Until Father Jacob told me to watch the 2012 movie For Greater Glory, I had no idea that, roughly 100 years ago, 90,000 people lost their lives in a war just south of the U.S. Border.
The 1926-1929 Cristero War pitted Catholics in Mexico against their country’s own government, which had begun enforcing anti-clerical laws to an extreme, eventually leading to horrors like public executions of priests who dared to say mass.
The war would become a major impetus for the Catholic church’s creation of an important feast day - that of Christ the King, celebrated this year on November 24. The feast was designed to remind us, says usccb.com, that “while governments come and go, Christ reigns as King forever.”
Many stories, from tragic to inspiring, came out of the bloody Cristero war; one I found most touching was that of Jose Sanchez del Rio, a young boy who supported the Catholics in the war and was eventually captured, tortured and killed for his faith. He was also canonized October 16, 2016. Per catholiccompany.com magazine:
While in battle, after giving his horse to his general who had been dismounted, the boy was captured and locked up in a church sacristy that had been converted into a prison. On the way to his execution, government soldiers struck him with machetes and cut off the soles of his feet.
With every blow, the young boy cried out,
"Viva Cristo Rey!"
The stones where he walked were covered in his blood. He said to the soldiers,
“We’ll see each other in Heaven. I want you all to repent.”
The soldiers offered him an escape instead:
"If you shout, ‘Death to Christ the King’, we will spare your life."
Jose only answered:
"Long live Christ the King! Long live Our Lady of Guadalupe!"
Jose Luis Sanchez del Rio was then stabbed and shot dead on February 10, 1928. Some accounts say before his final breath he made the sign of the cross with his blood.
This week, Father Jacob tells us the history behind this all-important feast, setting the stage by describing what was happening worldwide right before the war began. He also tells us about St. Jose Luis Sanchez del Rio and many other martyrs who emerged from the battle, and - maybe most important - he discusses how pertinent this seemingly forgotten war still is today, and how crucial it is for us all to remember that no matter who serves as our elected leader right now, only one true King has ever walked this earth.
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