María de la Luz Camacho

Who was María de la Luz Camacho?

Twenty-seven years old, a catechist and Franciscan tertiary in Coyoacán, she lived with her parents and taught catechism to the children of the neighbourhood in a city where religious practice was still watched. On Sunday 30 December 1934 the Red Shirts came to burn the church of Saint John the Baptist; she went out first and planted herself in front of the door, arms open. She was shot down on the forecourt. The next day the crowd at her funeral blocked the whole quarter.