He Nicaraguan priest Erick Díazcelebrated his first Eucharist in the Church of Santa María del Lago and Nuestra Señora de Lourdes, in Chicago, United States, where he was welcomed after being forced into exile in September 2022.
The religious’s first mass, this Sunday, February 19, was offered in thanksgiving for the release of 222 political prisoners and to unite in prayer for the release of the bishop of Matagalpa, Monsignor Rolando Alvarez.
“Just like me, thousands of Nicaraguans have had to leave our homeland for the simple fact of dreaming and wanting a decent country for everyone. The Church could not remain silent when the first Nicaraguans were exiled, when they murdered more than 300 young people, when we looked at the brother who was going through pain, the Church only asked for peace as is its mission, the Church only asked for justice and freedom because it should always be a torch of freedom and light in the midst of pain. That has been the Nicaraguan Church, especially some with a greater commitment to the Gospel,” said the father.
The priest —who maintained that he is still Nicaraguan, despite the fact that the regime of Daniel Ortega and Rosario Murillo declared him stateless— reiterated that, as a Church, they continue to defend human dignity because, he explained, “we are created in the image and likeness of God, (and) for this reason whoever attacks, violates or sullys the dignity of man, is also sullying God”.
However, he also urged to love and forgive those who persecute them, and recalled that “it is never too late to turn to God.”
Monsignor Rolando Álvarez is the bishop of peace
During his Sunday homilythe priest, a member of the diocese of Matagalpa, stressed that Monsignor Rolando Alvarez he always preached to them “no to hatred, no to confrontation, no to violence.”
«He said that we must avoid hatred and violence because if that happens, hatred becomes revenge and, under the premise of justice, justice leads us to eliminate the “other”, to destroy those who think differently. That should not be so, the wealth of the world is that we are all different, “said the religious.
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In turn, he indicated that there is no certainty that Monsignor Alvarez refused to board the plane to leave the country together with the 222 exiled prisoners of conscience, “what is true is that he embraced the Cross out of love for his brothers, for his homeland. He is the bishop of peace, of non-violence, which he loves to the extreme and who continues to suffer for love ».
Chicago cardinal calls for an end to religious persecution in Nicaragua
For his part, he Reverend Manuel Dorantesparish priest of the Santa María del Lago church, welcomed the priest Díaz and the released prisoners who attended the thanksgiving mass.
During the reception, Father Dorantes read a message sent by the Cardinal of Chicago, Blase Joseph Cupich, to the people of Nicaragua, in which he states that, “in solidarity with the suffering Church of Nicaragua, he has offered hospitality and welcome to a brave priest who, with many of his brothers, remained united to his bishop as a witness to human rights from his town. The Chicago church is blessed to have them with us.”
The American cardinal also called for the “immediate cessation of the systematic persecution of the Church in Nicaragua, through false accusations, the closure of Catholic radio stations, the blocking of access to churches and other serious acts that violate religious freedom and the social order”.
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In the mass participated the released politicians Antonio Zelaya Sevilla, Jerling Uriel Cruz Ortiz and Lazaro Ernesto Rivas Perezwho will be living in the Chicago area.
