WORLD

Mexican bishops decry the murder of another priest and call for reconciliation

The Mexican Bishops Conference have issue a statement of profound grief, also calling for a new and fresh culture of reconciliation and peace, following the shooting murder of Father Juan Miguel Contreras Garcia, who was killed while he was celebrating Mass with his congregation on the outskirts of Guadalajara, the State capital of Jalisco in Western Mexico.

By James Blears

Father Juan Miguel Contreras Garcia was 33 years old. He`d been a Priest for just two years. Two gunmen shot him dead as he was conducting the holiest of services in front of his Congregation. They then fled and escaped in a waiting car. Paramedics tried to save his life, but he`d suffered multiple gunshot wounds at point blank range.

He`s the second Priest murdered in a week, and the fourth this year. Since 2012, 23 Priests have been murdered in Mexico, making it by far the most dangerous Country in Latin America.

In a statement of profound sadness signed by the Archbishop of Guadalajara Jose Francisco Robles Ortega, The Bishops` Conference of Mexico calls on his killers to: "Not only to lay down their arms, but also to reject hatred and resentment."

It also says: "It`s time to look at our culture and society with questions why we`ve lost respect for life, for an exhaustive investigation conforming to Justice and to access crimes in our nation which allow impunity."

Listen to James Blears' report