News

Defender of faith honored

By Amanda Lauer
Compass Correspondent

APPLETON -- Green Bay Bp. David Zubik on March 10 joined some 600 people at St. Therese Parish in celebrating the 79th anniversary of the martyrdom of Blessed Elias Nieves.

The standing room only Mass marked Bp. Zubik's first visit to St. Therese Parish, which has nearly 1,000 Latino members. After Mass, he joined the community in a celebration at Plaza Azteca that included dances, singing, food and a play about Fr. Nieves' life.

The parishioners appreciated having their bishop in attendance said Jose Leon of Appleton. "It was wonderful. It was awesome. The majority of the population was very excited about having Bp. Zubik there."

Fr. Nieves, who had been the parochial vicar of La Canada de Caracheo in the state of Guanajuato, Mexico, was beatified by Pope John Paul II in 1997.

Many parishioners have roots in the Guanajuato area, said Carlos Herrera, Hispanic ministry coordinator for St. Therese.

"I think this is the second most important celebration after Our Lady of Guadalupe (the patron saint of Mexico) for these people," Herrera said. "This is a special saint that is important to them because there are some people that actually have relatives who lived at the same time as Fr. Elias. Their relatives suffered the same situation as Fr. Elias or they were parishioners of Fr. Elias."

Fr. Nieves was killed during the government's persecution of Catholics in the 1920s. The El Paso Community College Local History Project says the animosity between the Mexican government and the Catholic Church dates back to Mexico's 1857 constitution which gave the state administrative power over clerics and took authority from the church.

In 1917 Pres. Plutarco Elias Calles moved against the church by enforcing several articles in the constitution including: outlawing parochial education, closing all seminaries and convents, forbidding worship outside the church, prohibiting priests and nuns from wearing religious garb, and most importantly, taking away the clergy's rights to vote and free speech, thus prohibiting criticism of government officials and public affairs in religious publications.

On July 31, 1926, the Archbishop of Mexico declared the church could not accept the government's restraints and suspended all public worship. A small army of Catholic peasants calling itself Cristeros (followers of Christ) fought to regain religious freedom and pledged to become martyrs for the cause.

The government's open persecution of Catholics stopped in the late 1920s, but priests are still not allowed to own property, criticize government officials or comment on public affairs.

Leon said he has a special connection with Fr. Nieves. "My two uncles were killed because they were actually protecting the priest from the government."

A major in the Mexican army came upon Fr. Nieves and Leon's uncles, Leon said. "The major saw (Fr. Nieves) was dressed as a farmer until he saw his glasses and he got suspicious. He had his priest clothing under the farm clothes."

Leon's uncles refused to leave Fr. Nieves' side when he was arrested even after Fr. Nieves implored them to return to their families. The farmers were shot along side the road and shortly after Fr. Nieves was shot. His last words are said to have been, "Long live Christ the King."

Leon sees similarities between Fr. Nieves and Jesus Christ. "He knew exactly what was going to happen. They killed him at three in the afternoon, like Jesus."

Both Herrera and Leon said they hope the event becomes an annual celebration in the Fox Cities like it is in Mexico because it's important to celebrate a person willing to defend the Catholic faith.

"When the government asked all Catholic priests to leave their ministry and to go to Mexico City, (Fr. Nieves) refused to do that," said Leon. "He said, 'I want to be with my people. I want to continue with my work.' The community was really in love with this priest because he didn't want to abandon his people. He was killed because he wanted to be with them. He was a model of Jesus Christ because really he wanted to stay until the end."

Even though Catholicism is no longer openly persecuted in Mexico, the religious persecution of the 1920s is still felt. The government prohibits priests from owning property, criticizing government officials or commenting on public affairs. The state still does not recognize weddings performed by priests.