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Guadalajara, Mexico, Apr 23, 2018 / 03:30 pm (ACI Prensa).- The reported murder of a priest in Guadalajara, Mexico, on Friday marks the second killing of a priest in less than a week in the country.

Fr. Juan Miguel Contreras Garcia, 33, was shot to death the afternoon of April 20 inside Saint Pio of Pietrelcina church, in Guadalajara, Jalisco State, authorities reported.

The murder of Fr. Contreras Garcia makes the second murder of a priest in Mexico in less than a week, following the killing of Fr. Rubén Alcántara Díaz, the vicar general of the Diocese of Cuautitlán Izcalli, on April 18.

According to the Catholic Multimedia Center, this makes a total of 23 priests murdered in the country in the last six years.

The Attorney General’s Office of Jalisco State reported that Fr. Contreras Garcia was believed to have been attacked by two men from the Hacienda Santa Fe neighborhood in the town of Tlajomulco, in the Guadalajara metropolitan area.

The attorney general’s office indicated the killers “entered the sacristy of the parish and straight away attacked the victim, fleeing afterwards in a compact vehicle.”

“The victim was found in the church with several gunshot wounds,” the office said.

In a message released by the Archdiocese of Guadalajara, Cardinal Francisco Robles Ortega, his auxiliary bishops, the clergy and the faithful expressed “our deepest grief.”

The Archdiocese of Guadalajara urged “the state and municipal authorities to investigate and determine the facts of this deplorable incident.”

In addition, they called on “those that commit these atrocities against people’s lives to reconsider the damage they do to society and the climate of anguish they bring upon the citizens, so that their minds and hearts be moved to repent of their actions.”

“We unite in prayer so that this climate of violence that afflicts our state of Jalisco would come to an end.”

The bishops of Mexico also released a statement voicing “sadness and grief over the murder of another priest in just a few days.”

“We make an urgent call to build a culture of peace and reconciliation. These deplorable incidents call all of us to a much deeper and sincere conversion. It is time to look honestly at our culture and society, to ask ourselves why we have lost respect for life and the sacred.”

“We ask the Catholic faithful to accompany their priests with prayer, especially in the pastoral service of the communities that have been entrusted to them.”

The bishops also exhorted “those who despise and take away life for any cause, to let the kindly face up God look upon you to not only lay down your weapons but also hatred, resentment, vengeance and every destructive sentiment.”

“To our competent authorities we strongly request, once again, to exhaustively investigate and determine the facts in order to act in conformity with justice and not allow this crime or the other crimes in our nation to go unpunished.”

The Citizen Council for Public Safety and Criminal Justice warned that within Mexico, “the increase in violence is undeniable.”

On the council’s most recent annual list of the 50 most violent cities in the world, 12 are in Mexico.

This article was originally published by our sister agency, ACI Prensa. It has been translated and adapted by CNA.

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Guarabira, Brazil, Aug 26, 2017 / 04:02 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- A priest in the northeastern Brazilian state of Paraiba was found dead in his rectory Thursday morning, with signs of having been stabbed, according to police.

The body of Fr. Pedro Gomes Bezerra, who was to have turned 50 at the end of this month, was discovered Aug. 24 in Borborema, about 20 miles northwest of Guarabira. His body was found wrapped in sheets in his residence, which was in shambles. According to the local press the investigation found some 29 punctures on his body.

The priest’s car was not in the garage, but there were no signs of the house having been broken into.

“Even though we are in mourning, let us stand united in prayer, professing our faith in the resurrection of the dead. And may the Lord grant eternal rest to Fr. Pedro Gomes,” read a statement from the Diocese of Guarabira, of which Fr. Bezerra was a priest.

The priest’s neighbors reported they did not notice any strange movements in the house. The police were notified by the parish secretary, who was surprised to see the doors closed when she came to work.

The Chief of Police of the Civil Police, Joao Alves, told Portal MaisPB an investigation of the crime will be initiated.

Fr. Bezerra’s death is being mourned by the city of Borborema and by Belem, where he worked from 1999 to 2007.

Belem’s mayor declared three days of mourning and recalled that Fr. Bezerra had left “an importance legacy of faith and social works, such as the Good Shepherd Shelter.”

“We pray to God to comfort his relatives, friends, and the Diocese of Guarabira in this moment of grief and of irreparable loss,” she said.

Fr. Pedro is being buried in Guarabira on Friday.

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