Daisy Garcia

8/24/17

St. Toribio Romo: The Cult Following of The Patron Saint of Immigrants

The black and white wallet size image of St. Toribio Romo has stared back at me from

the dashboard of all of my fathers vehicles since I was a child. At times his image was

nonchalantly used to cover a check engine light, while at more solemn moments before traveling

long distances, he was to whom we directed our prayers for safety. Countless of religious

followers of St. Toribio Romo have entrusted their prayers for safe travel to the Catholic martyr.

The followers of Romo who are able to, visit his remains in his homestead of Santa Ana, Jalisco,

Mexico to show gratitude before and after their travels. The purpose of this research paper is to

explore how the cult of Romo has changed the image of Santa Ana, Jalisco as well as that of

St.Toribio Romo who was a martyr of the religious persecution of Catholics during the early

19th century in Mexico. My personal travels to Santa Ana have shaped the interest behind my

research and attribute to the connections I have made for the growth of his cult. St. Toribio

Romo was officially canonized in the year 2000 and has gained a large following amongst

immigrants who more popularly recognize him as the patron saint of their cause. During the

years of 2000 and 2010, Santa Ana experienced significant economic growth from a small

farming town into a booming religious tourist location which continues to grow in popularity.

Recently, the cult of Romo has gained physical space in North America. In turn, this has begun

to affect the economy of Santa Ana which is now highly dependent on the thousands of visitors

who make the pilgrimage to the remote location.

The presence of Catholicism in Mexico has largely shaped the history of the nation since

the first Spanish explorers set foot on the continent in search of riches and new converts to the
Christian faith. Presently, Mexicos population primarily practices Catholicism at 87.2%1.

Compared to the 20.2%2 of population practicing Catholicism in the United States. The presence

of Catholicism in Mexico plays a larger role in the interaction between faith and daily life than is

experienced in the United States. At the turn of the 19th century, Mexico sought to establish a

national identity which limited the power of the Catholic Church in the nation's affairs. The

changes made to the 1917 Constitution directly after the Mexican Revolution sought to exclude

clergy from holding office or private land. Article 130 of the new Mexican Constitution denied

any legitimacy to the Church and prohibited any clergy to participate in politics or hold any

property. Article 130 also extended to those self-identifying Catholics from participating in civic

life, openly practice their faith, and prohibited priests from publicly wearing their religious

garments or perform any religious sacraments. The extension of Article 130 meant to diminish

the support of the Catholic Church by the people and ultimately uproot it from society. The

purpose of purging Catholicism was to enable the government to establish a non-religious

teaching of moral and national identity. The effects of the changes were more readily felt by the

rural communities who often received a faith-based education and social services from the

clergy.

Through the duration of the Cristero Movement which lasted from the period of 1926 to

1931, the persecution of priests who continued to openly practice and give mass was not

uncommon. Several clergy and laypeople alike responded to the persecution of their faith by

taking up arms against the federal troops who harassed them in accordance to the law. Those

who did not participate in active fighting experienced constant hiding and were at the mercy of
their congregation for their livelihood. The Cristero movement ultimately saw the death of an

approximate 90,000 Catholics across a concentrated central region of Mexico3. Romo was

amongst those priests who continued to openly proclaim the Catholic faith in the central state of

Jalisco during the Cristero movement. Despite the persecution, Romo continued to perform mass

and sacraments for his congregation in secret. He was executed by federal troops February 24,

1928 while in hiding. His remains were secured and brought to his birthplace of Santa Ana,

Jalisco. His bones rest at the foot of the altar in the Cathedral which he constructed himself and

celebrated his first mass in at the age of twenty-three. The process of his canonization and the

preservation of his remains are attributed to his sister Maria Romo, who witnessed his execution,

and to his younger brother Roman Romo who was also a priest during the Cristero Movement4.

St. Toribio Romo, along with twenty four other recognized martyrs of the Cristero

Movement, were canonized by Pope John Paull II in the year 20005. Amongst those, a majority

of fourteen were from the state of Jalisco. The region from which Romo hails is known as Los

Altos which is characterized by its religious fervor. The people from Los Altos are very devout in

their religion. The region has a number of holy sites which see a high number of pilgrimages.

Among these is the city of San Juan de Los Lagos which is approximately a half hour away from

Santa Ana. San Juan can expect more than two million pilgrims to pass through the basilica of

Our Lady of San Juan de Los Lagos during religious festivities6. Catholicism in this region is

interwoven into the social fabric of people's lives as it encompasses their views on education,
local economics and politics. The devout people of this region uphold Romo as a local martyr

and hero who embodies the selfless bloodshed in the name of the Catholic faith and Christ

himself which the Cristero Movement represents for them. This attitude towards Romo first

established his following and local pilgrimages were made to the remote location of Santa Ana.

Ten hours from the U.S border is the central state of Jalisco and two hours from the state's capital

of Guadalajara, is the city of Jalostotitlan. Once you come to the exit of Jalos, you continue for

five kilometers towards the municipality of Santa Ana, the birthplace of St. Toribio Romo.

Although Romo was canonized for having cured cancer from an individual7, many

miracles have been attributed to him for guiding those crossing the U.S. border to safety. Romo

is popularly known today as the patron saint of immigrants. The persecution that Romo faced

during the Cristero Movement is reminiscent to that of those seeking to cross the U.S. border.

Constant hiding, malnutrition, desperateness and a need for hope and guidance are reflections of

what Romo experienced himself while hiding to continue exercising his faith. The earliest

miracles and sightings of Romo to immigrants crossing the U.S border go back to the 1980s.

These stories are marked by a similarity of events in which Romo appears to those crossing.

These individuals are at times lost or without any more resources to keep going when Romo

appears to guide them through troubling moments. In return, he only asks of these people that

they visit Santa Ana once they can. The time in which these stories begin to be known of Romo

correlate with the desperate immigration situation that both countries were facing. The U.S. was

experiencing soaring numbers of illegal immigrants fleeing one of Mexicos worst recessions at

the end of the 1970s. Between the years of 1980 and 2000, a large wave of illegal and legal

immigrants from the central region of Mexico made its way into the United States. In response to

the economic crisis that this migration posed for both countries, The Immigration Reform and

7
Control Act was signed in 1986. The IRCA granted amnesty to the already existing 2.7 million

illegal immigrants who had been in the country before 19828. In turn, this meant that already

existing immigrants were granted a legal status and had the legal means to travel back to their

home states across Mexico. In the following years, increased immigration was an external factor

of the IRCA as people also hoped to attain a legal status. The stories of Romos miracles take a

turn from personal apparitions to individuals entrusting themselves to Romo because of the

success he has given others in illegally crossing the southern border of the United States,

promising to visit his remains in Santa Ana once possible.

The IRCA gave the means to millions of people to travel back and forth between both

countries. The high number of legal and illegal immigration during the late 1980s began the

flow of pilgrimages to Santa Ana for those who had entrusted themselves to Romo. With the

subsequent canonization of Romo in 2000, his saintliness had been made official. The town of

Santa Ana began to experience a flow of pilgrims which also needed accommodations that they

did not dispose of. A 2002 New York Times edition on the miracles of Romo paints the simplicity

of Santa Ana before becoming a popular destination as a once dying village of 400 cattle

farmers-- into a booming religious tourism destination9. The population in Santa Ana remained

rural as it had since the time that Romo had lived. In the early days after his canonization few

people came to visit the chapel where Father Romo was born and laid to rest. This ramshackle

village, with no roads, no telephones and no stable livelihoods, seemed destined to disappear10.

Despite the bareness that the town of Santa Ana had experienced for a majority of its existence
the continuous flow of followers coming to visit Romo increased throughout the years.

Throughout the 1990s the municipality of Sant Ana had erected an announcing the birthplace of

at the entrance of the town with the donations of Romo's followers. The remainder of the Romo

family had honored his memory and preserved the original cathedral along with a replica of the

Romo family home, the shirt in which he was executed and a vile of his blood. The existing

clergy who serviced the town organized a collection to begin beautifying and accommodating

those passing through. Soon thereafter, bus tours became popular ways to access Santa Ana

from more populated towns nearby. A new cathedral was erected along with a commemorative

walkway honoring other martyrs fallen during the Cristero Movement which was completed in

the early 2000s.

The popularity with which Romo was adopted amongst followers turn into a form of

popular religion. Followers began believing and shaping the story of Romo to how it suited

their spiritual needs. Much how the stories of Romo guiding people to safety he began to be

attributed with healing miracles. As the economic prosperity in Santa Ana established itself,

tourist attraction also began to reinforce the popularity of Romo. The residents from Santa Ana

during the years between 2000 and 2010 had seen the town go from a solemn place of spiritual

reflection to a spiritually tourist site. The historic preservation of the original cathedral was in

turn swapped for a larger and newer Church. In between the commemorative busts that line the

path between the original and new cathedral are stands selling religious souvenirs and foods to

satisfy visitors needs. The economy of Santa Ana has become dependent on the tourism from

visitors which possess a new threat to the existing community as the cult of Romo has greatly

expanded.
 The veneration on Romo continues to be strong amongst those seeking safety in travel

and ailing in health. Recently, the attention that the following has received has enabled funds

from other parishes to reach Santa Ana. The attention to the following has also increased the

numbers of those who believe in Romo in North America. The belief in Romo amongst his cult

remains strong and is increasing in faith. The statue of Romo amongst other iconography from

Santa Ana was able to be brought to the United States for a tour across California in 2014 so that

followers who could not travel back to Jalisco to see him could do so on their side of the

border11. In response to the popularity amongst the following and the concentrated numbers of

Mexican immigrants in the Midwest state of Oklahoma a Diocese in the name of St. Toribio

Romo now present. The following of Romo is popular amongst groups of catholic, Immigrants

who are concentrated and involved in their neighborhood parishes.

Ultimately the image, and story of St. Toribio Romo is representative of a number of

social and spiritual beliefs. The concentrated number of holy Catholic sites of pilgrimage add to

concentrate the adoration of Romo . The proximity to other large religious tourist locations with

larger communities set an example of growth in commerce and betterment for the community.

As a dwindling municipality, it seems a possibility for Santa Ana to capitalize on the business of

tourism and hospitality. High numbers of immigration correlate to the moment which there was

heightened following of Romo. The susbequesnt Act of Immigration Reform and Control Act of

1986 granted a legal status to more than 2.7 million illegal immigrants in the United States. The

number of Mexican citizens that traveled back to their respective home States across the country

were able to disperse the following of Romo in the way they had encountered the priest which
was mainly while attempting to cross the U.S. borther. The following of Romo may cease

altogether or alter in his patronage depending of the image of what his followers entrust him to.