History of the church of Chajul

Voices and images: Mayan Ixil women of Chajul

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Chapter Two: The culture of the Maya Ixil 

13. History of the church of Chajul

The church was occupied by the army during the time of the war, because the military had taken over the town. They also threatened many people of the Catholic religion. They even killed a sacristan inside the church and many catechists from both the town as well as the villages.

The parish was taken over and used as a military base toward the end of 1980 and all its valuables were stolen by some lieutenants or captains who are from Puerto Barrios, in the eastern part of the country known as the Oriente. They threatened the people who by then no longer had the strength necessary to defend the parish. Months later they were forced to return the parish’s belongings two trucks.

The people were very pained by what was happening with the church, but nothing could be done because there were so many killings. For a long time, the army used the church as if it was their own. Even the saints were dressed as soldiers. Some of the saints and the crown of Jesus the Nazarene were robbed by these military men and they also changed the name of the parish: they called it Saint Gaspar of Chajul. Before the war the parish was called Jesus the Nazarene of Chajul.