The president of the Nicaraguan Episcopal Conference (CEN), Bishop Carlos Enrique Herrerareported this Friday on the cancellation of the traditional procession of Jesus in the Sacrament, called for January 1st and which is usually attended by thousands of Catholics.
The Catholic hierarch, who is bishop of the diocese of Jinotega, explained through a public statement “that for reasons beyond our control, the traditional procession of Jesus Sacramento, scheduled for January 1, is suspended,” without further details.
Meanwhile, the Archdiocese of Managua he directed all his parishes to carry out their activities inside the temples, at the same time that he announced a day of prayer for the arrival of the New Year. Neither Cardinal Leopoldo Brenes nor the Government have given explanations in this regard.
The diocese of León and Chinandega, one of the largest in Nicaragua, also announced its official programming for Sunday, January 1, which did not include the traditional procession of Jesus in the Sacrament, and directed the priests that day to a Holy Hour , the Eucharist and the blessing with Jesus in the Sacrament at the parish level.
This is the third consecutive year that the January 1st procession does not leave the catholic temples. Previously, in 2020 this activity was suspended due to the covid-19 pandemic; and in 2019 it was carried out under great tension despite the police siege imposed by the Daniel Ortega regime.
Ortega’s war against the Church
Last October, Ortega attacked the Catholic Church led by Pope Francis, accusing it of not practicing democracy, of being a “dictatorship” and a “perfect tyranny” and of having used “its bishops in Nicaragua to carry out a coup of State” to his Government in the framework of the demonstrations that broke out in April 2018 and that his regime brutally repressed, leaving more than 350 dead.
On December 13, the Bishop of Matagalpa and Apostolic Administrator of the Diocese of Estelí, Monsignor Rolando Alvarezwas charged for the alleged crimes of conspiracy to undermine national integrity and propagation of false news through information and communication technologies to the detriment of the State and Nicaraguan society.
The arrest and accusation against Bishop Álvarez along with seven other priests and two other collaborators is the most recent chapter of a particularly turbulent year for the Catholic Church in Nicaragua.
This year, the Sandinista government expelled the apostolic nuncio from the country Waldemar Stanislaw Sommertag and 18 nuns from the Missionaries of Charity order, founded by Mother Teresa of Calcutta.
It has also shut down nine radio stations and pulled three Catholic channels from subscription television programming.
The Police have also entered by force and raided a parish, preventing parishioners from receiving the Eucharist inside the temple and besieging other priests in their churches, among others.
