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Pope praises slain Salvadoran Archbishop: 'He chose to be among his people...even at the price of his life'
Published January 01, 2017
A man wears a cross and a T-shirt featuring portraits of Catholic Archbishop Oscar Romero during his beatification ceremony in San Salvador, El Salvador, Saturday, May 23, 2015. Romero was slain by an assassin's bullet 35 years ago and declared a martyr for his faith this year by Pope Francis. In life, Romero was loved by the poor, whom he defended passionately, and loathed by conservatives who considered him too close to left-leaning movements in the tumultuous years ahead of El Salvador's 1980-92 civil war. (AP Photo/Manu Brabo)
Pope Francis urged pilgrims filling St. Peter's Square on Pentecost Sunday to take "the heroic examples" of a slain El Salvadoran bishop and an Italian nun who worked in Kenya who were beatified this weekend.
Francis stressed that Archbishop Oscar Romero of El Salvador was killed out of hatred of his faith, saying "he chose to be among his people, especially the poor and the oppressed, even at the price of his life." Romero was assassinated as he celebrated Mass in 1980.
The pope said Irene Sefani served the people of Kenya with "joy, mercy and tender passion."
Beatification is the first step toward sainthood.
Francis also expressed "extreme worry and pain" for the plight of thousands of migrants in southeast Asia facing "great suffering and danger."
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