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A Radical Faith: The Assassination of Sister Maura
The 1980 rape and murder of four American women - three of them Catholic nuns - by the U.S.-trained military of El Salvador shocked the American public and set off a decade of debate over Cold War policy in Latin America. But as Congress held hearings, the State Department, CIA, and FBI traded memos, and supporters held emotional memorial services, the women themselves became symbols, shorn of context and background: hapless victims.
In A Radical Faith, journalist Eileen Markey sets the record straight, exploring the full and complex life of one of these women, Sister Maura Clarke. Raised in a tight-knit Irish Catholic community in Queens, New York during WWII, by the 1970s she was organizing and marching against the dictatorship in Nicaragua and willing to take great risks for a movement to transform El Salvador.
Drawing on interviews with Maura’s family and those she worked with, Maura’s letters, and declassified government documents, Markey weaves an intimate portrait of Maura’s spiritual and political journey during a shockingly violent era. Working in poor communities transformed Maura from an obedient and rule-bound young woman into a provocative critic of authority who pushed the boundaries of what it meant to be faithful to religious conviction and her own heart—even if it meant challenging the CIA-backed regimes that terrorized the poor of Latin America. Maura’s life is a microcosm of the larger evolution of postwar Catholicism: from a inward-looking, protective institution in the 1950s, through the dramatic reassessments of Vatican II to a community of Christians grappling with liberation theology and what it meant to serve God in the world and beside the poor in the 1970s.
As Pope Francis challenges and fascinates the world with outspoken calls for justice, A Radical Faith provides an up-close account of what a faith that does justice looks like.
In A Radical Faith, journalist Eileen Markey sets the record straight, exploring the full and complex life of one of these women, Sister Maura Clarke. Raised in a tight-knit Irish Catholic community in Queens, New York during WWII, by the 1970s she was organizing and marching against the dictatorship in Nicaragua and willing to take great risks for a movement to transform El Salvador.
Drawing on interviews with Maura’s family and those she worked with, Maura’s letters, and declassified government documents, Markey weaves an intimate portrait of Maura’s spiritual and political journey during a shockingly violent era. Working in poor communities transformed Maura from an obedient and rule-bound young woman into a provocative critic of authority who pushed the boundaries of what it meant to be faithful to religious conviction and her own heart—even if it meant challenging the CIA-backed regimes that terrorized the poor of Latin America. Maura’s life is a microcosm of the larger evolution of postwar Catholicism: from a inward-looking, protective institution in the 1950s, through the dramatic reassessments of Vatican II to a community of Christians grappling with liberation theology and what it meant to serve God in the world and beside the poor in the 1970s.
As Pope Francis challenges and fascinates the world with outspoken calls for justice, A Radical Faith provides an up-close account of what a faith that does justice looks like.
336 pages, Hardcover
First published November 8, 2016
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 31 reviews
April 3, 2017
When I first received a copy of this book, I didn't plan on reading it. I had read quite a bit about Nicaragua and especially El Salvador recently, and had even visited the memorial chapel in Chalatenango where the four American churchwomen's bodies were dumped when I was in El Salvador a few years ago. I knew the importance of the churchwomen's murders, but I figured there wasn't much need to read this book — especially since it was only about one of the four women who was murdered.
But because I'm about to edit a review of this book, and I wanted to provide some decent feedback for the reviewer, I thought I'd give it a read, or at least a skim. Immediately, I couldn't put the book down. All I knew about the four churchwomen was that they were Americans who were raped and murdered in El Salvador. I had no idea about any of their backstories. And Maura's is one that certainly deserves book-length treatment.
The book begins with her upbringing as a working-class Irish-American Catholic in Queens, living a life that wasn't too different from those the rest of her neighborhood was living (with the exception of her family's history in Irish Republican activism — her father was a guerrilla in Ireland). But her decision to become a nun, joining the Maryknoll sisters, led to an exposure to the world outside of Queens that she never would have gotten otherwise. And her time as a nun overlapped with major changes in the Catholic church, beginning with Vatican II and then of course liberation theology, which led to major shifts in how Maura saw the world and her own place within it.
By the time we get into the 1970s, our heroine has been transformed into a complete badass, hosting neighborhood organizing meetings against water privatization, marching alongside her congregants against Somoza, offering prayers for young men from the neighborhood who she helped educate and raise as they decide to go off into the mountains and join the Sandinistas, and physically confronting National Guard soldiers as they try to dig up poor people's graves to make way for new land development or snatch a teenage boy off the streets for alleged anti-government activity. All the while, of course, Maura is deeply guided by the "radical faith" of the book's title.
The book includes a photo of Maura on the streets of Managua in 1980, just a few months before she was murdered. She's attending a rally for the one-year anniversary of the Sandinista revolution, smiling radiantly and wearing a Sandinista scarf. I kept thinking of that photo while I read the book and after, thinking of all that transpired between her upbringing in Rockaway and her unapologetic revolutionary fervor rooted in years of organizing alongside the poor in Nicaragua — and the fact that that transformation happened through the Catholic church.
Religious leaders like Maura Clarke should be remembered the same way that we think about the International Brigades in Spain during the Civil War. She represents the best tradition of martyrdom for the cause of internationalism, done out of the religious conviction that "there is no greater love than to lay down one's life for one's friends."
But because I'm about to edit a review of this book, and I wanted to provide some decent feedback for the reviewer, I thought I'd give it a read, or at least a skim. Immediately, I couldn't put the book down. All I knew about the four churchwomen was that they were Americans who were raped and murdered in El Salvador. I had no idea about any of their backstories. And Maura's is one that certainly deserves book-length treatment.
The book begins with her upbringing as a working-class Irish-American Catholic in Queens, living a life that wasn't too different from those the rest of her neighborhood was living (with the exception of her family's history in Irish Republican activism — her father was a guerrilla in Ireland). But her decision to become a nun, joining the Maryknoll sisters, led to an exposure to the world outside of Queens that she never would have gotten otherwise. And her time as a nun overlapped with major changes in the Catholic church, beginning with Vatican II and then of course liberation theology, which led to major shifts in how Maura saw the world and her own place within it.
By the time we get into the 1970s, our heroine has been transformed into a complete badass, hosting neighborhood organizing meetings against water privatization, marching alongside her congregants against Somoza, offering prayers for young men from the neighborhood who she helped educate and raise as they decide to go off into the mountains and join the Sandinistas, and physically confronting National Guard soldiers as they try to dig up poor people's graves to make way for new land development or snatch a teenage boy off the streets for alleged anti-government activity. All the while, of course, Maura is deeply guided by the "radical faith" of the book's title.
The book includes a photo of Maura on the streets of Managua in 1980, just a few months before she was murdered. She's attending a rally for the one-year anniversary of the Sandinista revolution, smiling radiantly and wearing a Sandinista scarf. I kept thinking of that photo while I read the book and after, thinking of all that transpired between her upbringing in Rockaway and her unapologetic revolutionary fervor rooted in years of organizing alongside the poor in Nicaragua — and the fact that that transformation happened through the Catholic church.
Religious leaders like Maura Clarke should be remembered the same way that we think about the International Brigades in Spain during the Civil War. She represents the best tradition of martyrdom for the cause of internationalism, done out of the religious conviction that "there is no greater love than to lay down one's life for one's friends."
February 24, 2017
First I want to make it clear that Markey is a friend of mine and that years ago I was deeply involved in the opposition to US policies in Nicaragua and El Salvador — the policies that played a role in the murder of Sr. Maura Clarke. So I read A Radical Faith with both a feeling of anticipation and, frankly, a feeling of duty.
However the feeling of duty fell away rapidly as the clear and passionate writing carried me into the working-class world of a young Maura Clarke. This is a book in two main parts, the making of Maura in that world, shaped by her family's Irish immigrant history, and her later evolution as a Maryknoll sister working and living in Central America, during a period both of popular revolution and great change in the Catholic church and its approach to spirituality.
Now, I also want to mention that I'm not a religious person, and have never come at social issues from any kind of "spiritual place." But A Radical Faith gave me a new understanding of and appreciation for the commitment of those that do. I'm glad that my friendship prompted me to read something that I might have otherwise considered outside my sphere.
Lest you imagine that it's all religious philosophy, it's not. This book, like Maura's life, is about faith in action. While the larger geopolitical scene is depicted at a distance and in broad strokes, there's a lot of action on the ground, in Nicaragua and El Salvador. Maura and her sisters truly lived among the people as the Maryknoll movement they were part of changed from a mission of charity to a mission of solidarity. Despite the subtitle, this book is not as much about the assassination as it is about the amazing life that led to it.
However the feeling of duty fell away rapidly as the clear and passionate writing carried me into the working-class world of a young Maura Clarke. This is a book in two main parts, the making of Maura in that world, shaped by her family's Irish immigrant history, and her later evolution as a Maryknoll sister working and living in Central America, during a period both of popular revolution and great change in the Catholic church and its approach to spirituality.
Now, I also want to mention that I'm not a religious person, and have never come at social issues from any kind of "spiritual place." But A Radical Faith gave me a new understanding of and appreciation for the commitment of those that do. I'm glad that my friendship prompted me to read something that I might have otherwise considered outside my sphere.
Lest you imagine that it's all religious philosophy, it's not. This book, like Maura's life, is about faith in action. While the larger geopolitical scene is depicted at a distance and in broad strokes, there's a lot of action on the ground, in Nicaragua and El Salvador. Maura and her sisters truly lived among the people as the Maryknoll movement they were part of changed from a mission of charity to a mission of solidarity. Despite the subtitle, this book is not as much about the assassination as it is about the amazing life that led to it.
November 27, 2019
I read this book off and on over the past few months. The story of Sr. Maura and her social justice community is really intense. Passion for a cause, commitment for justice and recognition of the need for change grounded Sr. Maura and these nuns to stand tall for their beliefs.
Read
February 17, 2018Very glad I read this book. I remember when this happened, now it isn't just a news story, but the true account of a remarkable woman.
May 17, 2017
See-Judge-Act
Be Attentive-Be Reflective-Be Loving
Eileen Markey’s excellent book, “A Radical Faith: The Assassination of Sister Maura” confronts us with the critical question, “How do we carry the love of God into the world?”
Sister Maura Clarke, a Maryknoll Sister, served in Nicaragua from 1959 until 1977. In 1980, she answered Archbishop Oscar Romero’s call for Maryknoll Sisters to assist in El Salvador at a critical junction in that country’s history. Months after her arrival, members of the military of El Salvador assassinated her along with fellow missionaries Ita Ford, Dorothy Kazel and Jean Donovan.
I was fortunate to meet Sister Maura in Boston in early 1978. She was in the United States bring attention to the atrocities and poverty in Central America, while working out of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Boston (RCAB) Urban Planning Office. I served with Sister Maura for a brief period on the RCAB Peace and Justice Commission.
Markey perfectly described Sister Maura as “open hearted.” To her, “everyone mattered.”
Markey not only captures Sister Maura’s extraordinary work in Nicaragua and El Salvador, but also her spiritual and personal evolution from the pre-Vatican II era or obedience to a woman willing to stand in solidarity with the poor and oppressed at great personal risk each day.
Sister Maura after seeing actions and judging them to be unjust, knew she had to act. In other words she was attentive to the people she met, reflected on their conditions and then put her love into action.
Markey develops the key relationships in Sister Maura’s life – her family, her religious order and the people of Nicaragua and El Salvador. She beautifully bridges the struggles in Ireland that her parents experienced a generation earlier with those that Sister Maura faced in Central America.
I had the opportunity to attend Markey’s reading in Boston.
Having recently completed, Kate Hennessy’s, “Dorothy Day: The World Will Saved By Beauty,” I was stuck that these two amazing women died within 3 days of each other – Dorothy Day (November 29, 1980) – Sister Maura Clarke (December 2, 1980). Earlier that year (March 24, 1980) Archbishop Oscar Romero was murdered.
I highly recommend Markey’s challenging and extraordinary book.
Be Attentive-Be Reflective-Be Loving
Eileen Markey’s excellent book, “A Radical Faith: The Assassination of Sister Maura” confronts us with the critical question, “How do we carry the love of God into the world?”
Sister Maura Clarke, a Maryknoll Sister, served in Nicaragua from 1959 until 1977. In 1980, she answered Archbishop Oscar Romero’s call for Maryknoll Sisters to assist in El Salvador at a critical junction in that country’s history. Months after her arrival, members of the military of El Salvador assassinated her along with fellow missionaries Ita Ford, Dorothy Kazel and Jean Donovan.
I was fortunate to meet Sister Maura in Boston in early 1978. She was in the United States bring attention to the atrocities and poverty in Central America, while working out of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Boston (RCAB) Urban Planning Office. I served with Sister Maura for a brief period on the RCAB Peace and Justice Commission.
Markey perfectly described Sister Maura as “open hearted.” To her, “everyone mattered.”
Markey not only captures Sister Maura’s extraordinary work in Nicaragua and El Salvador, but also her spiritual and personal evolution from the pre-Vatican II era or obedience to a woman willing to stand in solidarity with the poor and oppressed at great personal risk each day.
Sister Maura after seeing actions and judging them to be unjust, knew she had to act. In other words she was attentive to the people she met, reflected on their conditions and then put her love into action.
Markey develops the key relationships in Sister Maura’s life – her family, her religious order and the people of Nicaragua and El Salvador. She beautifully bridges the struggles in Ireland that her parents experienced a generation earlier with those that Sister Maura faced in Central America.
I had the opportunity to attend Markey’s reading in Boston.
Having recently completed, Kate Hennessy’s, “Dorothy Day: The World Will Saved By Beauty,” I was stuck that these two amazing women died within 3 days of each other – Dorothy Day (November 29, 1980) – Sister Maura Clarke (December 2, 1980). Earlier that year (March 24, 1980) Archbishop Oscar Romero was murdered.
I highly recommend Markey’s challenging and extraordinary book.
June 24, 2018
Not only is this book well-written, but it also briefly covers a variety of interesting subjects. It includes overviews of Irish immigration to the United States, Catholicism and the Maryknoll Sisters, the Nicaraguan Revolution, and the war in El Salvador. All told through the compelling story of an amazing woman, Maura Clarke.
November 2, 2019
Wow! I find it challenging to rate this book. I mean, getting right down to the nitty gritty, it is about how people of faith are brutalized and eventually murdered (spoiler alert). So, I do not feel comfortable saying, "Yeah, I really liked this book!" I didn't.
A Radical Faith is not a "Hey, I think I will sit down a read a book tonight," kind of book. No, Eileen Markey, pulls out all the stops, she has done her research and spares no punches. Good for her!
This has been one of the most challenging books I have read when it comes to faith. Where do I stand with what Sister Maura did? I am still not sure, but I believe that everyone of faith will come to a point when they are called to answer God when they feel He has placed them in a position of service. And if a person of faith is honest with themselves, service is not always pretty, but that is not the point of service. Sister Maura stepped in on behalf of those she served as she felt she should. I do not judge her for that. That is not my place.
How Sister Maura acted will be amazing; to others, foolish, and to others still, "I want to love like that!" As I stated earlier, I definitely did NOT like this book, but more importantly, this book made me think. And these days, that is refreshing. This is a challenging read just because of the material.
I would recommend this book to anyone searching to learn more about themselves and what they are capable of.
A Radical Faith is not a "Hey, I think I will sit down a read a book tonight," kind of book. No, Eileen Markey, pulls out all the stops, she has done her research and spares no punches. Good for her!
This has been one of the most challenging books I have read when it comes to faith. Where do I stand with what Sister Maura did? I am still not sure, but I believe that everyone of faith will come to a point when they are called to answer God when they feel He has placed them in a position of service. And if a person of faith is honest with themselves, service is not always pretty, but that is not the point of service. Sister Maura stepped in on behalf of those she served as she felt she should. I do not judge her for that. That is not my place.
How Sister Maura acted will be amazing; to others, foolish, and to others still, "I want to love like that!" As I stated earlier, I definitely did NOT like this book, but more importantly, this book made me think. And these days, that is refreshing. This is a challenging read just because of the material.
I would recommend this book to anyone searching to learn more about themselves and what they are capable of.
February 8, 2017
I played Sr Maura in an All Saints Parade when I was in grade school. All I knew was she was a sister who died in LA for helping people. She has always been in a the back of my mind ever since. Having studied Latin American history, it is sad and tragic story of abuse and moments of what ifs. I read a review of this book in the NY Times (God bless the Times) and I differ with them. It is so engrossing and moving. Yes, it starts slow but then you get to know this woman who was so remarkable yet she could be your sister or cousin. What makes her remarkable is her compassion and caring. She knew the risks and yet she went ahead because she believed in poor's humanity and their rights. She and the Catholic Church that she represents is what I want to be a product of.
February 5, 2017
Eileen Markey does a remarkable job in bringing Maura Clarke to life. Ariel Dorfman's review in the New York Times Review of Books on December 25 praised Markey's work highly. Maura was a woman of deep Christian faith, but not of an ilk that so much conventional religiosity. She lived a life of commitment to the poor and in the end that led to her assassination.
July 6, 2017
A Radical Faith helped me –someone born into a Catholic “two aunts who are nuns, one on each side” family – “get” on a whole other level what faith in action looks like, and how it played out in the lives and deaths not only of Sr. Maura but of other women religious, in Latin America. It also offers a gripping, skillful explication of the interwoven strands of politics, history, the Catholic hierarchy, and economics.
Thought-provoking and engaging account even to this non-religious reviewer. First chapters are good for background into why people become nuns, but the book really takes off around Chapter 5.
P.S. If you have a chance to hear Eileen speak, GO.
Eileen is a friend of mine. I'm not surprised that she wrote an excellent book but I'm surprised how excellent it was, and am especially struck by her grasp of Latin American and Church politics.
Thought-provoking and engaging account even to this non-religious reviewer. First chapters are good for background into why people become nuns, but the book really takes off around Chapter 5.
P.S. If you have a chance to hear Eileen speak, GO.
Eileen is a friend of mine. I'm not surprised that she wrote an excellent book but I'm surprised how excellent it was, and am especially struck by her grasp of Latin American and Church politics.
November 11, 2017
I can remember exactly where I was the day Maura Clarke's body was found. Reading A Radical Faith deepened my understanding of her life, not by filling in factual background but through a nuanced appreciation of Clarke's faith. Markey avoids the broad brushstrokes of hagiography and partisanship; the life that emerges is dangerous and unsettling in its simplicity: Clarke was a woman who sought to be truly in love with God and truly loved the poorest and most precarious people of Nicaragua and El Salvador. That and that alone--simple, real presence--lead to Clarke death, and Markey does masterful work in highlighting the faith at the heart Clarke's story.
December 29, 2020
This is an excellent biography of a very faithful, strong-willed woman. She reminds me of Theresa of Avila in her resolve and her sacrificial love for the people of Latin America. The book is also a well told and well documented history of the conflicts in both Nicaragua and El Salvador until the time of the four churchwomen's deaths. Maura was a trail-blazer and truly believed all lives matter. We need her spirit today in every country, sadly, even in the United States where not all lives seem to matter.
March 21, 2018
A heartbreaking yet inspiring story about the undeclared saint Maura Clarke. I had known the story about her murder but I had no idea about her life and work in Nicaragua. It helps to think about her whole life and not just concentrate on the horrific way her life ended. I am convinced she's enjoying her reward in heaven.
October 2, 2021
Well researched, well told. A story of a modern day martyr. A story of Maryknoll nuns. A story of Catholic social justice and liberation theology. A story of an open heart to humanity. Thank you to Eileen Markey who did the hard work of finding the important elements of this simple yet courageous woman's life and putting it into written word. Wow.
May 17, 2017
The story of Maura Clarke, a Maryknoll Missionary sister who served the poor in Nicaragua and El Salvador and was murdered along with three of her co-workers in December 2, 1980 by the Salvadoran military, martyred for living a faith that spoke out for the poor and oppressed and against injustice.
November 10, 2021
A touching tribute to an incredible woman in a tumultuous time. This book is part biography, part Cold War history, part meditation on liberation theology. While good, it did drag in parts, but the author clearly did her research and presented a coherent narrative of someone truly saintly.
May 15, 2022
Well researched and excellent writing. The sisters who devoted themselves to the poor and oppressed in Nicauragua and ElSalvador demonstrated a faith that I find compelling and convicting. I’m asking myself what unjust regime is the US government supporting these days that I am unaware of?
December 11, 2017
This beautifully written, moving and well researched book left me tears.
January 9, 2018
Beautifully written, amazingly researched, spiritual.
May 18, 2018
While the book was well written, there was no information about the crime itself. I read all about her life but almost nothing about her death. It wasn't what I thought it would be
January 13, 2020
An amazing, well-researched look at the life and values of Sr. Maura Clarke. She seems to have been a wonderful woman. Highly, highly recommend.
September 1, 2017
How does a good Irish Catholic girl from Rockaway, Queens, become the target of the death squads of a violent dictator? Markey's journalistic approach enables the reader to follow Maryknoll Sister Maura Clarke's journey, sometimes gentle and sometimes violent, without becoming melodramatic, to her ultimate demise in El Salvador. Her assassination, along with that of Sr. Ita Ford, Sr. Dorothy Kazel, and lay missionary Jean Donovan, is historical fact. Markey's book focuses on Clarke's life journey that led her to that remote road in 1980.
March 17, 2017
What an amazing book! Eileen Markey sets out to find out how an Irish American Catholic nun, who took her vows in the pre-Vatican II church, ends up being killed in El Salvador. It's an amazing story of changes in the Church, personal faith and growth and love for other human beings, and an amazing and terrible story of Central American governments oppressing their people with the support and assistance of the US Government, much to our shame.
Deeply researched, beautifully written. As wrenching a story as it is, it is a powerful and riveting read.
Deeply researched, beautifully written. As wrenching a story as it is, it is a powerful and riveting read.
February 18, 2017
This book is essentially a biography of Sister Maura Clarke of the Maryknoll order who was brutally murdered along with two other nuns in El Salvador in 1980. This criminal act helped put El Salvador on the front page of American newspapers and spotlighted the terrible oppression of El Salvador's right-wing, military dominated government. Clarke was from the Bronx and grew up as a second generation immigrant Irish household, her parents having vivid memories and experiences during the Irish independence struggle in the 1920s. Led by a deep religious faith and moral compass into the sisterhood, (the Maryknolls recruited especially for work in developing countries) she eventually was assigned to a convent in Siuna, Nicaragua in 1959, and spent most of the rest of her life in Central America. The Second Vatican Council commanded nuns and priests to get out of their cloisters and live among the people, and ultimately, she saw firsthand the oppression of the Somoza regime, a corrupt and despotic family that looted and tormented Nicaraguans for 50 years. Clarke was involved in assisting the poor in various places in Nicaragua, living in the same conditions, advocating for those affected by the military and police and bringing a more people-centered Christianity to people who had long gone through the rituals of Catholicism without knowing anything about it. After the Sandinistas overthrew the Somoza regime, El Salvador's Catholic church asked for Maryknoll sisters to help do similar things in their country, which Clarke bravely volunteered for. El Salvador was far worse than Nicaragua, practically medieval in its social structure that relegated 90% of the country to impoverished peasantry while the legendary "14 families" (all coffee barons) owned and dominated everything. Any opposition was routinely stamped out with the assistance of a pliant military and paramilitary death squads.
At times this book is perhaps too detailed. Most of the book concentrates on Clarke's life outside of El Salvador, (she only was there for four months) but it is clear that she was an amazingly brave, compassionate and strong person who tried to help others and was killed in the most grotesque and horrific way imaginable. The military's involvement, which everyone assumed, was covered up for years by the U.S. government that was more or less an accomplice.
At times this book is perhaps too detailed. Most of the book concentrates on Clarke's life outside of El Salvador, (she only was there for four months) but it is clear that she was an amazingly brave, compassionate and strong person who tried to help others and was killed in the most grotesque and horrific way imaginable. The military's involvement, which everyone assumed, was covered up for years by the U.S. government that was more or less an accomplice.
Read
August 18, 2016Review forthcoming in Publishers Weekly. Investigative journalist Eileen Markey, with the support of subject Maura Clarke's family, has written a deeply-researched biography of Sister Maura Clarke, a Maryknoll nun who was killed along with three other U.S. church workers in El Salvador in 1980. Although one of approximately ten thousand murders that year in the war-torn country, the churchwomen's politically-motivated assassinations made headlines in the United States and brought attention to U.S. foreign policy in the region. Markey steps back from Sister Maura's death and asks instead how her faith-informed social justice work shaped her life. A powerful and difficult biographical narrative, the book is strongest on the geopolitics of missionary work while sometimes falling down on its understanding of the long history of social justice activism within the Christian tradition. (That is, I found myself wondering why the author found it so damn difficult to understand why a "nice girl" from the Rockaways died on a road in El Salvador.)
August 30, 2017
This reminded me again why I was attracted to studying Latin America and to living there. I feel inspired to take the example of Maura in my own practice of the Catholic faith. It continues to astound me each time I learn more about the horrors of the revolutions in Central America and how my home country was often on the wrong side of things. I was intrigued to learn that the work for justice continued well into this century and that the murderers, and a few military higher-ups, were held responsible for the atrocities they committed, or ordered into being. I was also interested to learn about Ambassador Robert White who while posted in El Salvador in 1980 spoke his mind against what he saw was wrong action on the part of the US government regarding human rights and attempting to hush the churchwomen's murders. He was fired.
September 18, 2016
This is a straight up biography. I was expecting more insight into the politics of El Salvador at this particular period in time.
good luck
**ARC/publisher/NetGalley
good luck
**ARC/publisher/NetGalley
March 27, 2017
Eileen Markey did an incredible job capturing this woman's life and how it related to the Catholic Church and politics in Central America.
March 31, 2017
Four women were taken from a shallow grave each piled on top of each other. They had been buried that day by the local military commander. Two of the women appeared to have been raped. The woman had been missing for a day in a half. A veteran nun who had been working in El Salvador four years - Maddie Dorsey - fell to her knees. She knew this was a message to all who saw the woman. See what happened to her? This is what trouble makers get. Maddie was kneeling for the woman and all sisters. These women were U S citizens. Jean Donovan- a missionary, Dorothy Kazel- a catholic nun, Ita Ford was also a Catholic nun and Maura Clark was the oldest and been a nun for thirty years. Maura had lived and worked for seventeen years with the poor of Nicaragua then she had come to El Salvador and four months later she was dead from being murdered. This was not a random killing but done by a country’s army. Anyone who questioned the economic and political system in El Salvador could and usually did die. The commander of the base- Colonel Arbaiza did not like priest or nuns. Fr Lopez looked at the paper he had been handed one was his name and those of everyone who worked in the Parish were subversive per the paper and they were starting the killing today. Fr Lopez took the message to Bishop Damas and he had only held this position for nine months after the previous Archbishop had been murdered while saying mass. Rf Lopez ended back in Washington DC by the end of December. At the conference before their death the four nuns said how frightening it was in El Salvador but they wouldn’t leave. They actually pressed for more nuns as there was a lot to do with so many suffering people. The nuns were picked up at the airport by Dorothy and Jena and three hours later farmers heard the guns. The next morning on December third the bodies were found in a ditch. In the thirty five years since Maura and her companions were murdered they have become a symbols. Many forces- personal, religious, and political combined but Maura and the others in the shallow grave. This book examines Maura’s life to understand. Maura was raised on stories of the Irish Revolution. The circumscribed roles for the working class woman combined with a sincere desire to do good led women to the convent. The man who ordered Maura’s and the others murdered was trained by the U. S. military. But then the question was asked what were the woman doing in El Salvador? Maura rejected the innocence of blindness and she chose to act. Her life and death raised profound questions about the intersection of religious conviction and political action. Maura was killed because of the work she was doing. Maura knew the risks and still went to help the poor.
This was a very strong book sometimes maybe a little too much detail but no way could I put this down. The faith and courage this woman as the others showed was just stunning. This book was so engrossing and moving and showed you who Maura was and even what helped form her. It shows Maura’s work with the less fortunate that ended with her and three others deaths and then tossed away like their life was worth nothing. But it was and worth so very much. In its own way it is a terrible story of a Central American governments oppression of it’s people with the support of the U S government. But most of all this book is about Maura and how she became this so very special woman of faith and the love she had for the less fortunate. I highly recommend.
This was a very strong book sometimes maybe a little too much detail but no way could I put this down. The faith and courage this woman as the others showed was just stunning. This book was so engrossing and moving and showed you who Maura was and even what helped form her. It shows Maura’s work with the less fortunate that ended with her and three others deaths and then tossed away like their life was worth nothing. But it was and worth so very much. In its own way it is a terrible story of a Central American governments oppression of it’s people with the support of the U S government. But most of all this book is about Maura and how she became this so very special woman of faith and the love she had for the less fortunate. I highly recommend.
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April 9, 2017American nun killed in El Salvador; nice NYT review. cath
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