AGE: Infants and Juniors |
THEME: Making a Stand: Oscar Romero |
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DEVELOPMENT: |
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LEADER: 'It's not fair!' How many times have you said that to your friends, to your family or to your teachers? In some parts of the world, people are thinking this all the time but are too frightened to say so. It is because they are not free to live their lives as they want. This is hard for us to imagine because we are free to live our lives as we choose. We are going to hear about what it was like in El Salvador in the 1970s. (Use maps to show Central America and El Salvador.) There was a cruel government that ruled by fear and violence. (Introduce your first character - a rich leader from the government.) RICH RULER: 'I am one of the richest people in El Salvador. People have to do what I say or else...' LEADER: S/he is rich, powerful and a bully. S/he gets whatever s/he wants by terrorizing anyone who tries to stand in her/his way. People like this keep all the wealth of the country for themselves and their families. On the other hand, because of this greedy group of people, everyone else in El Salvador was very poor. (Introduce your second character - a poor farmer.) POOR FARMER: 'It's very hard to make a living for my family on my small farm. I would like to complain to my landlord about the very high rent but I am frightened he will throw me out and then I would have nothing.' Oscar Romero was a Catholic priest in El Salvador. At first he just got on with his job but he began to see that many aspects of life there were very unfair for most of the people. Some of them turned to Oscar for help and he started to devote his life to working with them. In 1977 he was made Archbishop of San Salvador. This made him a very well-known and influential person. POOR FARMER: 'Please help us to get fairer wages and a better life. We are so poor nobody will listen to us or help us. Some of us have tried to speak out but soldiers were sent to our homes by the government and we were told to be quiet.' Oscar Romero began to speak out about the unfairness. He was beginning to make himself unpopular... RICH RULER: 'Mind your own business. You should stick to teaching people about religion. Church and politics don't go together! If you don't stop interfering, you'll regret it...' But Oscar Romero believed that as a Christian he should work to help the poor and make it known that they were being bullied and frightened by those in the government. When he read in his Bible the teachings of Jesus, he was convinced that this was the right thing to do. As a Christian, he could not stand by in silence. It gave him the courage to make a stand. On Sunday 16 March 1980, the Archbishop was in church celebrating the Mass. There were large crowds of people who had come to listen to him speak. His words inspired courage and gave hope to those who were sad or suffering. What happened next was to shock and horrify everyone. During the service, armed gunmen came into the church and shot and killed the Archbishop. Oscar Romero had known that his life was in danger but he continued to make a stand and to speak out against injustice. He made the greatest sacrifice of all, to give his own life in the service of others. The reports of his death were broadcast around the world. Christians remember him as a martyr, a person who sacrificed his life for his beliefs. |
READING: |
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In this Bible reading, Jesus is invited to read from the Jewish scriptures. These words inspire people of faith, like Oscar Romero, to serve others and to work to help those in need. This is often called faith in action and is a principle shared by many faiths. Luke 4.16-19 (Jesus reads the words of the prophet Isaiah about freedom.) The following words were spoken by Oscar Romero only moments before his death. They represent the belief by which he lived and died: We know that every effort to better society, especially when injustice and sin are so ingrained, is an effort that God blesses, that God wants, that God demands of us. |
MUSIC: |
| Misa Criolla and Misa Flamenca are settings of the Mass with a Latin American flavour. They can both be found in a collection of Mass settings on a Philips Classics recording in the Choral Collection. |
REFLECTION: |
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During a time of quiet, think about those people who have given their lives in order to help others. A candle could be lit. Think about ways, however small, in which you could help others. You could read the words spoken by Oscar Romero just before his death - (see above). |
FOLLOW-UP ACTIVITIES: |
Key Stage One:
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