The Legacy of  Bishop Javier Echevarria (1932-2016)

By Sonnie Ekwowusi

On Friday, December 12th, 2016, Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe, the Bishop-Prelate of Opus Dei, Bishop Javier Rodriguez Echevarria, quietly surrendered his soul to God. He had been suffering from a complicated pneumonia. He was aged 84.

 Bishop Echevarria was one of the closest collaborators of St. Josemaria Escriva, the Founder of Opus Dei, and, in fact, his second successor. Like St. Josemaria Escriva, Bishop Echevarria had a great devotion to Our Lady of Guadalupe. Interestingly, while St. Josemaria died looking at the picture of Our Lady of Guadalupe hanging on the wall of his room, Bishop Echevarria died on a Feast Day of Our Lady of Guadalupe. When the sad news of the sudden death of “the Father” (as Bishop Echevarria was fondly and affectionately called by the numerous members and co-operators of Opus Dei across the world) first broke, it was received with an unceasing outpouring of condolences and tributes from Pope Francis, cardinals, archbishops, bishops, some civil authorities and so forth.  No sooner had Pope Francis received the sad news than he sent a telegraph to the Auxiliary Vicar of Opus Dei in Rome to express his heart-felt condolence on the passing of Bishop Echevarria. In the condolence, Pope Francis stated that Bishop Echevarria gave his life in a constant service of love to the Church and souls.

 In his homily during the funeral Mass for Bishop Echevarria, the Auxiliary Vicar of Opus Dei Monsignor Fernando Ocariz described Bishop Echevarria as a man who loved Christ and his fellow men and women. “No day went by in which he failed to comment on some passage from the Liturgy of the Word or from the other texts at Mass. He did so, of course, in meditations and spiritual talks, but also in the midst of the simplicity of daily life. Thus, he would pause to pray and invite those around him to pray for a trip of the Pope, for peace in Syria, for the victims of natural disasters, for refugees, for the unemployed, for the sick (for whom he always had a special predilection that he also learned from Saint Josemaria). On returning from a long trip, before coming home, he would sometimes stop at the hospital to visit someone who was sick. Everyone had a place in his heart”, Monsignor Ocariz said.

 From the above moving tributes in honour of Bishop Echevarria, there is no doubt that in his death, the Catholic Church has lost a very faithful son, a role model and an exemplary Bishop whose burning zeal to save souls and to spread the Gospel message knew no bounds. Bishop Echevarria clearly stood out for his large-heartedness and fatherly affection in carrying out his pastoral duties, in small or big family get-togethers and at public gatherings. He was ever willing to assist others. He made himself available for others. He always put himself at the disposition of others. He patiently shared the problems and concerns of the others. For example, those who confided their problems with Bishop Echevarria were always surprised that after the passing of years he still remembered the problems. Those who had had close contact with him or dealt with him or had personal conversation with him continue to attest that they never felt that they were in the presence of an important personality. Why? Bishop Echevarria was a simple and down-to-earth man.  He radiated joy and peace. He was always calm and serene. He had a contagious smile. He was always cracking jokes. Even a few hours before death came calling at Campus Bio-Medico Hospital, Rome, Bishop Echevarria was still cracking jokes with the doctors and nurses that were taking turns to attend to him. He died the way he had lived, bearing witness to Jesus Christ.  as According to one author, the Bishop Prelate of Opus Dei from 1994 to 2016, Bishop Echeverria, who had lived side by side with two saints – St Josemaria Escriva, and Blessed Alvaro del Portillo, St. Josemaria’s immediate successor – never hesitated for a moment in spreading the teaching of Opus Dei, which he had learned from St Josemaria:  that all persons, irrespective of their diverse situations and circumstances in life, are called to a life of holiness in their ordinary work and family circumstances.  

 Born in Madrid (Spain) on the 14th of June, 1932, Bishop Echevarria first joined Opus Dei as lay person in 1948 at a very tender age of 16. He was ordained a Catholic priest on 7th of August, 1955. After the death of St. Josemaria in 1975 and following the election of Blessed Alvarro del Portillo as his successor, Bishop Echevarria was appointed the Secretary General and later the Vicar General of Opus Dei. In 1994, he was elected Prelate of Opus Dei at the death of Blessed Alvaro del Portillo. Echevarria was ordained Bishop by St. John Paul II on January 6 1995.  As Opus Dei Prelate, Bishop Echevarria, worked tirelessly to expand the apostolic works of Opus Dei in sixteen countries including South Africa, Uganda, Panama, Russia, Latvia, Sri Lanka, Kazakhstan and Indonesia.  He was appointed a member of the Congregation of the Causes of the Saints. His writings, which have been translated and published in different languages, include: Itinerary of Christian Life (2001), To serve the Church: Homilies on the Priesthood (1995-1999) (2001), Gethsemane, In Prayer with Jesus Christ (2005), Eucharist and Christian Life (2005), For Christ, with Him and in Him: Writings of St. Josemaria (2007), Living the Holy Mass (2010).

 Bishop Echevarria will be remembered in Nigeria not because Opus Dei carries out apostolic work in Nigeria but simply because he loved Nigeria and Nigerians. He visited Nigeria in 1999. But prior to 1999, he had accompanied his predecessor Blessed Alvaro on a visit to Nigeria. During his visit in 1999, he spoke with passion about the existence of God; about the dignity of man; about pain, suffering and evil… about the meaning of salvation, about the openness to spiritual values. Like St. Josemaria, Bishop Echevarria encouraged Christians and members of Opus Dei to set up formidable blocks of social institutions to alleviate the human suffering of their neigbours. St Josemaria had constantly repeated that no man is an island unto himself; nobody is a single verse. Similarly, Bishop Echevarria used to say that we cannot live in our little cocoons, unmindful of the plight of others. He stressed that the poor and the suffering around us should move us to pity and to team up with others to alleviate their sufferings Consequently, he endeavoured to inspire some men and women in Africa and Nigeria to start off social, economic and educational projects that would have positive impacts on the lives of their fellow men and women.  Thus, in the year 2002, which marked the centenary of the birth of St. Josemaria, Bishop Echevarria inspired the establishment of the Institute of Industrial Technology (IIT), which is situated at Isheri-North, along Lagos-Ibadan Expressway, Lagos. IIT is a technical school aimed at empowering young people, especially those from poor backgrounds, with the necessary skills that they badly need in order to be employable and thus make a living for themselves and their families.

 On the whole, he will be most remembered for his deep understanding of the contemporary human condition and modern restlessness and his ability to infuse them with deep supernatural hope. He understood the need to tackle the crisis of contemporary secularism with religious ideals and convictions. For this to come to fruition, Bishop Echevarria, following the fashion of St. Josemaria and Blessed Alvaro, gave strong support to the Pope at all times. He achieved this by constantly praying for the Pope and faithfully carrying out all the indications from the Pope. One phrase which constantly dropped from the mouth of Bishop Echevarria was “help the Pope”, meaning “pray for the Pope always”. Taking advantage of different events, celebrations or convocations in the Church, he wrote copious pastoral letters, calling for union with the Pope and the Church. For example, when the Church declared the year 2005 as the Year of the Eucharist, he dedicated a Pastoral Letter to the Year of the Eucharist. When Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI proclaimed the Year of Faith in 2012, Bishop Echevarria wrote a gargantuan 42-page Pastoral Letter for, among other things, a return to the roots of the gospel, deepening in Christian Faith, union with Christ and apostolic vibration. After Pope Francis released the Bull Misericordiae Vultus, declaring the Extraordinary Jubilee of Mercy or simply Year of Mercy (which started on 8 December 2015 and ended on 14 November 2016, Solemnity of Christ The King), Bishop Echevarria wrote a Pastoral Letter calling, as Pope Francis did, for spiritual and corporal works of mercy. In that letter, he wrote, “With the passage of time, some of the corporal works of mercy have changed their form of expression or application. That of caring for travelers is generally expressed nowadays as ‘to shelter the homeless’. At the present time, it includes helping migrants who leave their native land to find work, better living conditions, etc… (…) Let us echo The Holy Father’s exhortations and invite relatives, friends and colleagues to put them into practice with their circumstances and possibilities…” In his 2013 Christmas letter to members of Opus Dei, he said;” Let us accompany Pope Francis daily. With his Magisterium, the actions of the Holy Spirit spreads even more; because of this, we have to consider that the Holy Church counts on each one of us in order to carry the Light of Bethlehem to people from different countries…”

 In sum, the life of Bishop Echevarria could be described as one whole untrammeled sincere commitment to the service of others with a spirit of love and in union with the Church and the Pope. With his death, a congress will be convoked between January 23-30 2017, pursuant to the Statutes of Opus Dei, to elect a priest-member of Opus Dei who, upon the confirmation of Pope Francis, will assume pastoral duty as a new Prelate of Opus Dei.