#Nicaragua – Authorities detained an elderly Catholic bishop for several hours on Monday after he publicly called for prayers for the country’s persecuted Church and its exiled clergy during Mass the day before.
Bishop Abelardo Mata, 80, bishop emeritus of Estelí, was taken into custody around midday on June 29, 2026, while receiving medical treatment at a clinic in Estelí. Police transported him to the Investigations Center at the Evaristo Vásquez Sánchez Police Complex, where he remained for several hours before his release.
The detention followed a homily Mata delivered on Sunday, June 28, at Calvary’s Cross church. In the sermon, the bishop asked the faithful to pray for Nicaragua’s “persecuted Church” and specifically mentioned exiled priests, including Bishop Rolando Álvarez and Father Frutos Constantino Valle Salmerón.
Following the incident, authorities barred Mata from traveling to Estelí and from celebrating Mass in the diocese. Mata had served as bishop of Estelí until his resignation in 2021. Bishop Álvarez, whom he referenced, acted as apostolic administrator of the diocese before his own exile to Rome in 2024 after serving part of a 26-year prison sentence for criticizing the government.
Father Valle, over 80 years old, currently lives under house arrest at the Our Lady of Fatima Seminary, where he serves as administrator.
Researcher Martha Patricia Molina, author of the report “Nicaragua: A Persecuted Church,” noted that the Ortega regime monitors clergy closely. “In Nicaragua, anyone who dares to voice an opinion, however obvious it may seem, ends up offending the dictatorship,” she said. Many priests face ongoing harassment without public reporting due to fears of harsher retaliation.
Arturo McFields, Nicaragua’s former ambassador to the Organization of American States, described Mata as “a beloved and credible voice” and condemned the action as evidence of an abnormal, dangerous situation under the dictatorship.
Auxiliary Bishop Silvio Báez, who lives in exile in Miami, strongly condemned the arrest on social media, calling it an act of aggression that highlighted the regime’s weakness and irrationality.
Since 2018, tensions have existed between the Catholic Church and the government of President Daniel Ortega and Vice President Rosario Murillo, which have included arrests, exiles, and restrictions on religious activities amid ongoing religious persecutions.
Image: Bishop Abelardo Mata, 80, bishop emeritus of Estelí.
