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For a decade, Veronica Rosas has abandoned the established festival tradition Christmas treeThe profound grief of his son’s disappearance in 2015 proved too heavy.
Before 16-year-old Diego disappears Mexico Urban suburbia The winter season was a memorable time for mother and son, marked by the joy of picking out natural trees and decorating them with Diego’s beloved Mickey and Minnie Mouse figurines.
“It’s very hard and I haven’t been able to put up a tree,” said Ms. Rosas, who recently joined other bereaved relatives in making Christmas ornaments in poignant memory of their missing loved ones.
The meeting, organized by the Catholic Diocese of Ecatepec – an area near the capital that has been plagued by robberies, femicides and other crimes – brought Ms. Rosas and a dozen other families carrying photos of their relatives.
Over several hours, these images were carefully glued onto old CDs and cardboard circles, then sprinkled with glitter.
following a Mass And after a priest’s blessing, the entire ornaments were hung on the “Tree of Hope” inside the cathedral, where they will remain until February 2.
“We want to draw attention to the crisis we are living in,” said Ms. Rosas, who has since set up an organization to share her pain while supporting the Mexican people. “It’s a symbolic gesture that keeps what’s happening in clear sight.”
vanishing mark
Official figures show more than 133,000 people have gone missing Mexico Since 1952. human traffickingKidnapping, reprisal actions and forced recruitment by cartel members are among the causes.
The incident has affected Latin America For decades. In every country, many mothers, sons and sisters have made life-changing choices to search for their relatives – often because authorities fail to act or respond.
“It’s been a way of the cross,” Marisol Rizzo said, referencing the Biblical account of Jesus carrying the cross before his crucifixion. She has been searching for her mother since 2012. “Thirteen years have passed and we can’t get the authorities to do their job.”
She said her children were young when their mother disappeared, and had to bear the burden of motherhood while searching for her.
“My mother always told me to take care of them,” he said. “But as soon as I discovered him, I forgot about my children.”
Rizzo believes her father was responsible for her mother’s disappearance in a country where at least 10 women or girls are killed every day because of their gender. He has denied any involvement.
Like many other relatives of the disappeared, Rizzo spends the winter season with sadness rather than joy. He still remembers how, years ago, he spent days posting leaflets on the streets around Christmas.
This is a common practice among people with missing relatives in Mexico. Each poster includes contact information, as well as a photo, name, distinguishing characteristics, and date of the person’s disappearance.
“I cried a lot on December 24th,” Rizzo said. “I could see happy people coming out of shopping centers, while I was posting flyers dragging my sadness.”
Rizzo’s daughter, now 17, joined her in creating the round ornaments in the Ecatepec Cathedral. Yet the memories evoked by looking at photographs of her vanished mother were almost unbearable.
“These areas represent a deep sadness to me,” Rizzo said. “This is not where I want to see my mother’s picture.”
a long wait for compassion
In some cases, relatives of the disappeared have become frustrated by the lack of support from religious leaders.
Catholic mothers like Rosas, distraught with fear after the disappearance of their children, sought solace in their local parishes. But long-trusted priests sometimes rebuked them.
“I remember when I got there church Five years ago, I said mass for my daughter and was told, ‘We don’t say mass for the disappeared,'” said Jacqueline Palmeros, who recently found her child’s remains. Mexico City,
“But I believe that church“What has closed its doors to us for so long is an alternative path to reach truth, justice, memory and repair,” she said.
Bishop Javier Acero apologized during a recent meeting with relatives of the disappeared.
representation of Mexico CityIn the archdiocese, he has publicly supported victims of disappearances and holds monthly meetings with relatives in need of spiritual support.
“As church “Leaders, we recognize that many times we have not acted as we should – out of fear or not knowing how,” Acero said. “If we failed to receive you with the care you needed, if we did not pray as you asked, please forgive us.”
a ministry of presence
Rosas attended the meeting with members of the worldwide group that has offered spiritual refuge for years. Known as the “Church Circle”, it brings together nuns English Priests and many other clergy of various denominations.
Faith leaders regularly hold mass celebrations holding mothers’ hands in public squares before protests demanding answers from the government.
They wear gloves and rubber boots to dig pits where human remains may be. Throughout the year, they post leaflets of missing sons and daughters on the streets of Mexico.
Rev. Luis Alberto Sanchez is one of them. He welcomed relatives with open arms at the Ecatepec Cathedral. There they shared breakfast and she sprayed lacquer on the newly made jewellery.
“We cannot remain silent,” said Sanchez, whose own brother was kidnapped and killed. “The voices of the disappeared, of those who have been destroyed need to be heard and say ‘No more.'”
Rosas treasures their blessings and considers all members of the church congregation as friends. She, too, has spent a heartbreaking Christmas searching for Diego, and he has supported her throughout.
“I want people from all religious communities to come together and adopt our model everywhere,” she said. “In this way, all families can have the continued presence of the Church and the hope that we keep in our hearts.”