6 Latin American bishops share their favorite saints and how they inspired their ministry

ACI Prensa Staff, November 13, 2024 / 7:00 am

Six Latin American bishops shared with ACI Prensa, CNA’s Spanish-language news partner, who their favorite saints are, how they have influenced and inspired their own lives, and how they have helped them deal with the pastoral challenges they face in their ministries have had to deal with.

Bishop Roberto Yenny García (Mexico)

Bishop Roberto Yenny García of Ciudad Valles in the Mexican state of San Luis Potosí said he has a deep devotion to Saint Alphonsus Maria de Liguori, a Neapolitan bishop and church doctor who is the patron saint of teachers of moral theology and of confessors. .

“This bishop, originally from Naples, became an excellent pastor for the Christian community. He had a great knowledge of the moral theology of the time with a pastoral zeal expressed in closeness and mercy, especially with the most helpless, with the poorest,” he told ACI Prensa.

Yenny, 52, especially admires St. Alphonsus’ balanced approach to moral issues in the 18th century, an era marked by both rigorism and laxity. “Faced with these extremes that often led to fundamentalism in Christian morality, St. Alphonsus Maria de Liguori proposed a morality of benevolence, seeking the golden mean,” he explained.

He also emphasized how St. Alphonsus sought to “reflect what Christ would have done in the light of the circumstances of men’s moral lives in which they experience great weakness, without ever losing the Christian ideal.”

He also appreciates the dedication of Saint Alphonsus in his pastoral service: “As a close and diligent parish priest, he organized those popular missions, trying to reach the most remote areas of the diocese entrusted to him.” With a “simple, direct proclamation, from the heart,” St. Alphonsus brought to the faithful a message of conversion and of the “great love of God” that changes lives, he said.

“That harmony, that combination of knowledge and pastoral connection, is what I greatly admire in this saint and which I also hope will continue to inspire my own episcopal ministry,” he concluded.

Archbishop Alfredo José Espinoza (Ecuador)

Archbishop Alfredo José Espinoza of Quito, Ecuador, recalled with gratitude his Salesian formation, which began at the age of 5 and continued for 50 years thanks to the charism of St. John Bosco. “That is why my favorite saints, to whom I have a great devotion, are Saint John Bosco, who is my (spiritual) father, and Saint Dominic Savio, the model for the youth.”

His relationship with Don Bosco goes beyond devotion: he is a father figure to him. “I have a relic of Saint John Bosco in the chapel of my house,” said the Archbishop, recalling the words of Father Marcelo Farfán when he presented it to him at his episcopal ordination: “So that our Father can accompany you on this new away.”

Espinoza explained: “Don Bosco is that for me. More than a saint, he is my father, whom I love very much and who is my example of dedication and of working with young people.”

Bishop Juan Ignacio Liébana (Argentina)

Bishop Juan Ignacio Liébana of Chascomús, Argentina, in the province of Buenos Aires, has several favorite saints. Among them is St. Charles de Foucauld, a French hermit and mystic whom he says he admires “for his spirituality in the desert, for being a contemplative monk, but at the same time preaching with his presence,” especially among Muslims. Moreover, he admires him because he “radiates the presence of Jesus in the Eucharist” and “promotes universal brotherhood, which was his great message.”

He also named St. Francis of Assisi as one of his favorite saints, inspired by his “fraternal relationship with things, with creatures, with others” and by his example of “love for the poor and for a sober life.”

(Story continues below)

Subscribe to our daily newsletter

Saint Clare of Assisi also occupies a special place in his devotion: “I love her for her evangelical simplicity, her freedom to follow in the footsteps of Francis” and her commitment to the “privilege of poverty.” As a “bonus track,” Liébana highlighted Saint Therese of Jesus, appreciating “her freedom, power and all her teaching on prayer,” as well as “her love for the humanity of Christ.”

Bishop Alfonso Miranda Guardiola (Mexico)

Bishop Alfonso Miranda Guardiola of Piedras Negras, Mexico, shared with ACI Prensa his deep devotion to St. Maximilian Kolbe, a Franciscan monk and founder of the Militia of the Immaculata, who died voluntarily in the Auschwitz concentration camp in Poland during World War II. His admiration for the saint began during his years as rector of St. Maximilian Kolbe Church in Monterrey, Mexico, where he had the opportunity to study his life in depth.

“He is a saint who inspires because of his love for the Virgin, a powerful influence he has on young people, especially during his time among the Conventual Franciscans,” Miranda said, recognizing the saint’s courage and determination. St. Maximilian, he continued, is “an example for all humanity because of his unconditional devotion and his willingness to give his life, even without knowing the other, but out of love for Jesus Christ.”

Miranda recalled his visit to Poland, where he had the opportunity to give the introduction to a play at the Niepokalanów Monastery, which St. Maximilian had founded. “The light of this saint reaches the whole world, all countries, and he has greatly inspired me to pursue my dreams, even if they are very difficult, promising all my courage, all my passion and all my heart,” said he. added.

For the bishop, St. Maximilian Kolbe is a true “victor of the Second World War,” not with weapons, but “with his example of love, devotion, humility and service.”

Bishop Lisandro Rivas (Venezuela)

Recently canonized Saint Joseph Alamanno has become a spiritual pillar for Lisandro Rivas, the new bishop of the Diocese of San Cristóbal in Venezuela. “He is the saint to whom I am devoted and whom I take as an example,” said the prelate, who also belongs to the Consolata Missionaries, the congregation that founded St. Joseph Alamanno, inspired by Our Lady of Consolata.

Rivas told ACI Prensa that St. Joseph Alamanno’s motto was “first saints, then missionaries,” a saying that calls for personal transformation before proclaiming the Gospel.

“He said that evangelization must be done well, but quietly, with the aim of recognizing the dignity of each person as a son or daughter of God,” the Venezuelan bishop explained. He added that this vision is the basis of his mission as a missionary ‘ad gentes’ (‘to the nations’), as he seeks to bring the good news to those places where Jesus is not yet known.

In his reflection, Rivas highlighted how St. Joseph Alamanno promoted an “integral evangelization.”

“These people will be able to accept the good news of Jesus Christ as salvation if they are first recognized as persons. It is the person as a whole that is saved, and with him the environment in which he finds himself,” he added.

For Rivas, the example of St. Joseph Alamanno takes on particular relevance in the current context of the Church, emphasizing the need for a “synodal spirituality”, working together and involving catechists and local leaders in the evangelization process, in in line with Pope Francis’ invitation. “He is an example because he invites us to live in holiness and turn the ordinary into an extraordinary experience, imbued with God and the Gospel,” he concluded.

Bishop Giovanni Cefai (Peru)

Bishop Giovanni Cefai of Huancané, a city in the Peruvian mountains, shared his personal devotion to Saint Joseph, who has been a constant in his life since his youth.

Thanks to his parents, he grew up with this strong devotion, which was reflected in family practices such as the novena and the procession in honor of Saint Joseph on March 19.

In his home, Saint Joseph was a figure of support and comfort, especially in difficult times, and the saint’s silence is something that always impressed him.

The bishop, originally from Malta, said he experienced the providence of St. Joseph during his formation in the Missionary Society of St. Paul: “I remember that my superiors and the congregation always asked the intercession of St. Joseph, God asked for help especially with their works, etc. And providence never failed. It always came; There were about 80 people living there – students, priests, old people – and we never lacked, even though we had nothing.”

During his mission in Peru, where he arrived in 2001, Cefai founded a retreat house in honor of Saint Joseph, promising: “If you help me, I will build this house in your name.” He is currently developing “Villa San José” in Huancané, which will include education and healthcare services. He explained that he trusts St. Joseph to grow this project: “Little by little, with a lot of faith, it will be a success.”

This story was first published by ACI Prensa, CNA’s Spanish-language news partner. It has been translated and adapted by CNA.