We are workers, not master builders, ministers, not messiahs. We are prophets of a future not our own.
Oscar RomeroRead
The church would betray its own love for God and its fidelity to the gospel if it stopped being . . . a defender of the rights of the poor . . . a humanizer of every legitimate struggle to achieve a more just society . . . that prepares the way for the true reign of God in history.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The church must advocate for the poor and social justice to remain true to its faith.
Oscar Romero emphasizes that for the church to remain faithful to its principles and to God, it must actively support the marginalized and strive for justice. By eschewing these duties, it would not only forsake its divine mission but also fail to contribute to a more equitable society reflective of God's reign on Earth.
Themes
ChurchJusticeSocietyPoorFaithGodRights
In practice
Example use cases
In a sermon addressing social issues, a pastor might say this quote to encourage the congregation to engage in community service.
More from Oscar Romero
All quotes →Beautiful is the moment in which we understand that we are no more than an instrument of God; we live only as long as God wants us to live; we can only do as much as God makes us able to do; we are only as intelligent as God would have us be.
Oscar RomeroRead
When the church hears the cry of the oppressed it cannot but denounce the social structures that give rise to and perpetuate the misery from which the cry arises.
Oscar RomeroRead
Aspire not to have more, but to be more.
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A Christian's authenticity is show in difficult hours it is in difficult hours that the church grows in authenticity. Blest be God for this difficult hour in our archdiocese. Let us be worthy of it.
Oscar RomeroRead
It moves one's heart to think: Nine months before I was born there was a woman who loved me deeply. She did not know what I was going to be like, but she loved me because she carried me in her womb.
Oscar RomeroRead
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