Many traveled up to twelve hours from different States to listen to his homily, hug him and share a common feeling: that of freedom for the country where they all originate. This Sunday, dozens of exiles received Monsignor Silvio Báez in Chicago.
The demand for justice for the murders, freedom to return home and for political prisoners, plus a return to democracy for Nicaragua, was revitalized during the meeting that took place on Sunday, May 7, in the Santa María del Lake, Chicago.
“This shows that wherever we are, we will always be a people in resistance,” said a citizen who, at the end of the mass, lined up to greet Bishop Báez and take a souvenir photo.
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During the religious service, Monsignor Baez celebrated a mass for the freedom of Nicaragua. During his reflection, he recalled the victims of the repression of April 2018. According to the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR), the regime, its police and parapolice are responsible for murdering 355 citizens opposed to the dictatorship of Daniel Ortega and Rosario Murillo.
message of hope
Bishop Báez called on the exiles not to give up. “Let’s dream of a new homeland where there are no oppressors or oppressed, where the dignity and rights of all are respected,” he said.
He explained that in that country “we must all be able to renounce particular interests, to share our assets in peace and justice, where dissenting from power is not a crime,” he said before a crowd that applauded his words with joy.
“I have cried when listening to Monsignor Báez, his words give me hope to return to Nicaragua and enjoy the freedom that we so long for,” reacted a young woman from Jinotega. Another citizen who said that she traveled up to five hours to attend the religious event mentioned that “hope for the end of the dictatorship is alive.”
“It is possible to continue organizing and resisting for a better tomorrow, I have come with my whole family and we return strengthened by the voice of the pastor who encourages us in this fight,” he said.
Opposition leader Juan Sebastián Chamorro thanked Monsignor Báez for his visit and his words at a time when exiles need them. “Our pastors have also suffered, they are pastors of the people and we have seen that it is one more barbarism of the regime against them, but they have been here and continue to alleviate, sharing hopes,” he said.
For the Nicaraguan opposition Irlanda Jerez, one of the 94 people who the Government of Nicaragua recently stripped of their nationality and who was also a political prisoner of the regime, said that the priests, especially that of bishops such as Báez and Monsignor Rolando Álvarez, are prophetic voices and that is why the dictator has persecuted them. “They are like Moses, leading their people,” she noted.
clear path
Another who reacted in the meeting this Sunday was the former presidential candidate and political exile Félix Maradiaga. He assured that Bishop Báez’s message was more than clear about the route to be taken for Nicaragua to return to democracy.
“It invites us to create a political structure that leads us to represent in clearer ways the different voices and the diversity that Monsignor Báez himself has expressed,” Maradiaga explained. He believes that the opposition factions in exile are on the right path and not lost as others think. “Maybe working in different ways. There is brotherhood between the main opposition leaders and I am very optimistic, ”he assured at the end of the homily.
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At the end of the mass there was a long line of Nicaraguans waiting in the gardens of the Santa María del Lago parish to hug Bishop Báez and take a picture with him. “It’s a dream come true,” said a visibly moved citizen to be able to hug him, while she held a flag of the Catholic Church.
“This visit by Monsignor Báez and the reception show the overwhelming support of the people for the Church and the bishops,” said another exiled citizen.
By: United Voices
