Deacon is ordered in Costa Rica fleeing from the dictatorship in Nicaragua

The Catholic Church of Costa Rica ordered Donaldo López, a 30 -year -old Nicaraguan who has had to exile his country to follow the vocation that God has called him, because of the religious persecution of the dictatorship of Daniel Ortega and Rosario Murillo

“The good shepherd continues to renew in the believing community the ordered ministry for the sanctification of the Christian people and for the evangelizing mission entrusted to the entire Church. We are sincerely grateful to the Lord and very happy for this new ordered minister he gives to the Church on this day, in particular for the good of our diocese ”, said the bishop of Ciudad QuesadaMons. José Manuel Garita, who officiated the ceremony on February 8.

Mons. Garita asked all the parishioners to pray for the new deacon and thanked God for his ordination in the middle of the Jubilee Year 2025 and the Catholic Church in Nicaragua for his testimony of faith and courage in the midst of difficulties.

“The heart speaks to the heart”

The new deacon ended his theology studies at the Our Lady of Los Angeles Seminar in Costa Rica. He arrived in the country in 2022. His diaconal motto: The heart speaks to the heartis inspired by San John Henry Newman and Psalm 15.

Lopez called young people to surrender to the Lord completely, regardless of the consequences: “That’s what it is about. Embrace the cross to the example of the highest act of love that Jesus Christ did, who embraced the cross to save us to all humanity, ”the new deacon told the Diocese of Ciudad Quesada.

“Young people, let the teacher be the lord of their lives and stories, no matter the story, whether clear or dark, as soon as they remember that the response of every vocation before is loaded with forgiveness and pure mercy of God, that forgives and frees us So that we also share love and mercy with our fellow men, ”added López, who will serve in the San Rafael Arcángel de Guatuso parish.

In addition, in statements for Voice of AmericaHe said that “it was better to leave” Nicaragua to find the necessary peace and serenity to discern his vocation to the priesthood. Lopez also referred to priests, religious and religious exiled in Costa Rica:

“They give me a lot of strength. When I see them, my heart fills my heart a lot and I feel that I am not alone and I feel that the people of Nicaragua are also with me, ”López said.