After the murder of eight young people in Guanajuato, the Church in Mexico called to demonstrate against violence and favor of peace, demanding justice for all adolescents and young people who suffer insecurity in the country.
Through A message Signed by representatives of the Mexican Episcopate Conference, the Conference of Religious and the Society of Jesus in Mexico, it was warned that the wave of violence is mainly affecting minors.
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The crime, which has shaken the country and, especially, to the Church, occurred on March 16. The young people were in a public park after attending the Mass in the parish of San José de Mendoza, around 7:30 pm (local time), when armed men broke and opened fire. The attack left eight deaths, some of them members of the youth pastoral, and several injured.
This is not an isolated case. According to information from Registered Death Statistics (EDR)from January to September 2024, homicides were the second cause of death among young people aged 15 to 24 and the first among those aged 25 to 34.
“Each death calls us to take care of their life and put the means to protect them from the evil that seeks to catch them and bring them to darkness,” says the statement.
A call to peace: four actions of the Church in the face of violence
As part of the response to this crisis, the Church has summoned pastorals of adolescents and young people, movements, religious congregations, schools and institutions that work with minors to join various actions in favor of peace.
Next Sunday, March 23, eight candles will be placed on the altars of all the country’s churches “in memory of all adolescents and young people killed and missing, and invite the attendees to write their names on cards to place them next to the candles.”
In addition, on March 29, when the novenarian was fulfilled by the young people killed in Guanajuato, it has been asked to take a rose to the main square of each town or city, accompanied by photographs of adolescents and young victims of violence.
That same day, at 5:00 pm, a caravan for peace and a celebration of faith in San José de Mendoza will be held.
During the Friday of Lent, the Church has urged communities to pray a via Crucis “for peace in different communities, asking for victims of violence.”
Finally, the faithful have been invited to contact local teams to participate in the creation of “local peace projects and dialogue with authorities for monitoring the commitments for peace”.
Diego López Colín
I am a graduate of journalism at the Carlos Septién García school with experience of religious institutional communication. Since 2016 I write for digital media and, since 2018, I report the most important news about the Catholic event in Mexico for the Ewtn news channel. ACI Press correspondent in Mexico since 2023.