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Priest attends play to share story of Cristero martyr

By Dennis Kellogg
Director of Communications

Lincoln couple’s prayerful connection to a Mexican man martyred for his Catholic faith in the Cristero War in 1927 prompted a priest promoting the martyr’s cause for sainthood to travel to Lincoln to share more of the story.

Sarah and Richard Wurtz invited Father Rafail Becerra of the Diocese of San Antonio to Lincoln Oct. 9 to meet with Bishop James Conley and to view a play Sarah wrote about the martyr, Blessed Anacleto Gonzalez Flores. Father Beccera and the Wurtzes talked with Bishop Conley for about 30 minutes about Bl. Anacleto, with Father Beccera sharing a first-class relic of the blessed and a copy of a book he has written about Bl. Anacleto.

Bl. Anacleto Gonzalez Flores (1888-1927) became a voice of opposition against the Mexican government in its persecution of the Catholic Church. He used nonviolent means to promote religious liberty in his country. Bl. Anacleto was eventually arrested, tortured and then executed by firing squad in Guadalajara. His final words were, “I die, but God does not die.” His words became a rallying cry for those in the battle for religious freedom.

“Imagine that if he was a leader, what will those who were followers of him say?” Father Becerra said. “Our leader is dead. There is no more need for fighting. But he was telling them, ‘this is not about me. This about Christ the King. If I die, it doesn’t matter. You need to continue this movement of defending religious freedom.’”

The first-class relic Father Becerra brought with him is a fragment of bone from Bl. Anacleto. He received it after being told repeatedly by a priest in charge of relics in Guadalajara there were no more relics available for Bl. Anacleto. Father Becerra searched a storage area of relics of those martyred in the Cristero War in that region, eventually locating an overlooked container with the bone from Bl. Anacleto.

Father Becerra said the priest allowed him to take a small portion of the bone as a relic, but also urged him to not hide it away.

“He said, ‘I want you to promote it, not to keep it for you, but promote it.’ I said, ‘Absolutely. I will do it. It is my passion. I will do it.’ So, I’m trying to do that,” Father Becerra said.

Father Becerra spent the day in Lincoln, meeting with the bishop, then celebrating a special Mass at St. Michael Church, before attending the evening performance of the play. The play was performed at a small theatre in the Wurtzes’ home and is part of the Southwell Theater, a group of homeschool high school and middle school students.

Thirty-three students in all, including nine additional students from the Newman Center at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, participated in the play about Bl. Anacleto that Sarah wrote. The play is the 23rd performed as part of this theater group. It was actually performed several years ago, but Sarah wanted to perform it again in honor of her sister-in-law, Theresa Northway, who passed away this year from lung cancer.

“She was diagnosed in May of 2024 and at that time, we began a widespread prayer to Bl. Anacleto for her cure, but also for her return to her Catholic faith,” Sarah said. “And towards the end of her life, she asked for confession and the sacraments. I believe that was through the intercession of Bl. Anacleto.”

Sarah said that experience made an impact on her own Catholic faith.

“It makes it a very real and concrete reminder that these saints are very much there for us to reach out to,” she said. “They’re very active in our lives. If you reach out to them and beg for their intercession, they’re ready for us. And it’s a reminder that we can go to Jesus through them, that they’re very powerful.”

Father Becerra said Bl. Anacleto faced threats that resulted in him sacrificing his life for his faith. He said that persecution of Catholics still exists in many ways today.

“When a Catholic student goes to the university and (he or she) said a baby is a baby since conception, until the end of his natural death, he or she will be persecuted in the university,” he said. “When we Catholics (say) marriage is just between a man and woman, we are persecuted because of saying that. In saying you should love your enemies, there is persecution.”

Father Becerra said we also still have courageous men and women ready to stand up for religious freedom.

“The issue is not that there are threats against Catholics. The issue is there are many brave men and women open to (giving) their lives in defending the faith.”

Bl. Anacleto Gonzales Flores was martyred in 1927. Father Becerra said the three principles he lived by still serve as a model for Catholics nearly a century later.

“Unity, organization and action. By loving God with all your heart without measure. By loving our Mother, Virgin Mary, Our Lady of Guadalupe, with all your heart… We cannot be Catholics just praying inside of our houses. We need to go to the public matters to say these are our values. This is our faith. We want to live it.”

Southwell Theater production photos courtesy Ron Lawson

SNR photos | Cathy Blankenau Bender