Lilliam Solórzano de Brenes, mother of Cardinal Leopoldo Brenes, archbishop of Managua, passed away this Thursday morning, September 29, after months battling multiple ailments.
«The Archdiocese of Managua communicates with deep sorrow that this morning Mrs. Lilliam Solórzano de Brenes, Mother of His Eminence Cardinal Leopoldo José Brenes, Metropolitan Archbishop of Managua, passed away. The Archdiocesan Clergy joins in prayer and send their condolences to the archbishop and family,” says the official statement from the Catholic Church.
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Funeral services will begin this Thursday at 3:00 pm It will be veiled at his home, and then mass will be held on Friday at 10 am in the Managua Cathedral, followed by his burial in Ticuantepe. “We pray for his soul and we ask God to give consolation to the archbishop and to his entire family,” says the Archdiocese of Managua.
In August, Cardinal Leopoldo Brenes canceled an important trip to Rome, where he was to meet with Pope Francis, to accompany his hospitalized mother. Both had a close relationship, they lived together in the Altagracia neighborhood and in recent years he had had several health relapses due to his age.
Monsignor Silvio Báez sent his “deepest condolences to my brother bishop, Cardinal Leopoldo J. Brenes, Archbishop of Managua, for the death of his mother, Doña Lilliam Solórzano de Brenes. May the Lord receive Doña Lilliam in her eternal kingdom and grant strength and hope to the cardinal and his family”, expressed the auxiliary bishop of Managua in a tweet.
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Catholic media have also shown solidarity with the departure of Solórzano de Brenes “who today has been called to the Father’s house, we pray for his family, especially for the strength of our pastor,” Radio Maria said through social networks.
In 2014, in statements to El Nuevo Diario, the archbishop’s mother expressed her closeness to her son, to the point that sometimes the priest sleeps “at the edge of my bed, puts mattresses or pillows in case I fall, and when I’m sick, she moves to my room to take care of me at night”, narrated Doña Lilliam.
