Assassination of a Saint The Plot to Murder Óscar Romero and the Quest to Bring His Killers to Justice

"It has taken Matt Eisenbrandt a decade to write this beautifully crafted volume, but it was well worth waiting for."—The Catholic Herald

"Eisenbrandt is the first to craft a detailed narrative of the plan to murder Romero and ensuing efforts to bring the perpetrators to justice."—TeleSur

“ A remarkable achievement. . . . A must-read for anyone interested in recent Salvadoran history, the life and witness of Óscar Romero, the Catholic Church in Latin America, or the challenge of defending human rights in our world. . . . Assassination of a Saint reads like an engrossing detective story.”—Reading Religion

“A sophisticated read for educated laypeople that performs a valuable service.”—Latin American Research Review

“The assassination of Archbishop Óscar Arnulfo Romero was a tragic event for the people of El Salvador, but for those of us who covered that country during the horrific civil war, the murder gave rise to a very personal anger that such actions could go uninvestigated and unpunished. Assassination of a Saint illuminates the ongoing struggle for justice. This is critical reading for those of us who lived through those turbulent and terrifying times, and for those born after the war who are now trying to come to grips with it.”—Craig Pyes, human-rights investigator and Pulitzer Prize–winning investigative reporter

“The effects of the assassination of Archbishop Romero are still echoing through Central America. It was a seminal event that revolutionized how the Christian Church—across Catholic and Protestant divides—viewed the prophetic mission to preach justice and liberation to the poor in a time of deep repression and injustice. Yet the murder has never been solved. Murdered witnesses, a web of lies and obfuscation by U.S. and Salvadoran officials, and the passage of time have blurred the possibility of finding the truth. Yet this book strives to reveal that hidden truth, a vital missing link in understanding not just the death of Romero, but the history of Central America and the role of the United States in shaping that history.”—Douglas Farah, coauthor of Merchant of Death: Money, Guns, Planes, and the Man Who Makes War Possible

“The assassination of Archbishop Romero was a pivotal event that had profound spiritual as well as political effects. When it happened, though, no one expected that it would set off years of tireless investigation and ultimately a spectacular court case in the United States. This sequence of events makes for a rich story that has cried out for a proper telling.”—Stephen Kinzer, author of Overthrow: America’s Century of Regime Change from Hawaii to Iraq
“In my opinion, the Saravia case bids fair to become a landmark in the history of human-rights law and, as such, its story needs to be told with all the care and credibility one close to the case could muster.”—Mark Danner, author of The Massacre at El Mozote: A Parable of the Cold War