First-Friday Free Large Screen Film Series – ROMERO, the story of a true martyr to justice and faith.

One of the great moral and religious figures of our time, a martyr to faith and justice

First-Friday Free large screen film showing

Romero
1989. PG-13 for violence. 104 minutes. Directed by John Duignan. Stars Raul Julia as Archbishop Oscar Romero. 

El Salvador, 1980.  The Vatican elevates to archbishop a conservative priest from a wealthy family. His name is Oscar Arnulfo Romero (Raul Julia). Military rulers believe he will quiet the peasants and the priests who serve them.   At first, he does  exactly that . But when soldiers and death squads  thwart voters, shoot into crowds, torture people, and kill a priest and friend of Romero, he speaks out with power of faith and justice. on behalf of the poor condemning the regime on the radio, and leading a march into a church occupied by soldiers. He also directly defies the El Salvadoran president, an iron-fisted general.  The film builds to a climax as Romero on March 25, 1980 is saying Mass for his dead mother as death squad members enter the church with guns.  

…In the name of God, in the name of this suffering people whose cries rise to heaven more loudly each day, I implore you, I beg you, I order you in the name of God: stop the repression.
– from Archbishop Oscar Romero’s last sermon, Sunday, March 23, 1980, speaking to the Salvadoran Army and National Guard.

Oscar Oscar Romero is being beatified by Pope Francis, the final step before sainthood, this month, May 2015.