At least fourteen priests, two seminarians and a bishop have been arrested in recent days. Cardinal Brenes expressed his closeness to the families and communities of the priests. Some churches did not hold scheduled masses and believers were asked to return home.
News from the Vatican
Father Gustavo Sandino, parish priest of Our Lady of Sorrows, was arrested yesterday, December 31, after Sunday Mass in Santa María de Pastasma, in the Diocese of Jinotega, Nicaragua. The fact was reported by local sources and confirmed to “100% Noticias” by exiled lawyer Martha Patricia Molina.
In Managua, in the early hours of yesterday, Father Fernando Téllez Báez, parish priest of Our Lady of America, and on the night of December 30, Father Jader Hernández, parish priest of the Mother of the Divine Shepherd, were kidnapped.
At the end of the first Angelus prayer in 2024 follows the Pope's appeal for the Central American country, in which 14 priests and a bishop have been arrested so far and in which the…
In the last few days 14 priests have been kidnapped
At least 14 priests have been kidnapped in recent days, including the two seminarians Alester Saenz and Tony Palacio, as well as the Bishop of Siuna, Dom Isidoro del Carmen Mora Ortega, who was arrested after acting for Dom Rolando José Álvarez Lagos, Bishop of Matagalpa and Apostolic Administrator, had prayed of the Diocese of Estelí, who was sentenced to 26 years in prison without due process.
The proximity of Cardinal Brenes
Yesterday, during Mass in the cathedral, the Cardinal and Archbishop of Managua, Leopoldo José Brenes Solórzano, expressed his solidarity “with the families and communities that miss their priests at this time” and called on everyone to be “strongly united” in prayer to stay . “Church unity,” said the cardinal, is “our strength.” “With Mary our Mother at the foot of the Cross,” Brenes concluded, “may the Lord comfort us and show us his mercy.”
Lawyer Molina said at a press conference that she received news that masses scheduled in some churches yesterday were not celebrated and the faithful were asked to return home. It is currently unknown whether the priests of these communities were kidnapped.
UN declarations
So far, neither the government nor the police have confirmed or denied the arrest of the priests.
Representatives of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights said that Nicaragua had “increasingly moved away” from the rule of law and “fundamental freedoms” through the persecution of “political and indigenous leaders, members of the Catholic Church, activists and journalists in cases of arbitrary detention” .