to draw false conclusions about him.

“I’m a chaste homosexual and practise my faith,” he said.

While Corcoran does live with another gay man, they are devout Catholics who refrain from sexual activity in accordance with church teaching, he said.

“Unless I’m actively flaunting my sexual preference in the Catholic Church to recruit other homosexuals or to promote homosexuality — I can see how people might take offence to that and how that might fly in the face of what the Pope is trying to do in terms of the priesthood — but just serving on the altar as a man?” said Corcoran.

By complaining to De Angelis about Corcoran the 12 parishioners had intended to express their unhappiness with St. Michael’s pastor Fr. Allan Hood, said Reg Ward, one of the authors of the letter to De Angelis. They blamed Hood for inviting Corcoran and his roommate to become altar servers.

“It was just one more way of Fr. Hood saying he’s boss and to hell with everybody else, like what the church is saying and everybody else,” said Ward.

Hood refused to speak with The Catholic Register on the record, citing diocesan policy against priests speaking to the media.

Ward and Lawless have written a series of letters to De Angelis complaining about Hood since he was appointed to St. Michael’s in July 2008. Ward claims the dissatisfaction with Hood runs deeper than just 12 parishioners in one of the Peterborough diocese’s larger parishes.

“Dorothy (Ward’s wife) and I know personally 25 or 30 who have left the church, are going to church elsewhere,” Ward said. “We know some of them who aren’t going to church at all.”

For Corcoran, his time as head altar server prior to Easter was spiritually enriching.

“For me spiritually, in terms of my spiritual development, I was just full of joy come Easter Sunday. Holy Thursday, I’ve never been so moved,” he said.

While Corcoran did have a brief conversation with De Angelis about the decision to remove him from the altar, he has not spoken to any of the 12 who complained about his presence.

The 12 parishioners did not consider speaking directly with Corcoran before complaining to De Angelis, said Lawless.

“We were simply responding to the situation. We didn’t know exactly what was the policy, or anything. We weren’t in a position to talk to him,” he said.

Corcoran said De Angelis urged him to take his dismissal from the altar in the spirit of Paul’s advice to the Romans on the issue of meat sacrificed to idols (Romans 14:13-23) — refraining from scandal. Instead the bishop should have confronted the 12 parishioners and their prejudice, as well as their attempts to get rid of their pastor, Corcoran said.

“This is a man (De Angelis) who needs some help in understanding how to deal with confrontation in his diocese. The Human Rights Commission helps people do that,” he said.

The monetary penalties aren’t the major issue, according to Corcoran, who employs 150 people as owner of St. Anne’s Spa in Grafton, Ont.

“I’m not in it for the money, but I think that if there weren’t some penalties then these people wouldn’t take it seriously,” he said. “I just think that the bishop has to make things right in this diocese. He has to stand up for his priests, and he has to stand up for all his parishioners.”

“We have not discriminated. We have simply asked the bishop to act on a situation which we had been informed on very good authority was in violation of church policy,” said Lawless.

The 12 will seek a dismissal of the complaint, he said.

A new old voice for Church reform

An interesting pair of news stories this week from the dissenting wing of the Catholic Church:

First comes the news that Voice of the Faithful (VOTF), the group that was founded during the height of the Church sex abuse scandals, is on the ropes economically. Bill Casey, chairman of VOTF's board of trustees, said that after meeting in an emergency session on July 9, the board decided it was faced with two choices: either cease operations or make an emergency appeal to members. He said the board is hoping to raise $60,000 by the end of this month to pay operating expenses for July and August. An emergency letter of appeal was sent to VOTF members and supporters. The group has already had to cut salaries and contracts and, if money doesn't start to come in, they will have to close their Needham, Mass. office and operate on a volunteer basis.

Second, as VOTF is languishing, a new group, American Catholic Council, is being born.

The first three names on American Catholic Council's Articles of Incorporation are officers and a trustee of VOTF: Daniel Bartley (President, VOTF), Janet Hauter (Vice President, VOTF), John D. Hushon (Trustee, VOTF). Also listed is journalist and former Jesuit priest Robert Blair Kaiser, author of Clerical Error (the story of the late Malachi Martin), A Church in Search of Itself: Benedict XVI and the Battle for the Future and, most recently Cardinal Mahony: A Novel in which Kaiser posits a concept of an "American Catholic Church" similar to the vision articulated by this new organization. Other signatories to the Articles of Incorporation are Dr. Leonard Swidler, a professor of Catholic Thought and Interreligious Dialogue at Temple University, and Arline Nosse, who has been involved in a variety of philanthropic endeavors in the greater Cleveland area and who sits on the board of FutureChurch.

In its initial declaration, the American Catholic Council says:

After years of dialogue and experience with the often-unrealized reforms set in motion by the Second Vatican Council, the American Catholic Council, a coalition of representatives of organizations, communities and individuals, calls for a representative assembly of the Catholic Church in the United States to consider the state of our Church.

We do this because the Signs of the Times reveal a serious deterioration in the life of the Catholic Church in our country: We see:

• Closed parishes, broken communities, and unavailable sacraments.
  
  
• Sexually-abused children and young people and ineffective clerical response to correct this institutional sin.
  
  
• Dwindling financial support and widespread fiscal mismanagement.
  
  
• Paternalistic, monarchical leadership that is often unresponsive, repressive, and ineffective.
  
  
• A seriously compromised social justice mission–because internal institutional justice is lacking.
  
  
• Catholics abandoning the Church with demoralizing frequency.
  
  
• A community starved for a spirituality that fits our modern lives, consistent with out maturity, experience and education.

We acknowledge co-responsibility for these conditions for no community can be governed without its implicit or explicit consent. We “consent” with financial and personal support, with participation, or, often, with passivity.

We do not challenge the faith we were given or the essential beliefs of our creeds and councils. We do know that this faith is not tied to the governance structure of any one historical period or culture. We seek a Church in which all the baptized have an effective voice in decision-making and a ministry worthy of their calling.

We are wise enough to know that we shall never have a perfect Church. We do not, however, want to be far from a Church that is free and honest, even if it is one in which we are called at times to uncomfortable accountability and responsibility.

We seek a Church that is inclusive, compassionate, trustworthy, and representative.

We seek a Church that actively listens to the Spirit in its people and that worships and evangelizes in the fullness of that inspiration.

We seek a Church that addresses the spiritual hunger of all Catholics, including marginalized and former Catholics.

We seek to multiply the bread of the Eucharist so that a malnourished Catholic Community can encounter Christ with all the healing power of his sacramental presence through the preservation of parish community and a radically inclusive theology of ministry.

We seek reform of the governing structures in our Church so that they reflect the better aspects of the American experience: a democratic spirit, concern for human rights, freedom of speech and assembly, and a tradition of participation and representation.

AND WE SEEK TO DO THIS NOW...

Signatories to this declaration include the following organizations: Voice of the Faithful, FutureChurch, CORPUS, Women's Ordination Conference, National Coalition of American Nuns, Dignity USA, New Ways Ministry, Call To Action, Association for the Rights of Catholics in the Church, We Are Church, and Catholics for Choice among others.

American Catholic Council plans to hold a national meeting on June 10-11 (Pentecost), 2011 following a series of local assemblies with a view to bringing together Catholics who want to reform the Catholic Church or at least bring it back to the spirit of Vatican II.

The ACC's actions have already drawn fire from traditional Catholics. Deacon Keith Fournier writes: "I have come to a conclusion, we need to do more than simply report on the dissenters who seek to change the Church rather than change themselves. We need to respond with an informal coalition, perhaps called “Catholics by Choice”; representing Catholic Christians who knowingly choose to embrace the fullness of the Christian faith found within the full communion of the Catholic Church with gratitude, fidelity and evangelistic zeal. I am one of those Catholics and I invite the global readers of Catholic Online who share this desire to consider a response to this newest effort to dissent from the Church."

Fournier says we need to stand up and say: "I am proud to be Catholic". Well, Deacon, I am proud to be Catholic too but that doesn't mean I can't see, denounce, and try to address the problems in our Church. Being "proud" is more than just sitting quietly in the pews while watching good theologians being silenced, gays excluded, women treated as second class, priests leaving in droves, vocations steadily declining, and parishes closed down because we cannot be bothered to reenvision the priesthood. Pride alone will not stem the flow of Hispanic Catholics to the evangelical sects because their needs are not being addressed by the Roman Catholic Church. This kind of "love it or leave it" pride does not lead to a Church that is universal and thriving but more like the Marine Corps slogan: few, proud, but semper fidelis. But those who are driving miles every Sunday to find an open Catholic church or who cannot take communion because [insert one of myriad reasons here] are asking: Faithful to what? And to what end?

Pope Benedict XVI and Honduran men and women religious pray for Honduras

After praying the Angelus on Sunday morning, Pope Benedict XVI expressed his "profound concern" with which he was following recent events in Honduras:

"I would like today to invite you to pray for that dear country so that, by the maternal intercession of Our Lady of Suyapa, the leaders of the nation and all its inhabitants may patiently follow the path of dialogue, mutual understanding and reconciliation.

"This will be possible if, overcoming particularist tendencies, everyone strives to seek the truth and to pursue the common good with tenacity. This is the condition that will ensure peaceful coexistence and authentic democratic life. To the beloved Honduran people I give assurances of my prayers, and upon them I impart a special apostolic blessing".

The Conferencia de Religiosos/as de Honduras-CONFEREH ("Conference of Men and Women Religious of Honduras") also issued a communique on July 9th expressing their preoccupation about the social disruption resulting from the coup as well as the repressive measures being taken against coup opponents. They conclude:

"Llamamos a la población en general a confiar en el Señor, a mantener la esperanza y el compromiso en la construcción del Reino de Dios de justicia, de libertad y de paz. Nos unimos a todas las personas y organizaciones que hacen esfuerzos por restituir una democracia que garantice la equidad, la participación y el bienestar de todos y todas en Honduras. Que María de Suyapa, que supo leer proféticamente la historia de su pueblo, interceda por cada uno y una que vive en este suelo." ("We call on the general public to trust in the Lord, to keep the hope and commitment to building God's Kingdom of justice, freedom and peace. We unite with all people and organizations that are working for the restitution of a democracy that guarantees the equality, participation and wellbeing of all in Honduras. May Mary of Suyapa, who knew how to prophetically read the history of Her people, intercede for each and every one who lives in this land.")

Appealing to the Virgin of Suyapa is not as farfetched as it might seem given the fact that Our Lady has already intervened historically to protect Honduras. She has been credited with helping Honduras beat back the better-equipped forces of El Salvador during the so-called "Football War" in 1969. Many of the Honduran soldiers involved reported visions of the Virgin, which calmed their fears during the fighting.

Oración a Nuestra Señora de Suyapa, Patrona de Honduras

Virgencita de Suyapa bendice a todos los Hondureños, derrama tus bendiciones en cada uno de sus hogares.

Buen Señor Jesús, te pedimos por Tu Santísima Sangre, por Tus Llagas y con la interseción de Tu bellísima Madre, nuestra Madre, la Virgen María, que pronto se restablezca la paz, con estabilidad y esperanza para todos los tan amados habitantes y oriundos de la República de Honduras. Amén

Virgin of Suyapa, bless all Hondurans, pour out your blessings on every one of their homes.

Good Lord Jesus, we ask you through Your Holy Blood, through Your Wounds, and with the intercession of Your most beautiful Mother, our Mother, the Virgin Mary, that peace may soon be reestablished, with stability and hope for the beloved inhabitants and natives of the Republic of Honduras. Amen