Christ the King Church missionaries, priest aim to rebuild El Salvador

Thirty-five years ago, 16-year-old Esterminio Chica fled war-torn El Salvador. Twenty of his family members were killed when the Salvadoran Army slaughtered more than 75,000 civilians between 1979 and 1992 during a military coup and civil war funded by the United States. The El Mozote village massacre in the Morazan region claimed 1,000 lives on Dec. 11-12, 1981. A child refugee, Chica journeyed through Mexico to the U.S. in 1988. He worked in construction, landscaping, and kitchens, entering the seminary in 1997. Now on sabbatical from his role at Christ the King Church in Jersey City, Father Chica spent the past three months walking 50 miles across an Arizona desert while searching for the remains of border crossers who fled violence and poverty in Central America.

“Back then it was less dangerous, as the drug cartels were not as powerful, and you trusted the person bringing you across the border. Morazan is the poorest region in El Salvador and was gang-infested up until a year ago,” Father Chica said.

He returns to his homeland and the villages in and around Moraza for missionary work initiated by Seton Hall student service projects in 2004. “It’s a privilege and brings me a lot of joy and gratitude. It doesn’t matter how hard life is; with the perspective of faith, you can have a happy ending. We see that El Mozote is rebuilding and has much to celebrate now. There’s no resentment from the past,” Father Chica emphasized.

Although infrastructure in El Salvador is improving, the country lacks the resources to accommodate demand for basic needs, particularly in rural areas, and job opportunities are scarce. “The biggest support system is extended family and faith,” Father Chica said.

During a 10-day trip in September, Christ the King Pastoral Associate Rosemary Nwabueze and Business Manager Ann Warren joined Father Chica in El Salvador. They provided spiritual support, a 34-pound box of medical supplies (antibiotics, bandages, gauze, and antiseptics), and over $1,000 in monetary assistance. They delivered Christ the King parishioners’ donations to Asilo San Antonio nursing home in San Miguel and Divine Providence Hospital in San Salvador. The pair toured the hospital ground’s chapel where Oscar Romero, the Archbishop of San Salvador, was assassinated in 1980 during mass. He was targeted for speaking out about human rights violations, military action by the government, and the plight of the poor and oppressed. Memorial artifacts include his car, bloodstained clothes, chalices, desk, and personal items in his living quarters. Romero was canonized by Pope Francis in 2018.

Hours away from San Salvador, Nwabueze and Warren trekked via a four-wheel-drive vehicle to Los Cimientos where village residents are expanding their church with assistance from Christ the King parishioners from Elizabeth, N.J., which boasts a 7.2% Salvadoran population. “It was a multilayered trip: mission work and a retreat,” Nwabueze said. “When we landed in San Salvador, it was like any big city with traffic, malls, and high-end stores. We ventured into the hills and mountains of the villages toward San Miguel and the surrounding area, and there was so much contrast.”

The narrow or nonexistent roads make it hard to attract priests to the new church. “We didn’t know if they would be passable. Father Chica was supposed to perform mass. The tiny church was packed with over 100. One gentleman who left his home at 4 a.m. to walk to church rode up the steep hill with us. The need for priests is great,” Nwabueze explained.

Visiting families living in the bush, the pair observed poverty and hospitality, eating soup with one group, and learning about their lives. “The families, some with disabled children and adults, shared space with chickens and pigs raised for consumption in homes consisting of nothing more than a tin roof, slab walls, and dirt floors. Seton Hall students raised funding to buy the families mattresses,” Warren noted.

El Mozote’s approximately 150 residents have a transportation system where communities may share a vehicle. “They are rebuilding the area with a new water system and sacred space for the occasional visit from a priest,” Warren said.

The contrast of extreme poverty in the backdrop of dense riparian forests, waterfalls, and turquoise beaches was stark. “The overall experience was life-changing, to see so much need and beauty juxtaposed. As we stepped out from under a tin roof, it was all lush mountains and beautiful flowers. There was spiritual and physical beauty and a great need,” Nwabueze recalled.

Survival in the bush is a daily struggle.

“One boy was kept in a cage because he was eating dirt. The local sisters took up a collection to buy food and diapers for the family,” Warren said. “The trip opened my eyes to the living conditions as well as the hospitality and dignity.”

When the war ended and a peace treaty was signed, Salvadorans including Father Chica reclaimed their property and began rebuilding their villages. “The beauty of the Catholic faith connects us,” he said.

Donations for the Los Cimientos church expansion can be made payable to Christ the King, 768 Ocean Avenue in Jersey City, NJ 07304.