Nicaragua Limits Holy Week Celebrations as President Daniel Ortega's Feud With Catholic Church Continues

Amid the ongoing feud between Nicaragua's President Daniel Ortega, and the Roman Catholic Church, the government limits Holy Week celebrations.

According to the Associated Press, the government's ban on public demonstrations has forced Roman Catholics to hold traditional "Stations of the Cross" and other Holy Week processions on church grounds or inside churches on Good Friday, which recalls the death of Jesus and his seven last words on the cross.

Cardinal Leopoldo Brenes, the Archbishop of Managua, told AP that the celebrations were held throughout the country "near the churches."

However, he also admitted that these celebrations were not as intense as in the past years or before the Ortega administration cracked down on all dissents and targeted the Roman Catholic Church.

One of the faithful who attended these processions inside the churches also told AP that Holy Week celebrations were better in the past as they were able to do processions on the streets of the capital. "It was better before because it was freer," Germán Miranda told the outlet.

Like many in the country, Miranda admitted that he hoped the government and the Church could "reconcile, to give us a better future."

Daniel Ortega's Wife, Vice President Rosario Murillo, Lashes Out at Catholics Complaining

Like other majority-Catholic countries, Nicaragua often takes Holy Week seriously. However, this year was different, and many Nicaraguans were complaining about the restrictions being done.

During Maundy Thursday, Vice President Rosario Murillo, the wife of Daniel Ortega, lashed out against those who were complaining, according to The Hill.

"We see it as part of a manipulation by those who do not believe in God, who do not live as Christians, who do not know how to be respectful or show solidarity," she said in her weekly address.

Since the 2018 anti-government protests, the Ortega administration has been feuding with the Roman Catholic Church for reportedly hiding protesters during the bloody suppression that happened soon after the demonstrations.

Since then, the administration expelled missionaries, sent priests to exile, and even imprisoned Bishop Rolando Alvarez, one of Ortega's biggest critics.

The government also stripped Alvarez of his Nicaraguan citizenship and shut down the Catholic radio stations that he was running.

Nicaragua Deports a Roman Catholic Priest from Panama for Holding a Procession

While Nicaragua was observing Holy Week, the government deported a Panamanian priest named Donaciano Alarcon. The priest was accused of holding an Easter week procession and attempting to "stir up the people."

According to the New Haven Register, Alarcon was celebrating Mass in the rural town of Cusmapa when police arrived and forced him into a patrol vehicle.

He was then driven to the border with Honduras and forced to cross, telling him that he was not allowed back into the country.

The priest denied he held any processions as they were prohibited. Alarcon is just the latest priest to be expelled from Nicaragua. The Vatican has already closed its embassy in the country because of the row.

This article is owned by Latin Post.

Written by: Rick Martin

WATCH: Nicaraguan Regime Bans Holy Week Processions - From ROME REPORTS in English