Clergy from left, Deacon Amy Schmuck, Deacon Cynthia Biddlecomb, retired, The Rev. Mary Ann Hill and The Rev. Lynn Finnegan. Photo by Nate Limback/ladailypost.com

By Deacon Amy Schmuck
Bethlehem Evangelical Lutheran Church

Last week, I had the privilege to participate in a retreat for New Mexico clergy given by the New Mexico Conference of Churches (https://www.nmchurches.org/) through “The Journey Project”, which is funded by a generous grant from the Lilly Foundation.

We gathered on the sacred grounds of the Norbertine Community’s Santa Maria de la Vid Abbey outside of Albuquerque. If you have not made a visit, I encourage you to do so. They have a beautiful sanctuary and library and plenty of options for taking a respite from our hectic world.

Our retreat’s focus was “The Communion of Saints” with time spent dwelling in the stories, writings, and lives of four saints “before us”: Rev. Dr. Pauli Murray, Archbishop Oscar Romero, Rev. Dietrich Bonhoeffer, and St. Julian of Norwich. All these saints helped inform us, inspire us, and challenge us as we continue to live into our roles as ordained clergy called to live as public witness for Christ’s teachings in today’s world.

I want to call attention to Archbishop Oscar Romero today, as his words on violence and Christian love support me greatly and hold me accountable in the wake of continued political violence that threatens our country.

Romero was living and serving the Roman Catholic Church in El Salvador during the tumultuous civil war, which averaged 3,000 deaths a month in 1980. This Civil War raged on for 12 years, with 75,000 killed, and over 1 million who fled the country. Romero was pulled in two directions. To support an oppressive and powerful government and military, or to support the poor working-class citizens who were demanding freedom from oppression and were actively being kidnapped, tortured, and murdered by their government for resisting.

Romero followed Christ’s teachings faithfully. He preached for siding with the poor and oppressed, he preached for justice, he preached for an end to violence. When he preached, he also preached a continued love for the oppressors and soldiers carrying out orders to kidnap, torture and murder their fellow siblings in Christ. He called upon them to remember their place in God’s community, to repent and to love. He called them brothers. On March 23, 1980, he spoke these words,

“Brothers, you came from our own people. You are killing your own brothers. Any human order to kill must be subordinate to the law of God, which says, ‘Thou shalt not kill’. No soldier is obliged to obey an order contrary to the law of God. No one has to obey an immoral law. It is high time you obeyed your consciences rather than sinful orders. The church cannot remain silent before such an abomination. …In the name of God, in the name of this suffering people whose cry rises to heaven more loudly each day, I implore you, I beg you to stop the repression.”

Archbishop Oscar Romero was murdered as he celebrated Mass the next day.

May we faithfully follow Christ’s teachings, speaking love in the face of violence, speaking justice in the face of oppression, speaking peace in the face of division. Hate and evil are everywhere and easy to side with. May our anger and responses to senseless violence not beget more violence, but rather be a testimony, a witness, an example of Jesus’ commandment to love God, and to love one another in thought, word, and deed always.

Amen.

Editor’s note: ‘All Shall Be Well’ is a column written by local women clergy including The Rev. Mary Ann Hill, Rector, Trinity on the Hill Episcopal Church (momaryannhill@gmail.com); The Rev. Lynn Finnegan, Associate Rector, The Episcopal Church of the Holy Faith, Santa Fe (rev.lynn@holyfaithchurchsf.org); Deacon Amy Schmuck, Bethlehem Evangelical Lutheran Church (deaconamy@bethluth.com); and ELCA Deacon Cynthia Biddlecomb, M.Div., retired (czoebidd@gmail.com).

Stations of the Cross path at Norbertine Retreat outside Albuquerque. Courtesy/Deacon Amy Schmuck

Garden of Peace at Norbertine Center outside Albuquerque. Courtesy/Deacon Amy Schmuck

Labyrinth at Norbertine Center outside Albuquerque. Courtesy/Deacon Amy Schmuck

Sunset over the Stations of the Cross and Labyrinth at Norbertine Center outside Albuquerque. Courtesy/Deacon Amy Schmuck