Honduras Pastors Killed; Government Urged To Increase Protection

By BosNewsLife Americas Service

TEGUCIGALPA, HONDURAS (BosNewsLife)– Christian leaders have urged Honduras’ government to improve protection of Christian workers after Carlos Roberto Marroquín became the second prominent pastor to be murdered this year in the Central American nation.

Marroquin, 41, was shot to death Monday, February 21, by two assailants while walking his two Schnauzer puppies in the northern city of San Pedro Sula, explained Security Minister Oscar Alvarez and witnesses.

Investigators said the gunman opened fire after he refused to hand over the dogs, who escaped. Schnauzers can reportedly sell for about $500 in Honduras, where the minimum monthly salary is roughly $311.

Marroquín was the founding pastor of the Pentecostal Church of God in San Pedro Sula, the country’s second-largest city, and a popular presenter on television and radio programs, Christians said.

He was also president-elect of the Association of Evangelical Pastors in San Pedro Sula, the founder and president of the Christian Legal Fellowship and co-founder of the Latin American Network of Christian Lawyers.

While police linked the attack to crime, Christian leaders stressed they feared the assassination was part of a project to target devoted Christian workers in Honduras. The Evangelical Fellowship of Honduras said in a statement that the pastor had received threats.

Marroquín was the second pastor to be murdered this year in Honduras, known for its high murder rates. On January 30 the 43-year-old Pastor Raymundo Fuentes, of the New Jerusalem Temple, was killed while leaving the evening service at his church with his wife.

Two days prior the daughter of an evangelical pastor had been killed, though police did not link the two murders, according to news reports.

Christian leaders said at least six pastors are known to have been killed in recent months. “Every day we do our work [we have to] trust in God and [be] prepared to go with Him,” added Pastor Oswaldo Canales, president of the Evangelical Fellowship of Honduras in published remarks.

There were no reports of arrests Saturday, February 26, in the killing of Pastor Marroquin. Local police announced they were looking for the gunman and the person who drove the car.