The story was told by us about the unpleasant burglary experience we had at our house in Tierra Blanca at 12:10 AM on March 3. This story was re-covered by the people. It represents one of the principal evil forces that dominate the Guatemalan society. Assaults, assassinations, drug trafficking and other heinous crimes lead daily news. The country's structural problem of impunity, cuddled since the 30-year internal conflict, favors the rise of violence. Of the 200,000 killed or abducted and 669 massacres that took place in mainly indigenous villages, cases of genocide and other military abuses, no person was brought to justice, held responsible for these atrocities. Today, out of every thousand inhabitants, 48 homicides happen, making Guatemala as one of the most violent countries.
The poverty culture theory narrates that the poor are condemned to hopelessness manifested through their expressions of fatalism. They are passive expectorators to expressions of violence; they suppress their anger and sedate their pain through prayers.
However, on the day that we told our story to the communities around us, they begun to re-open their eyes and called on everyone to act on the seemingly advancing malevolent force that want to control their lives as a people. Faithful from the different evangelical sects, of the Maya spirituality and the Catholic Church as well as committed people for the well-being of the community came on several occasions to discuss how to safeguard peace in their communities. The first thing they did was to dismiss the auxiliary mayor of the village who seemed to be indifferent to the degenerating peace in the community and accorded upon local decrees to prevent delinquent doings especially from organized criminal groups.
Oppressed people rise. Silenced people come forward to speak. God rises them up. We may have thought that hope for these marginalized people have been snuffed by destructive forces - it may have always seemed that way. Their hope may be like amber overwhelmed by dust that has covered it overtime. Burning flames may have died down. But winds of solidarity, courage, faith and audacity would put aflame this amber. As long as signs of life manifest in the poor, the oppressed and the excluded, there is always a reason for us to be with them prophetically. This is somehow what resurrection experience means.
Let the winds of the Spirit bring back the flames of life in our hearts.
Happy Easter!
- Joseph Guerrero, MJ
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