By Alessandro De Carolis
A woman and two men of peace — this how to describe the lives of the of the three new Venerables whose decrees of recognition were approved on May 22 by Pope Leo XIV during an audience with Cardinal Marcello Semeraro, Prefect of the Dicastery for the Causes of Saints.
Two of them offered their lives in martyrdom for the faith — a violent death in the Ecuadorian rainforest while defending the rights of Indigenous peoples.
A Bishop with a missionary soul
Alejandro Labaka Ugarte, born in 1920, was from Beizama in northern Spain. From a young age, he felt a call to be a missionary. After being ordained a priest in 1945, the superiors of the Capuchin Order — which he had entered in 1937 under the religious name Brother Manuel — sent him to China.
Around ten years later, he and other missionaries were expelled by the Maoist regime. He then went to Ecuador, where he served as a parish priest and held various other roles, including that of apostolic prefect, actively involved in evangelizing the Huaorani people.
In 1984, Brother Manuel was consecrated a bishop and continued his mission among the Indigenous, also establishing contact with the Tagaeri ethnic group. It was a time of intense tension. Oil companies moved through the region like predators, clearing forests in search of black gold.
For Brother Manuel, now Bishop Ugarte — known for his ability to mediate and reconcile — the priority became protecting the rights of the Tagaeri. It was during this mission that he met Sister Inés.
A religious sister among the Indigenous
Sister Inés Arango Velásquez was 40 years old when, in 1977, she took part in the first missionary expedition of the Capuchin Tertiary Sisters of the Holy Family to Aguarico, Ecuador. A native of Colombia, she was born in Medellín in 1937 and entered the congregation in 1955, completing her formation there.
After her perpetual vows, she dedicated herself to teaching and, once in Ecuador, traveled to various communities, eventually becoming a superior. She devoted herself to evangelizing the Huaorani under the guidance of, among others, Brother Manuel. Sister Inés also became deeply aware of the dire situation facing the Tagaeri, who had become targets for oil and logging companies.
Killed in defense of the least
As bishop, Brother Manuel hoped to avoid a violent confrontation with mercenaries from these companies by personally initiating dialogue with the Indigenous people.
He was joined by Sister Inés, and both — fully aware of the risks involved in approaching a tribe known to be hostile to outsiders — were flown by helicopter on the morning of Jul 21, 1987, to a designated meeting point. The next day, another helicopter arrived to pick them up, but instead found their bodies — pierced with spears and arrows.
For both of them, it was a conscious offering of their lives in fidelity to their mission, as also reflected in the letter Sister Inés had written the day before their departure, which read almost like a last testament. Their deaths left a powerful impact and have contributed to an enduring reputation for holiness that continues to this day.
Bishop and Peacemaker in India
The story of the third Venerable is that of the Indian Matthew Makil, bishop and founder of the Sisters of the Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Born in 1851 in Manjoor to a well-off Christian family, he became a priest in 1865 and served in parish ministry until he was appointed Vicar General of Kottayam in 1889.
Three years later, he founded a religious congregation whose primary mission was the education of girls. His pastoral ministry was vibrant and dynamic, eventually leading to his appointment as Apostolic Vicar of Changanacherry in 1896.
He actively promoted catechetical formation, school education, the creation of religious organizations and associations, and the fight against poverty, which afflicted much of society at the time. He also encouraged vocations to consecrated life.
Moreover, he did not allow himself to be discouraged by local conflicts, which at times flared up violently, between the “northerners” (who considered themselves descendants of the community founded by Saint Thomas the Apostle) and the “southerners” (who saw themselves as successors of Mesopotamian migrants). Bishop Matthew Makil was guided by his episcopal motto: “God is my hope.”
With his calm and conciliatory manner, he worked tirelessly to bring peace between these two rival communities. His efforts culminated in a proposal submitted to the Holy See in 1911 to divide the Vicariate of Changanacherry into two distinct vicariates: one for the “southerners” and one for the “northerners.”
Pope Pius X accepted the proposal and created the Vicariate of Kottayam for the “southerners,” entrusting its leadership to Bishop Makil, the architect of the initiative.
Bishop Matthew Makil dedicated himself fully to this mission until his death in January 1914, following a brief illness. – Vatican News
