Posted on 10/29/2008 10:25:03 AM PDT by NYer
VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Two Jesuit priests were murdered brutally in Moscow after being attacked with blunt objects.
Jesuit Fathers Otto Messmer, 47, and Victor Betancourt, 42, were found dead late Oct. 28 in their Moscow apartment.
The Russian bishops' conference denounced "those who committed this terrible crime" and prayed Russian authorities would "be able to find the criminals."
"The assassin is in a state of serious, horrible sin and whoever committed (the crime) must undergo just punishment," the conference said in an Oct. 29 statement sent to Vatican Radio.
It said it hoped once the perpetrators were found, the Russian courts and society would pronounce "an objective juridical and moral judgment" for the crimes committed.
In a note distributed to journalists at the Vatican press hall, head of Vatican Radio, Jesuit Father Federico Lombardi, said a police investigation was under way.
The murders had been carried out "with blunt objects," he wrote.
He said authorities suspect Father Betancourt had been killed before Oct. 26 since he had not shown up to celebrate Sunday Mass that day.
Father Messmer may have been killed Oct. 27 since he had returned to Moscow from Germany that night, Father Lombardi wrote.
Concerned about not having seen or heard from the priests, another Jesuit went to their apartment Oct. 28 where he found them dead, wrote Father Lombardi.
Father Adolfo Nicolas, superior general of the Jesuits, called on all Jesuits to pray for their brothers in Russia and for the end to all violence.
The funeral Mass was to be celebrated by Moscow Archbishop Paolo Pezzi the evening of Oct. 29 in Moscow's Immaculate Conception Cathedral.
Father Messmer, a Russian citizen, was born in Kazakhstan. He had been head of the Russian independent region of the Society of Jesus since 2002.
Father Betancourt, an Ecuadorean citizen, studied in Argentina, Germany and Rome and had been working in Russia since 2001.
The two priests worked together at Moscow's Church of St. Louis de France.
May they rest in peace.
May they rest in peace.
Let’s always pray for priests.
RIP
So, why would two priests be targets for murder? How very mysterious..
The Jesuits have always been the lightning rod of Rome and these two were probably involved in some clandestine, secretive expedition. One can rest assured that the KGB and their ilk are well seated in this little execution.
As opposed to...humanely murdered?
This is very sad.
Prayers for their eternal rest.
Amen
Well, one can be murdered in more or less painful way...
“One can rest assured that the KGB and their ilk are well seated in this little execution.”
According to “Kommersant” two victims and a murderer where involved in mutual homosexual relations.
The only obvious reasons are it’s because the were Catholic and preaching orthodox doctrine that someone hated, or they had political views someone hated, or they were homosexuals living together and someone hated them for that. Of course that is sheer speculation. Depraved sick people who would commit this kind of crime could have any stupid reason of their own as a motive.
Requiescant in pace.
I don’t know about that source, is it credible, reliable? Or are they just journalists speculating? I googled Kommersant but did not find this particular story. THANK YOU.
It was published in Russian, and foundable in the Russian version of the website. Probably they'll translate it in some time. As for homosexualism = the Kommersant's report was that two used condoms had been found on the crime scene.
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