Mateo Elías Nieves Castillo (21 September 1882 – 10 March 1928) was a Mexican Roman Catholic priest who was also a member of the

Order of Saint Augustine The Order of Saint Augustine, ( la, Ordo Fratrum Sancti Augustini) abbreviated OSA, is a religious mendicant order of the Catholic Church. It was founded in 1244 by bringing together several eremitical groups in the Tuscany region who were fo ...

who assumed the name of Elias del Socorro when he became a member of the order.

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 ...

beatified him on 12 October 1997 without a miracle because he was killed "in odium fidei" and therefore did not require a miracle. Instead it was proved that he was killed in hatred of the faith. A miracle is now under investigation for prospective sainthood.

Life

Mateo Elías Nieves Castillo was born on 21 September 1882 as a sick child to Ramón and Rita and was baptized on the same day due to fears that he would not live for long. He almost died of

tuberculosis Tuberculosis (TB) is an infectious disease usually caused by '' Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can also affect other parts of the body. Most infections show no symptoms, in ...

at the age of twelve and his father soon died after he rallied from his ailment. Castillo was admitted to the Augustinian college in

Yuriria Yuriria, Guanajuato, Mexico,(), is one of 46 municipalities in the Mexican state of Guanajuato. Geography Yuriria is located in the "Bajío", or lowlands, of Guanajuato. It is bordered to the east by Salvatierra and Santiago Maravatío, to the ...

at the age of 22 which was older than the standard admission age. He took his vows in 1911 and took the name of "Elias del Socorro". He was

ordained Ordination is the process by which individuals are consecrated, that is, set apart and elevated from the laity class to the clergy, who are thus then authorized (usually by the denominational hierarchy composed of other clergy) to perform va ...

to the priesthood on 9 April 1916 and served as a vicar in Cañada de Caracheo in 1921. At the time of the government persecution of the

Roman 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 ...

he refused to submit and moved to the hillside where he served his parish during the night so as not to be caught. He was arrested and was shot to death on the side of the road. His final words were: "Long live

Christ the King Christ the King is a title of Jesus in Christianity referring to the idea of the Kingdom of God where the Christ is described as seated at the right hand of God. Many Christian denominations consider the kingly office of Christ to be one of ...

Beatification

The beatification cause for the

Servant of God "Servant of God" is a title used in the Catholic Church to indicate that an individual is on the first step toward possible canonization as a saint. Terminology The expression "servant of God" appears nine times in the Bible, the first five in th ...

commenced in

Morelia Morelia (; from 1545 to 1828 known as Valladolid) is a city and municipal seat of the municipality of Morelia in the north-central part of the state of Michoacán in central Mexico. The city is in the Guayangareo Valley and is the capital and larg ...

in October 1957 and concluded its work in June 1959. The process was ratified in 1992 and the

Positio In the Catholic Church, a ''positio'' (''Positio super Virtutibus'') is a document or collection of documents used in the process by which a person is declared Venerable, the second of the four steps on the path to canonization as a saint. Des ...

- documentation on his murder being "in odium fidei" - was sent to the

Congregation for the Causes of Saints In the Catholic Church, the Dicastery for the Causes of Saints, previously named the Congregation for the Causes of Saints (), is the dicastery of the Roman Curia that oversees the complex process that leads to the canonization of saints, pa ...

in 1994.

approved the decision that Castillo died in hatred of the faith and beatified him on 12 October 1997.Table of Beatifications during the Pontificate of His Holiness John Paul II
/ref> A miracle attributed to him was discovered and was investigated. The process was ratified in 2010. This miracle will have to be approved before his canonization can proceed.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mateo Elias Nieves Castillo 1882 births 1928 deaths People from Guanajuato 20th-century venerated Christians 20th-century Christian martyrs Augustinian friars Martyred Roman Catholic priests Beatifications by Pope John Paul II Deaths by firearm in Mexico People murdered in Mexico Mexican murder victims