Honduran bishop, killed in car accident, recalled as 'man of peace'

Published: 2004-07-01

TRUJILLO, Honduras (CNS) -- Bishop Virgilio Lopez Irias of Trujillo, who was killed in a late-June car accident, was recalled by mourners as a "man of peace." More than 1,200 people attended the June 26 funeral Mass, held in Trujillo's St. John the Baptist Cathedral. Before the funeral and final interment, the bishop's body lay in the cathedral for mourners to view. Among the mourners was a delegation from the Diocese of Dallas, which maintained a sister relationship with the Trujillo Diocese. Cardinal Oscar Rodriguez Maradiaga of Tegucigalpa said in his homily, "Death is not a sad thing for the religious nor for the priest." The cardinal said, "It is just a final, definitive 'yes' to God's will." He said it was not a day of failure, but one of triumph, "because this man, this holy bishop, enters God's peace in the heavenly home."

Copyright (c) 2004 Catholic News Service /U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops. The CNS news report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or otherwise distributed, including but not limited to such means as framing or any other digital copying or distribution method, in whole or in part without the prior written authority of Catholic News Service .