James Miller

James Alfred Miller, FSC (September 21, 1944 – February 13, 1982), also known as Brother Leo William or Santiago, was an American Catholic member of the Brothers of the Christian Schools who served in Guatemala until his murder in 1982.

Miller served as a teacher first in Cretin High School before being sent to teach in Bluefields in Nicaragua where he remained until his superiors ordered him to leave. He was requested to leave his work in Nicaragua due to political tensions that put Miller at risk of being killed, but he was frustrated to be sent back to his native home, where he remained for some time to teach. He was known for his construction and practical abilities to the point where students at Cretin High School referred to him as "Brother Fix-It." Miller was later sent to Guatemala where he taught, and he remained there until he was murdered. His killer was never identified and brought to justice, despite a long investigation. Pope Francis approved Miller's beatification in late 2018. It was celebrated in Huehuetenango in December 2019. Miller weighed almost on birth; as an adult, he stood six feet two inches and weighed . The Carter Administration in the United States had cut off new military aid to Guatemala in 1977 because of human rights violations, but the government there was still receiving funds that had been previously appropriated.

Lucas García intensified army operations throughout the nation and sent out death squads to intimidate or murder indigenous peoples. Unlike in Nicaragua, the Guatemalan government viewed the Catholic Church as an opponent because it was operating missions to help these people. Its priests, deacons, religious sisters and parishioners became targets. In July 1981, three masked men assassinated Stanley Rother, an American priest who was operating the Micatokla mission in the city of Santiago Atitlán in Guatemala.

Miller, in a December 1981 letter to his family, described the conditions in Guatemala'“The level of personal violence is reaching appalling proportions (murders, tortures, kidnappings, threats) and the Catholic Church is being persecuted because of its option for the poor and oppressed. God knows why he continues to call me to Guatemala…and I pray to God for the grace and strength to serve Him faithfully by my presence among the poor and oppressed. I place my life in His providence; I place my trust in Him.” During the winter of 1981, the Guatemalan Army was periodically taking students from the Casa Indígena, forcing them to serve the army. This was despite an official agreement to leave the students alone. Paul Joslin, another Christian Brother, had gone to the local police station to demand their release, but the police did nothing. This interference with the army's activities may have led to Miller's shooting.

Miller killing On February 13, 1982, Miller was planning an afternoon picnic with his class. Before that, he was outside the Colegio De La Salle on a ladder repairing a broken lamp. He had sent a student inside to fetch a tool. A car containing three hooded and masked men pulled up to the school. After the men shot Miller six or seven times, the car sped off. Miller fell to the ground, where he died. Several children witnessed the killing, looking out a school window. Sister Madeleva Manzanares Suazo, working in a nearby hospice, found his body. Over 1,000 of Miller's students accompanied his casket to the local airport. Miller's casket was transported back to Minnesota several days later. A funeral mass was celebrated on February 16th by Archbishop John Roach at the Cathedral of St. Paul in St. Paul, Minnesota. A second mass was celebrated on February 18th at Sacred Heart Church in Polonia, Wisconsin, with Bishop Frederick Freking presiding. Miller was interred at St. Martin Cemetery near his birthplace in Ellis, Wisconsin.

No suspect were ever found in the Miller murder. The Guatemalan government expressed regret that the case had dragged on for so long. They ultimately concluded that "subversive criminal elements" were responsible for the murder and closed the case.

The bishops in Guatemala concluded their investigation in 2010. In the next step, the CSS issued a decree of validity, declaring Miller a Servant of God. They later that year received the Positio dossier for Miller. In March 2018, the nine theologians consulting on the Miller cause for the CCS issued an unanimous approval to Miller's beatification . Pope Francis in November 2018 declared Miller to be a martyr. As a martyr, no miracles were necessary for his beatification. Following normal procedure, Miller's body was exhumed that year to collect relics and determine if it was incorruptible, without signs of decay. The current postulator for the cause is the Robert Rodolfo Cosimo Meoli.

Legacy The La Crosse diocese sponsors an annual Brother James Miller Social Justice Award. The "Brother James Miller Fund" was established after Miller's death and aimed to continue his work for the poor and oppressed.