My vote: Jonathan
Choosing between these two is hard.
Rutilio was a Salvadoran Jesuit priest and a close friend of Oscar Romero. He was inspired by the reforms and changes of Vatican II, and immersed himself in the communities he served. After a fellow priest was kidnapped by guerillas and government efforts to intimidate priests, Rutilio said in what became known as the Apopa sermon “I am fully aware that very soon the Bible and the Gospels will not be allowed to cross the border. All that will reach us will be the covers since all the pages are subversive – against sin, it is said. So that if Jesus crosses the border at Chalatenango, they will not allow him to enter. They would accuse him, the man-God ... of being an agitator, of being a Jewish foreigner, who confuses the people with exotic and foreign ideas, anti-democratic ideas, and, that is, against the minorities. Ideas against God, because this is a clan of Cain's. Brothers, they would undoubtedly crucify him again.” He was murdered less than a month later on March 13, 1977 by Salvadoran security forces.
Jonathan was an Episcopal seminarian helping register voters in Alabama in 1965. He was arrested on August 14 after picketing in front of a whites-only store. He and the other protesters were finally released on August 20, and he and three others went to get a soda at a nearby store-two white men and two black women. They were blocked by a “special deputy” (racist white man) holding a shotgun named Tom Coleman. Coleman aimed his shotgun at one of the women, 17 year old Ruby Sales and pulled the trigger. Jonathan pushed her aside and was killed instantly. Ruby and the other woman ran, and the other man, a priest, was shot in the back. Coleman claimed self defense, was charged with manslaughter and was acquitted. Of course. He later said that he would shoot again if given the chance. He died in 1997. Ruby Sales was unable to speak for seven months. She testified at the trial and later attended the same seminary as Jonathan had. She continues her activism to this day, thanks to Jonathan.
I struggled with this choice, and still do. Jonathan ultimately won my vote.
Choosing between these two is hard.
Rutilio was a Salvadoran Jesuit priest and a close friend of Oscar Romero. He was inspired by the reforms and changes of Vatican II, and immersed himself in the communities he served. After a fellow priest was kidnapped by guerillas and government efforts to intimidate priests, Rutilio said in what became known as the Apopa sermon “I am fully aware that very soon the Bible and the Gospels will not be allowed to cross the border. All that will reach us will be the covers since all the pages are subversive – against sin, it is said. So that if Jesus crosses the border at Chalatenango, they will not allow him to enter. They would accuse him, the man-God ... of being an agitator, of being a Jewish foreigner, who confuses the people with exotic and foreign ideas, anti-democratic ideas, and, that is, against the minorities. Ideas against God, because this is a clan of Cain's. Brothers, they would undoubtedly crucify him again.” He was murdered less than a month later on March 13, 1977 by Salvadoran security forces.
Jonathan was an Episcopal seminarian helping register voters in Alabama in 1965. He was arrested on August 14 after picketing in front of a whites-only store. He and the other protesters were finally released on August 20, and he and three others went to get a soda at a nearby store-two white men and two black women. They were blocked by a “special deputy” (racist white man) holding a shotgun named Tom Coleman. Coleman aimed his shotgun at one of the women, 17 year old Ruby Sales and pulled the trigger. Jonathan pushed her aside and was killed instantly. Ruby and the other woman ran, and the other man, a priest, was shot in the back. Coleman claimed self defense, was charged with manslaughter and was acquitted. Of course. He later said that he would shoot again if given the chance. He died in 1997. Ruby Sales was unable to speak for seven months. She testified at the trial and later attended the same seminary as Jonathan had. She continues her activism to this day, thanks to Jonathan.
I struggled with this choice, and still do. Jonathan ultimately won my vote.
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