Pope Francis Declares Assassinated French Priest a Martyr

Gerard O'Connell | Sep 14 2016 - 7:57am

"To kill in the name of God is satanic,” Pope Francis said as he celebrated Mass in the Vatican this morning for Father Jacques Hamel, who was assassinated in his church in France on July 26 and whom today he hailed as “a martyr” and declared him “blessed.”

The French priest, then 85 years old, was murdered while celebrating Mass in his parish church in Saint-Etienne-du-Rouvray, outside the city of Rouen in France on July 26by two extremists, who swore allegiance to the so-called Islamic State, which later claimed responsibility for this criminal act. They slit his throat, and police later killed the attacker. The killing shocked people of all faiths in France, and the following Sunday many Muslims across the country attended Mass in Catholic churches as a sign of solidarity with Catholics and of their total rejection of this vile crime.

Pope Francis, in his homily, recalled that Jesus Christ was “the first martyr, the first who gave his life for us.”

“From this mystery of Christ begins the whole history of Christian martyrdom, from the first centuries to this day,” the pope continued. He hailed Father Jacques as “part of that chain of Christian martyrs.”

http://www.americamagazine.org/content/dispatches/pope-francis-declares-assassinated-french-priest-martyr