St. Romero Day Prayer Service

March 24th - 5th annual

The transcendence that the church preaches is not alienation; it is not going to heaven to think about eternal life and forget about the problems on earth. It’s a transcendence from the human heart. It is entering into the reality of a child, of the poor, of those wearing rags, of the sick, of a hovel, of a shack. It is going to share with them. And from the very heart of misery, of this situation, to transcend it, to elevate it, to promote it, and to say to them, “You aren’t trash. You aren’t marginalized.” It is to say exactly the opposite, “You are valuable.” -Fourth Pastoral Letter, September 23, 1979

“What a blessing it is to have you all here, to pray with, to support, to be family with in Christ and to remember Archbishop – and now saint – Oscar Romero,” said Father Tom Behrend, St. Rita pastor, as he opened the prayer service with nearly 150 people in attendance. He offered a greeting to many who were watching a livestream of the service in El Salvador.

Father Behrend assured those attending and watching the prayer service that those in Cleveland “are in solidarity with our sisters and brothers in El Salvador and all over the world who find inspiration in St. Romero’s life and words. Tonight, we enter the mission of St. Romero by preaching divine mercy, that is, carrying the cross that is the power of Christ in this world that topples everything.”

Two St. Rita parishioners, Karem Pérez Lucas and Abigail Pérez Lucas, read Scripture passages in English and Spanish, followed by reflections, called a memories mosaic, from several people who knew St. Romero. The reflections were read by Daphne Held, a St. Rita parishioner, prayer service chairperson and COAR board member, and Deacon Mark Janezic of St. Rita Parish.

The reflections recalled St. Romero as a friend of the rich and poor. One person recalled that St. Romero “didn’t seem like a powerful hierarch to me, more like a brother.” One woman remembered him visiting a festival in San Salvador where so many people turned out they didn’t fit inside the church and Mass had to be celebrated outdoors. “He seemed to me to be a good-humored man, and kind of quiet, like us. Later on in the afternoon there was a long line to see him off. I was the last to say good-bye. When he hugged me, he said ‘Pray for me.’ He wanted me, an old sinful woman, to pray for him! How many times does that happen? It’s supposed to be the priest that prays for you and lifts you up to God, but not with him. He turned that rule upside down,” the woman recalled.

Another woman shared this memory: “Every day, what he said was what gave us life. His sermons were the most eagerly anticipated event of the week. I was working in the communities of San Ramon, and on Sundays I would leave my house and walk to the cathedral. I didn’t have to carry a radio with me to hear his homily, because I could hear it the whole way there; there wasn’t a single house that didn’t have its radio on listening to him. My entire route was a homily! It was a chain of radios with a broadcast as uninterrupted as if it were a single transmission.”

St. Romero had his priorities in order, according to another reflection, which recalled the visit of a United States congressman to El Salvador. He attended Mass one Sunday at the cathedral. The church was overflowing and the congressman was moved by the piety of all the poor people and by St. Romero’s homily. “But what really made an impression on that gringo’s heart was the lousy shape the cathedral was in. ‘This church doesn’t give a good impression,’ he lamented. ‘Doesn’t Monseñor Romero take care of his most important church?’ They told him that when Romero had become archbishop, he’d begun a plan to rebuild, but that soon he’d changed his mind. ‘This is not the most important thing,’ he said. For Monseñor, people came first. And that’s why he said the cathedral would remain that way: half done, as a monument to the people who don’t have a roof over their heads or land to plant on, people who have neither bread nor peace.” Seventh and eighth graders at St. Rita School wrote their own reflections on St. Romero and three shared them at the prayer service.

Seventh and eighth graders at St. Rita School wrote their own reflections on St. Romero and three shared them at the prayer service. “St. Oscar Romero is a very influential man, who through a time of darkness and separation brought so many people together. St. Romero inspires me to be strong in my faith and he helps guide me to be loving, fair, and gracious. With the inspiration of St. Romero, I feel motivated to help change the world and create a place full of respect, equality and serenity,” wrote Rylee Malafarina. “St. Oscar Romero used his position to speak out against the injustices in El Salvador. He was brave and continued to praise the Lord and speak out, despite the dangers. St. Romero can inspire me to be righteous and to stand up for those being oppressed,” said Samuel Rodriguez. And Eliza Tambor wrote, “St. Romero inspires me to help those who have no hope and need the most help they can get. He inspires me to consider the small blessings in life such as shelter and food. He can inspire everyone in the world to remember those who aren’t as fortunate as ourselves, and that they deserve the help they need as well.”

Prayer service attendees received a tulip when they entered the church and they were invited to place the flowers in front of the altar during a musical interlude. In the closing blessing, Father Behrend prayed the following: “Christ Jesus, we trust that you will walk with us on our journey of discipleship, wherever it may lead. May our walk be one of true solidarity, as St. Romero’s was.” After the prayer service, all were invited to a reception in the gathering area. JOIN US NEXT YEAR!

The transcendence that the church preaches is not alienation; it is not going to heaven to think about eternal life and forget about the problems on earth. It’s a transcendence from the human heart. It is entering into the reality of a child, of the poor, of those wearing rags, of the sick, of a hovel, of a shack. It is going to share with them. And from the very heart of misery, of this situation, to transcend it, to elevate it, to promote it, and to say to them, “You aren’t trash. You aren’t marginalized.” It is to say exactly the opposite, “You are valuable.” -Fourth Pastoral Letter, September 23, 1979

“What a blessing it is to have you all here, to pray with, to support, to be family with in Christ and to remember Archbishop – and now saint – Oscar Romero,” said Father Tom Behrend, St. Rita pastor, as he opened the prayer service with nearly 150 people in attendance. He offered a greeting to many who were watching a livestream of the service in El Salvador.

Father Behrend assured those attending and watching the prayer service that those in Cleveland “are in solidarity with our sisters and brothers in El Salvador and all over the world who find inspiration in St. Romero’s life and words. Tonight, we enter the mission of St. Romero by preaching divine mercy, that is, carrying the cross that is the power of Christ in this world that topples everything.”

Two St. Rita parishioners, Karem Pérez Lucas and Abigail Pérez Lucas, read Scripture passages in English and Spanish, followed by reflections, called a memories mosaic, from several people who knew St. Romero. The reflections were read by Daphne Held, a St. Rita parishioner, prayer service chairperson and COAR board member, and Deacon Mark Janezic of St. Rita Parish.

The reflections recalled St. Romero as a friend of the rich and poor. One person recalled that St. Romero “didn’t seem like a powerful hierarch to me, more like a brother.” One woman remembered him visiting a festival in San Salvador where so many people turned out they didn’t fit inside the church and Mass had to be celebrated outdoors. “He seemed to me to be a good-humored man, and kind of quiet, like us. Later on in the afternoon there was a long line to see him off. I was the last to say good-bye. When he hugged me, he said ‘Pray for me.’ He wanted me, an old sinful woman, to pray for him! How many times does that happen? It’s supposed to be the priest that prays for you and lifts you up to God, but not with him. He turned that rule upside down,” the woman recalled.

Another woman shared this memory: “Every day, what he said was what gave us life. His sermons were the most eagerly anticipated event of the week. I was working in the communities of San Ramon, and on Sundays I would leave my house and walk to the cathedral. I didn’t have to carry a radio with me to hear his homily, because I could hear it the whole way there; there wasn’t a single house that didn’t have its radio on listening to him. My entire route was a homily! It was a chain of radios with a broadcast as uninterrupted as if it were a single transmission.”

St. Romero had his priorities in order, according to another reflection, which recalled the visit of a United States congressman to El Salvador. He attended Mass one Sunday at the cathedral. The church was overflowing and the congressman was moved by the piety of all the poor people and by St. Romero’s homily. “But what really made an impression on that gringo’s heart was the lousy shape the cathedral was in. ‘This church doesn’t give a good impression,’ he lamented. ‘Doesn’t Monseñor Romero take care of his most important church?’ They told him that when Romero had become archbishop, he’d begun a plan to rebuild, but that soon he’d changed his mind. ‘This is not the most important thing,’ he said. For Monseñor, people came first. And that’s why he said the cathedral would remain that way: half done, as a monument to the people who don’t have a roof over their heads or land to plant on, people who have neither bread nor peace.” Seventh and eighth graders at St. Rita School wrote their own reflections on St. Romero and three shared them at the prayer service.

Seventh and eighth graders at St. Rita School wrote their own reflections on St. Romero and three shared them at the prayer service. “St. Oscar Romero is a very influential man, who through a time of darkness and separation brought so many people together. St. Romero inspires me to be strong in my faith and he helps guide me to be loving, fair, and gracious. With the inspiration of St. Romero, I feel motivated to help change the world and create a place full of respect, equality and serenity,” wrote Rylee Malafarina. “St. Oscar Romero used his position to speak out against the injustices in El Salvador. He was brave and continued to praise the Lord and speak out, despite the dangers. St. Romero can inspire me to be righteous and to stand up for those being oppressed,” said Samuel Rodriguez. And Eliza Tambor wrote, “St. Romero inspires me to help those who have no hope and need the most help they can get. He inspires me to consider the small blessings in life such as shelter and food. He can inspire everyone in the world to remember those who aren’t as fortunate as ourselves, and that they deserve the help they need as well.”

Prayer service attendees received a tulip when they entered the church and they were invited to place the flowers in front of the altar during a musical interlude. In the closing blessing, Father Behrend prayed the following: “Christ Jesus, we trust that you will walk with us on our journey of discipleship, wherever it may lead. May our walk be one of true solidarity, as St. Romero’s was.” After the prayer service, all were invited to a reception in the gathering area. JOIN US NEXT YEAR!

The transcendence that the church preaches is not alienation; it is not going to heaven to think about eternal life and forget about the problems on earth. It’s a transcendence from the human heart. It is entering into the reality of a child, of the poor, of those wearing rags, of the sick, of a hovel, of a shack. It is going to share with them. And from the very heart of misery, of this situation, to transcend it, to elevate it, to promote it, and to say to them, “You aren’t trash. You aren’t marginalized.” It is to say exactly the opposite, “You are valuable.” -Fourth Pastoral Letter, September 23, 1979

“What a blessing it is to have you all here, to pray with, to support, to be family with in Christ and to remember Archbishop – and now saint – Oscar Romero,” said Father Tom Behrend, St. Rita pastor, as he opened the prayer service with nearly 150 people in attendance. He offered a greeting to many who were watching a livestream of the service in El Salvador.

Father Behrend assured those attending and watching the prayer service that those in Cleveland “are in solidarity with our sisters and brothers in El Salvador and all over the world who find inspiration in St. Romero’s life and words. Tonight, we enter the mission of St. Romero by preaching divine mercy, that is, carrying the cross that is the power of Christ in this world that topples everything.”

Two St. Rita parishioners, Karem Pérez Lucas and Abigail Pérez Lucas, read Scripture passages in English and Spanish, followed by reflections, called a memories mosaic, from several people who knew St. Romero. The reflections were read by Daphne Held, a St. Rita parishioner, prayer service chairperson and COAR board member, and Deacon Mark Janezic of St. Rita Parish.

The reflections recalled St. Romero as a friend of the rich and poor. One person recalled that St. Romero “didn’t seem like a powerful hierarch to me, more like a brother.” One woman remembered him visiting a festival in San Salvador where so many people turned out they didn’t fit inside the church and Mass had to be celebrated outdoors. “He seemed to me to be a good-humored man, and kind of quiet, like us. Later on in the afternoon there was a long line to see him off. I was the last to say good-bye. When he hugged me, he said ‘Pray for me.’ He wanted me, an old sinful woman, to pray for him! How many times does that happen? It’s supposed to be the priest that prays for you and lifts you up to God, but not with him. He turned that rule upside down,” the woman recalled.

Another woman shared this memory: “Every day, what he said was what gave us life. His sermons were the most eagerly anticipated event of the week. I was working in the communities of San Ramon, and on Sundays I would leave my house and walk to the cathedral. I didn’t have to carry a radio with me to hear his homily, because I could hear it the whole way there; there wasn’t a single house that didn’t have its radio on listening to him. My entire route was a homily! It was a chain of radios with a broadcast as uninterrupted as if it were a single transmission.”

St. Romero had his priorities in order, according to another reflection, which recalled the visit of a United States congressman to El Salvador. He attended Mass one Sunday at the cathedral. The church was overflowing and the congressman was moved by the piety of all the poor people and by St. Romero’s homily. “But what really made an impression on that gringo’s heart was the lousy shape the cathedral was in. ‘This church doesn’t give a good impression,’ he lamented. ‘Doesn’t Monseñor Romero take care of his most important church?’ They told him that when Romero had become archbishop, he’d begun a plan to rebuild, but that soon he’d changed his mind. ‘This is not the most important thing,’ he said. For Monseñor, people came first. And that’s why he said the cathedral would remain that way: half done, as a monument to the people who don’t have a roof over their heads or land to plant on, people who have neither bread nor peace.” Seventh and eighth graders at St. Rita School wrote their own reflections on St. Romero and three shared them at the prayer service.

Seventh and eighth graders at St. Rita School wrote their own reflections on St. Romero and three shared them at the prayer service. “St. Oscar Romero is a very influential man, who through a time of darkness and separation brought so many people together. St. Romero inspires me to be strong in my faith and he helps guide me to be loving, fair, and gracious. With the inspiration of St. Romero, I feel motivated to help change the world and create a place full of respect, equality and serenity,” wrote Rylee Malafarina. “St. Oscar Romero used his position to speak out against the injustices in El Salvador. He was brave and continued to praise the Lord and speak out, despite the dangers. St. Romero can inspire me to be righteous and to stand up for those being oppressed,” said Samuel Rodriguez. And Eliza Tambor wrote, “St. Romero inspires me to help those who have no hope and need the most help they can get. He inspires me to consider the small blessings in life such as shelter and food. He can inspire everyone in the world to remember those who aren’t as fortunate as ourselves, and that they deserve the help they need as well.”

Prayer service attendees received a tulip when they entered the church and they were invited to place the flowers in front of the altar during a musical interlude. In the closing blessing, Father Behrend prayed the following: “Christ Jesus, we trust that you will walk with us on our journey of discipleship, wherever it may lead. May our walk be one of true solidarity, as St. Romero’s was.” After the prayer service, all were invited to a reception in the gathering area. JOIN US NEXT YEAR!

St. Romero Day Prayer Service

St. Romero Day Prayer Service

March 24th - 5th annual

See all these quotes and pictures on the Cleveland Diocese website

English Program

Programa en español

The COAR kids made a video for the 2024 Prayer Service ~ a perennial favorite

Previous year's services are on our Videos page!

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