First Sunday of Advent: Catholics Confronting the Tyranny in Nicaragua

As we embark on this Advent season, a time of hope and preparation, Americans and Catholics in the Western Hemisphere should remember the grave injustice unfolding in our hemisphere. Nicaragua, under the increasingly authoritarian grip of Daniel Ortega and Rosario Murillo, is not only persecuting the Catholic Church but also destabilizing the region in ways that undermine American values, security, and interests.

The Sandinista regime’s recent constitutional overhaul, correctly called “radical” by some human rights experts, is more than an internal power grab. It represents a calculated effort to dismantle the Catholic Church in Nicaragua and all Christian institutions that might challenge their authority.

This is not mere coincidence—it is a textbook strategy perfected by regimes China and Russia-backed Cuba that see religion as a threat to their control. But the damage doesn’t stop within Nicaragua’s borders. For Catholics, and Pope Francis in particular, the “reforms” have effectively made it impossible for Catholic priests and religious to carry out their duties.

The Holy See must redouble its efforts to demand that all expelled Bishops be allowed to return and that these attacks stop. It will need a strong partner to back it, and that partner is coming soon in the Trump-Vance administration. The Holy See must set aside any reservations about working with America, especially from some of Pope Francis’s closest regional advisors—if they cannot see the forest from the trees, the Pope needs new advisors willing to speak the truth about what is happening in the Americas.

I talked about some of these issues with EWTN’s Tracy Sabol over a year ago, May 10, 2023, and other times: