Margarito Flores García (February 22, 1899 — November 12, 1927) was a

priest A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in partic ...

of the

Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

and was canonized a saint in 2000. During his ministry in Chilpancingo-Chilapa, he was persecuted in the Mexican revolution and died as a

martyr A martyr (, ''mártys'', "witness", or , ''marturia'', stem , ''martyr-'') is someone who suffers persecution and death for advocating, renouncing, or refusing to renounce or advocate, a religious belief or other cause as demanded by an externa ...

Biography

Margarito Flores García was born on February 22, 1899, to Germán Flores and García Merced at Taxco de Alarcón in the Mexican state of

Guerrero Guerrero is one of the 32 states that comprise the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided in 81 municipalities and its capital city is Chilpancingo and its largest city is Acapulcocopied from article, GuerreroAs of 2020, Guerrero the pop ...

. From a young age, he was forced to labor in the fields to help support his poverty-stricken family. At 15 he began studying in the

seminary A seminary, school of theology, theological seminary, or divinity school is an educational institution for educating students (sometimes called ''seminarians'') in scripture, theology, generally to prepare them for ordination to serve as clergy ...

at Chilopie.. Garcia received Holy Orders from Bishop José Guadalupe Ortiz on April 5, 1924. He celebrated his first mass at his hometown church of Santa Prisca y San Sebastian on April 20, 1924. Initially, he ministered in the Chilopie seminary as a

vicar A vicar (; Latin: '' vicarius'') is a representative, deputy or substitute; anyone acting "in the person of" or agent for a superior (compare "vicarious" in the sense of "at second hand"). Linguistically, ''vicar'' is cognate with the English pre ...

while effectively preventing the expansion of breakaway

sect A sect is a subgroup of a religious, political, or philosophical belief system, usually an offshoot of a larger group. Although the term was originally a classification for religious separated groups, it can now refer to any organization that ...

s. Soon, the persecution of Catholics intensified. In 1926, president Plutoco Elías Calles published a government decree requiring priests to leave

parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest, often termed a parish priest, who might be assisted by one o ...

ministry and live in the cities in order to be monitored by the federal government. Garcia was inspired to stay in the region after the martyrdom of David Uribe Velasco. Velasco chose to minister clandestinely where the church was undergoing intensive attacks and where its people were in the greatest danger. In the same year – under the influence of increasing repression – the

clergy Clergy are formal leaders within established religions. Their roles and functions vary in different religious traditions, but usually involve presiding over specific rituals and teaching their religion's doctrines and practices. Some of the ter ...

were moved from Chilpancingo to Tecapulco. García continued his studies at the

Academia de San Carlos The Academy of San Carlos ( es, Academia de San Carlos) is located at 22 Academia Street in just northeast of the main plaza of Mexico City. It was the first major art academy and the first art museum in the Americas. It was founded in 1781 as th ...

. He was arrested in June of the following year (1927) and imprisoned along with members of the "League for the Defense of Religious Liberty". After intervention by the family of General Roberto Cruz, Flores García was released. In November, according to a complex request, he was sent to minister as

pastor A pastor (abbreviated as "Pr" or "Ptr" , or "Ps" ) is the leader of a Christian congregation who also gives advice and counsel to people from the community or congregation. In Lutheranism, Catholicism, Eastern Orthodoxy, Oriental Orthodoxy and ...

of the parish in the village of Atenango del Río. Prior to Garcia's arrival in the village, local government authorities had already killed every other priest located in the town. Shortly after his arrival in the village, García was arrested and dragged on a rope in front of the general in Tulimán. He was shot to death on November 12, 1927, by government forces. Police commissioner Crus Pineda had tried to help the priest, but he was shot and killed by federal authorities at a later date. In 1925, the

relics In religion, a relic is an object or article of religious significance from the past. It usually consists of the physical remains of a saint or the personal effects of the saint or venerated person preserved for purposes of veneration as a tang ...

of García were moved to a chapel in his home parish of Taxco. Investigation into the heroic sanctity of Garcia's life began in his local diocese in 1933 and was completed in 1988. García was

beatified Beatification (from Latin ''beatus'', "blessed" and ''facere'', "to make”) is a recognition accorded by the Catholic Church of a deceased person's entrance into Heaven and capacity to intercede on behalf of individuals who pray in their nam ...

Pope John Paul II Pope John Paul II ( la, Ioannes Paulus II; it, Giovanni Paolo II; pl, Jan Paweł II; born Karol Józef Wojtyła ; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was the head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 1978 until his ...

on 22 November 1992 in

St. Peter's Basilica The Papal Basilica of Saint Peter in the Vatican ( it, Basilica Papale di San Pietro in Vaticano), or simply Saint Peter's Basilica ( la, Basilica Sancti Petri), is a church built in the Renaissance style located in Vatican City, the papal e ...

. John Paul II also

canonized Canonization is the declaration of a deceased person as an officially recognized saint, specifically, the official act of a Christian communion declaring a person worthy of public veneration and entering their name in the canon catalogue of s ...

him, along with St.

Cristóbal Magallanes Jara Cristóbal Magallanes Jara, also known as Christopher Magallanes (July 30, 1869 – May 25, 1927), was Mexican Catholic priest and martyr who was killed without trial on the way to say Mass during the Cristero War. He had faced the trumped-up ch ...

and companions, on May 21, 2000, on St. Peter's Square. His feast is celebrated as a commemoration on 12 November.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Flores García, Margarito 1899 births 1927 deaths People from Taxco Deaths by firearm in Mexico Catholic martyrs