Thursday, September 10, 2009

CATHEDRAL DEANERY — Christians for Peace in El Salvador (CRISPAZ) will mark its 25th anniversary with a series of free events in Cincinnati, starting on Saturday, Sept. 26, with daylong activities at Bellarmine Chapel on the campus of Xavier University. All are open to the public.

“We’ve chosen Bellarmine Chapel as the focal point of our Cincinnati celebration because of the parish’s historic connection with the Sanctuary Movement, which placed refugees from El Salvador’s civil war in homes throughout the Tri-State region,” said Dennis O’Connor, CRISPAZ executive director. “In fact, CRISPAZ moved its U.S. headquarters to Cincinnati a couple years ago because of the concentration of board members and friends of El Salvador living in and around Southwestern Ohio and Northern Kentucky.”

The schedule of events is as follows:

• 9–10 a.m. – History of CRISPAZ and its relationship to El Salvador.

• 10:15-11:15 a.m. – A concise history of the Sanctuary Movement.

• 11:30 a.m. – Mass

• 1:30–4 p.m. – Central American round table, featuring speakers from and with expertise about El Salvador, Guatemala, Nicaragua and Honduras.

At 7 p.m., there will be a showing of the movie “Romero” in the basement of the Williams School of Business, next to Bellarmine Chapel, followed by discussion of the role Archbishop Oscar Romero has played in the people and government of El Salvador.