On December 7, 2019, Br. James Miller, FSC, was the first De La Salle Christian Brothers from the United States to be beatified.
On Thursday, November 8, 2018, Pope Francis approved a decree recognizing that Brother James Miller died as a martyr Feb. 13, 1982, in Huehuetenango, Guatemala. The process for declaring him a martyr began in 2009 and received approval from the theological commission, which means Brother will be beatified. The cause of beatification was undertaken by the Diocese of Huehuetenango, Guatemala and received the Decree of Validity in Rome in 2010 when Brother James was designated a Servant of God and a martyr for the faith. As a martyr, Br. James needed one miracle posthumously attributed to him to reach the next level toward official sainthood, which is canonization. On Wednesday, April 17, 2019, the Congregation of the Causes of the Saints announced the official date of Beatification of Br. James Miller.
In the afternoon of February 13, 1982, at the age of 37, in Huehuetenango, Guatemala, Brother James (Santiago) Miller was shot several times by three men and he died instantly. Attempts to identify the assassins were unsuccessful. Br. Paul Joslin, who served with Br. James in Guatemala, remembers him fondly, and has been a champion of his Sainthood.
Resources
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Prayer for the Intercession of Blessed Brother James Miller, FSC – pdf
(prayer adapted by Mr. John Thawley, Theology – Christian Brothers Academy – Lincroft, NJ)
In 2019 Mr. Dowling and Ms. Vogel participated in a day long pilgrimage to visit the grave of James Miller and participate in praying for his cause.
