The Churches and the Struggle for Peace in Vieques

“The arresting officer had tears in his eyes,” commented Rev. Luis Rosario, General Pastor of the United Evangelical Church of Puerto Rico, remembering his arrest on May 4, 2000. “It bothered him to arrest us - ministers, priests, bishops. He begged us not to force him to handcuff us. But we told him that if he wanted us to leave, he’d have to arrest us.”

The Vieques struggle was a “kairos moment,” a time of special spiritual potency. As Rev. Margarita Sánchez, formerly of MENPRI, the Puerto Rican ecumenical movement for national liberation observed, “It has been said many times, but -- it was historic. People of all different traditions prayed and sang together in the Peace Camp.”

That ecumenical unity was part of a broader Puerto Rican consensus which prevailed over the world’s only superpower.

A Protracted Struggle

Although the death of David Sanes catalyzed the recent phase of struggle, it followed decades of resistance. Over sixty years ago, Father Reinhardt, the Catholic priest in Vieques, appealed to his bishop about the hardships caused by the bombing; Bishop John Davis wrote to the Navy. Bishop Rafael Grovas Félix and Bishop Antulio Parrilla Bonilla also supported this effort; the latter and Rev. Wilfredo Vélez were among the 21 people arrested while praying in the bombing range in 1979. Rev. Sánchez, Rev. Eunice Santana, and Elías Rivera were also involved through the environmental, peace, and community development efforts. Many others, including many Catholic sisters, labored humbly and tirelessly over the years to lay the foundation upon which the later phases of the struggle were built.

Local Ministries

Two pastors - Rev. Lucy Rosario (unrelated to Rev. Luis Rosario mentioned above), a United Methodist minister, and Father Nelson López, a Catholic priest -- stand out for their courage and commitment.

Padre Nelson López emphasized the importance of the support he received from other parts of the Church.

“Throughout this struggle,” he said, “I felt that the Holy Spirit was walking with us.” Bishop Alvarado Corrada del Río and Archbishop Roberto González Nieves, bishops of Caguas and San Juan, respectively, were particularly supportive, and the Pope also wrote a supportive response to a letter signed by a thousand church members. Monsignor Corrada del Río, 34 nuns, 18 priests, 7 seminarians, and many deacons and lay people were among the 180 people arrested on May 4. And most of the Catholic Churches in the Diocese of Caguas flew the Vieques and white peace flags and included petitions for peace and the departure of the Navy in their services.

 “The Catholic Church was there, heart and soul. We defended the human rights of the people of Vieques: their right to health, to live as children of God on this beautiful island that God gave our people.”

The Bishops

Padre Nelsonand Rev. Lucyministries helped connect the people of Vieques with the churches and their leaders in Puerto Rico and beyond.

Rev. Osvaldo Malavé, then General Pastor of the United Evangelical Church of Puerto Rico, brought both personal and institutional commitment to this issue. In June, 1999, with Rev. Lucyhelp, he met with 22 pastors from the island. He soon went to Vieques again with Rev. Yasmina Apolinaris of the American Baptist Churches and with Rev. Luis Rosario, who later succeeded Rev. Malavé in the United Evangelical Church. Carlos Ventura took them to the bombing range and helped them identify a site for the Protestant peace camp. By October they had built the camp, and kept it continuously staffed by the different denominations until the protesters were removed in May.

For Rev. Malavé, the reclamation of Vieques symbolized Godwill for creation and life. “An elderly Methodist woman told me that she remembered playing on those beaches. The bombing deprived the people of the ability to enjoy Godcreation and made Vieques a place of armaments and war,” he said. “When we were in the bombing range at first, everything was dry and dead.  But after six months without the bombing, there were birds and butterflies. There was life.”

After Rev. Malavé retired, Rev. Luis Rosario continued their denominationsupport of the peace camp and the Vieques issue as a whole. “It was not easy to get our churches involved,” he admitted. “It evolved, little by little. It was hard to move people beyond partisan ways of thinking to see this from a faith perspective.”  

Despite the challenges, the churches were key to the victory in Vieques. “Our role was decisive,” he asserted. “If the Church had not been involved, the Navy might still be there.”

Mons. Corrada del Río, Bishop of Caguas, was instrumental in bringing the authority of the Catholic Church to bear on the struggle. His Diocese established a peace camp in February 2001, trained people to do civil disobedience, and produced user-friendly resources to help members understand the Vieques issue. And when the White House proposed a referendum which did not include the option of the Navyimmediate departure, the Diocese organized its own house-to-house survey in Vieques, which did offer the third option. The overwhelming majority of Viequenses (88.5%) discredited the White House proposal by choosing this third option.

Ecumenical Unity and Solidarity

Each bishop and denominational leader involved in the struggle brought the authority of his or her particular office to it. But the leaders unity further multiplied their authority, creating a moral force that could not be denied. When the bishops called for a peace march in February, 2000 to challenge Governor Rossellóacceptance of the White House plan to keep the Navy in Vieques for three more years, the result was the largest turnout in Puerto Rican history.

This cooperation was facilitated by the Protestant Puerto Rican Council of Churches, led by Rev. Heriberto Martínez, and by the Ecumenical Coalition for Vieques, which brought the Catholic, Lutheran, and Episcopal Churches together with the Protestant Council of Churches and with Rev. Wilfredo Estrada of the Puerto Rican Bible Society. Through these organizations, many religious leaders were able to coordinate their participation in the civil disobedience of May 4.

 Rev. Martínez began his term as Secretary General of the Council of Churches in April, 2000, a month before the protesters were removed. “The Vieques work was all-consuming and really defined my ministry,” he reflected.

 This worked helped the church “recognize its responsibility for justice and peace,” he said. “In addition to individual spiritual issues, the church had to denounce sin and announce hope.

Vieques shook us from a colonial mentality which kept the religious domain apart from the social. It made us realize that we cant just say the Our Father‚ while remaining silent in the face of injustice. When the highest leaders of the churches decided to take part in civil disobedience, the church had to confront its role in society.”

Rev. Martínez acknowledged that the churches are changing their approach now that the Navy has left, but he and the other church leaders are determined to keep working together for justice. The Ecumenical Coalition for Vieques has broadened its name and focus out of respect for the new Jewish and Muslim members: the “Ecumenical and Interreligious Coalition of Puerto Rico.” The new organization is seeking to create a “culture of peace” in the context of the closure of the Roosevelt Roads Navy base and the unfinished agenda in Vieques.

Rev. Luis Rosario concluded, “Some people in the eastern part of Puerto Rico were in favor of the military base, but we dont support the military use of this land. We want it to pass to the Puerto Rican government and to be put to better use. Our role will not be as visible as when we were involved in the Vieques peace camp, but we are committed to continue the struggle for peace and for justice not just in Puerto Rico, but throughout the whole world.”