Sadly, the massacres and the horrific genocide against people and faith groups, believers in Jesus Christ, who openly and peacefully practice their faith as practicing Christians and who are vulnerable because they are unarmed, continue. Organized criminais gangs cynically exploit this vulnerability to take the lives of men, women, and children of all ages and from all walks of life.

Once they sow terror, they force communities to flee to other places, steal their valuables, land, and property (both movable and immovable), and on numerous occasions, sexually assault people of both sexes. The cries of the souls of the dead, the wounded, and those who, due to particular circumstances, remain alive amidst the massacre, reach every corner of the planet, but there seems to be a deathly silence and complicity with these abhorrent acts.

Their voices are silenced by the apathy, arrogance, and petulance of those who have the power to definitively dismantle the problem. Let the guilty pay for crimes against humanity; let those responsible return what was stolen and usurped. Once dignity and equity are destroyed, it is very difficult to restore balance to the family and to society itself.

We request immediate action from all international organizations and governments so that we may achieve justice and well-being for all. We must recognize equal rights for believers, atheists, agnostics, and those of different faiths and creeds, regardless of the deity they profess. Humanity deserves to live freely with dignity. May any faith or creed that reigns in the mind of humankind and does not infringe upon the freedom of others be respected equally by all, distributing opportunities and privileges to everyone in equal proportion and without exception.

+ Leonardo Marin-Saavedra
Patriarch of the Territory of the Americas