Today marks the thirtieth anniversary of the martyrdom of Archbishop Oscar Romero. While they prepare for what has become a
major annual observance in El Salvador, I hope Christians in this country will also take time today to remember his words and his witness. A former colleague once pointed out to me that we commemorate three twentieth-century martyrs in the span of sixteen days: Romero (March 24), King (April 4), and Bonhoeffer (April 9). These days often fall in Lent or Holy Week, when we walk with Jesus to Jerusalem and to the cross. You could do a lot worse during Holy Week than to meditate on the lives and deaths of these saints.
Ironically and appallingly, the
infamous Texas board of curriculum just voted to remove Romero from a list of people who stood up to oppression in the new textbook they are fashioning. I was thankful to the Daily Show for lifting up Romero's memory while skewering those who think he's unimportant.
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