Dear father Mario, we’re sending you this letter from Rome where we’re in the midst of our Passionist General Synod at our General House of Saints John and Paul. The Synod is being attended by our Superior General and his Council and all the Provincial and Vice-Provincial Superiors and Regional Vicars who reside in some 60 different countries around the world, amongst them Perú.
At the end of the first day’s session, during which we dealt with the theme of Justice, Peace and the Integrity of Creation, we would like to send you our brotherly greetings and encourage you to continue with your mission and maintain your peace of mind and serenity in the midst of all that is happening to you. We have been following events from some time back and we have always appreciated the work you did together with Father Pio Zarrabe Garro, C.P., now passed away, in defense of the peasants’ land in the Amazon region of Perú, where you are serving loyally as a parish priest.
We are fully aware of the legal problems you are involved in as a consequence of your efforts in defense of small landowners in Barranquita where you minister. Small parcels of land which are nevertheless are all that the people of your flock possess and which they work in order to feed and clothe their families, including their aged parents.
