The Martyrs of the Mexican Revolution: ¡Viva Cristo Rey!
The 21st day of May is the commemoration of a group of saints honored as the "Martyrs of the Mexican Revolution ," including 22 Mexican priests and 3 laymen who were murdered between 1915 and 1928. As the Mexican government came to adopt anti-clerical attitudes, which were to become law in the Constitution of 1917 , the Church was denied legal status and the clergy lost all political and civil rights. In response to the outbreak of widespread persecutions, the Mexican bishops suspended all public worship. As tensions mounted, the bishops ordered all rural priests to go into hiding, officially denouncing any armed uprisings or resistance. Many priests in rural areas, however, remained dedicated to providing the Sacraments for their people, and were involved in the movement for religious freedom to some degree. It was because of the resistance soldiers' battle cry of ¡Viva Cristo Rey! that this uprising has come to be known as the Cristero Wars . St. Crist...