Mexico City, Mexico, Jul 12, 2004 / 22:00 pm
Bishop Renato Ascencio León of Juarez, Mexico, together with the clergy of his diocese, has published a statement lamenting the murder of a priest in the area, but adding that violence will not stop the work of the Church in the region.
In the statement, Bishop Leon expressed his profound grief at “the devious murder of our brother, Fr. Ramon Navarrete Islas, another dramatic manifestation of the insecurity, violence and culture of death that marks our daily life.”
At the same time, he reaffirmed “our faith and our hope in the Lord of life and of history, and we confirm our decision to continue struggling to bring about a new heaven and a new earth where justice abides, uniting ourselves with those praised in Scripture for loving life so much that they did not fear their own deaths.”
The bishop expressed his solidarity with the family of the victim and with “all families in our diocese that have suffered the loss of a loved one because of violence and the lack of security.”