St. Jenaro Sánchez Delgadillo

Sánchez Delgadillo was born in the town of Agualele, in the municipality of Zapopan, Jalisco, the son of Cristóbal Sánchez and Julia Delgadillo, on September 19, 1886. With a scholarship, he entered the seminary of the Archdiocese of Guadalajara and was later ordained a priest of the Archdiocese by Archbishop José de Jesús Ortíz y Rodríguez on August 20, 1911. Sánchez then served as a curate in various parishes of the Archdiocese, becoming known for his humility and his obedience to the pastors under whom he served. The care of the sick was a major focus of his ministry, as well as teaching the catechism to the children of the parish. When he was stationed in Cocula, Jalisco, he taught classes at a minor seminary established within the parish. As a result of the increasing tension between the Catholic Church and the government of Mexico, in 1917 the Archbishop of Guadalajara, Francisco Orozco y Jiménez, issued a pastoral letter on behalf of the bishops of Mexico—most of whom were then in exile in the United States—in which he detailed the sufferings he was enduring for defending the rights of the Church against government interference. For reading this letter publicly at the Sunday service in his church, Sánchez was jailed by the local police. In 1923 Sánchez was appointed as the vicar of the village of Tamazulita, within the parish of Tecolotlan. Due to the prohibition of public worship by the Republic of Mexico, Sánchez conducted secret Masses in private homes. He and his parents were given shelter by the Castillo family at their home at Rancho La Cañada. On January 17, 1927, he was out hunting with Herculano, Crescenciano and Cresencio Castillo, Lucio Camacho and Ricardo Brambila. Soldiers were waiting for him. Though everyone said he should escape, he decided to stay and face the consequences. The soldiers took them prisoner and tied everyone back to back. The others were released but the soldiers hanged Sánchez from a nearby tree. Before dawn, the soldiers returned shot Sánchez in the left shoulder and then lowered the body to the ground. One of the soldiers then pierced his chest with a bayonet. Sánchez' body was then taken to a private home from which it was buried in the cemetery of Tecolotlan. In 1934, with the approval of the Curia of Guadalajara, the remains were transferred to the parish church in Tecolotlan Cocula, Jalisco. He was beatified on November 22, 1992 by John Paul II and canonized by that same pope at the Jubilee of 2000, on May 21 of that year. He is remembered on January 17.