Mexican bishops decry the murder of another priest and call for reconciliation
By James Blears
Father Juan Miguel Contreras Garcia was 33 years old. He`d been a Priest for just two years. Two gunmen shot him dead as he was conducting the holiest of services in front of his Congregation. They then fled and escaped in a waiting car. Paramedics tried to save his life, but he`d suffered multiple gunshot wounds at point blank range.
He`s the second Priest murdered in a week, and the fourth this year. Since 2012, 23 Priests have been murdered in Mexico, making it by far the most dangerous Country in Latin America.
In a statement of profound sadness signed by the Archbishop of Guadalajara Jose Francisco Robles Ortega, The Bishops` Conference of Mexico calls on his killers to: "Not only to lay down their arms, but also to reject hatred and resentment."
It also says: "It`s time to look at our culture and society with questions why we`ve lost respect for life, for an exhaustive investigation conforming to Justice and to access crimes in our nation which allow impunity."
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