Honduras caught in 'mud of corruption, evil and injustice'

Cardinal Oscar Andrès Rodriguez Maradiaga calls for his country to 'discover the truth in justice, dialogue and love'

Cardinal Oscar Andrès Rodriguez Maradiaga of Tegucigalpa has urged Honduras to "get out of the mud of corruption, evil, injustice and crime to discover the truth in justice, dialogue and love."

His call, made during Mass at Tegucigalpa Cathedral recently, was inspired by Prophet Jeremiah.

According to Transparency International, an anti-corruption organization, Honduras was, in 2018, the 29th most corrupt country in the world out of 180.

In August 2016, a software company, GAN Integrity, reported that various segments of Honduran society were heavily affected by corruption, including the judiciary and public services.

Violence from maras (gangs) and drug traffickers plagues the citizens and Honduras was rated one of the most dangerous countries in the world, with 43.6 homicides per 100,000 inhabitants. These living conditions have forced thousands of people to flee overseas.

"We now contemplate the Lord Jesus as someone who brings a fire capable of destroying the violence, the lies, the injustice that has taken root in today's world," said the cardinal.

"Also hiding in our own hearts is a fire of the Holy Spirit, capable of radically changing the world and life."

For the cardinal, we must defend the idea that "Jesus' fire penetrates into people's lives, but it is not the same fire that burns forests or in demonstrations in Honduras."

For Cardinal Rodriguez, the peace brought by Jesus is "the peace of heart which, many times, can provoke conflict."

Christ's posture "is neither diplomatic nor of any connivance with evil." Thus, Jesus is aware of the struggle involved in the realization of God's kingdom on this earth, the cardinal explained.

The cardinal denounced the defamation by taking the example of one who "is said to be a communist because he talks about social and other justice."

He expressed deep concern, saying that "today they may not kill us with a bullet but with words."