Pope urges Mexican priests to fight against drug traffic, violence, corruption

February 16, 2016

Celebrating Mass on February 16 in a Mexican state that has been scarred by drug traffic, Pope Francis exhorted priests not to accept an acceptable situation.

At a Mass in Morelia, the capital of the state of Michoacan, the Pope said:

What temptation can come to us from places often dominated by violence, corruption, drug trafficking, disregard for human dignity, and indifference in the face of suffering and vulnerability? What temptation might we suffer over and over again when faced with this reality, which seems to have become a permanent system? I think we can sum it up in one word: resignation.

The Pontiff encouraged priests to resist the "paralyzing injustice" that they face. He suggested that they draw strength from the example set by the first Bishop Vasco de Quiroga, who became the first head of the Morelia diocese (now an archdiocese) in 1536, who revived the faith in the region at a time when native peoples were "being sold, humiliated and homeless in the marketplace." 

 

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Further information:

• Pope to Mexico's priests: Don't be resigned to 'paralyzing injustice' (Vatican Radio)
• Francis to Mexico priests: Don't be resigned to status quo (AP)
• Pope Urges Mexicans Not to Become Resigned to Country’s Woes (Wall Street Journal)