Murdered archbishop Romero to be beatified, says Pope Francis

Pope Francis yesterday ruled that Salvadoran archbishop Oscar Romero, who was murdered by a right-wing death squad in 1980 and is an icon of the Catholic Church in Latin America, had died as a martyr and will be beatified, the Vatican said.

The Vatican said the pope had approved a decree that Romero had been killed “in hatred of the faith”, ratifying recommendations by a commission of cardinals and theological experts.

“This is really, I mean really big news for El Salvador,” said the country’s minister for government and communications, Hato Hasbun. Salvadorans took to Twitter to celebrate, with many referring to “Saint Romero of the Americas.”

The step means Romero can be beatified without a miracle attributed to him. Beatification is the church’s step before sainthood.