The latest victim of deadly attacks on Roman Catholic priests in Mexico, the body of Rev. Jose Lopez Guillen was found almost a week after he was apparently robbed and abducted from his parish residence in Michoacan. On the day of his abduction, two other priests, the Revs. Alejo Jimenez and Jose Juarez, were found dead in Veracruz.
The Catholic Church in Mexico has been shaken by the recent murder of several priests, with the body of the latest victim found just hours after Pope Francis appealed for an end to the country’s drug-related violence.
On Sunday (Sept. 25), in remarks before the noontime Angelus prayer he recites with the faithful, the pope told pilgrims in St. Peter’s Square that he backed Mexico’s bishops in their efforts to protect the family as they fight against a government proposal to legalize same-sex marriage.
Francis then offered his prayers for priests who had recently been murdered in Mexico.
“I want to assure the dear Mexican people of my prayers, so that the violence, which has even struck several priests, might cease,” he said.
According to the Guardian, 31 priests have been murdered in Mexico in the past 10 years.
Photo: at the funeral of Fr Jose Juarez; Marco Ugarte/AP via the Guardian