Church in El Salvador criticizes constitutional reform allowing unlimited presidential terms

ACI Prensa Staff, Aug 7, 2025 / 15:36 pm (CNA).

On Aug. 6, the day El Salvador celebrates the solemnity of the Divine Savior (Salvador) of the World and this year the 500th anniversary of the founding of the city of San Salvador, the Catholic Church strongly criticized a recent constitutional reform that allows current President Nayib Bukele and his successors unlimited presidential terms.

The archbishop of San Salvador, José Luis Escobar Alas, celebrated Mass in the cathedral of the country’s capital. The bishops of the Salvadoran Bishops’ Conference concelebrated, with priests, nuns, and laypeople from all of El Salvador’s dioceses in attendance.

In his homily, Escobar addressed a message directly to the Salvadoran legislators, urging them to “reconsider the constitutional reforms recently approved by this legislative plenary session without consultation.”

“For a constitutional reform to be legitimate, the people must be consulted,” he declared. The prelate said his appeal is made “with no interest other than the good of our people.”

On July 31, El Salvador’s Legislative Assembly approved and ratified a series of changes to five articles of the constitution. These amendments will now allow for unlimited presidential reelection, extend the presidential term from five to six years, eliminate the runoff election, and shorten the current term of Bukele so that all elections for public office nationwide take place on the same date. 

The legislative body is composed of 60 representatives, 54 of whom belong to the ruling Nuevas Ideas (New Ideas) party. Two seats are held by the National Concertation Party and one by the Christian Democratic Party, both allies of the current government. The remaining three seats belong to opposition parties.

Advocates for environment, migrants

In front of thousands of people, Escobar also demanded that legislators “fulfill the debt they owe to this people” and reinstate “the law they repealed, the one that protects the environment, the life and health of people, animals, and plants,” referring to the ban on metal mining, recently revoked by the Legislative Assembly.

The archbishop also called on U.S. authorities to stop going after unauthorized Salvadoran migrants while demanding respect for their human rights.

The prelate called for “not criminalizing their status simply because they are undocumented. They are noble, good, hardworking people who have done much for that country and who deserve decent treatment.”

Finally, Escobar denounced “the scourge of poverty” that drives thousands of Salvadorans to emigrate, stating that it is the product of “economic policies that, to date, have not resolved the most urgent needs of the vast majority of impoverished people.”

He concluded his homily with a call to the faithful to ask the Divine Savior of the World to be able to “transfigure us and transfigure El Salvador, so that we may all live according to his sacred will, as true children of God.”

Massive procession for the Divine Savior of the World

The celebrations for the solemnity of the Divine Savior of the World began on Aug. 5 with thousands of faithful participating in the solemn procession with the image of the Divine Savior of the World in San Salvador. The procession departed from Sacred Heart of Jesus Basilica and passed through the main streets of the capital until reaching the Metropolitan Cathedral of San Salvador.

In the plaza in front of the cathedral, a moving reenactment of the Transfiguration of the Lord was presented in which the image of Christ, dressed as a Nazarene, was elevated and symbolically transformed into the glorious Christ amid music and fireworks.

This story was first published by ACI Prensa, CNA’s Spanish-language news partner. It has been translated and adapted by CNA.

Source: https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/265847/church-in-el-salvador-criticizes-constitutional-reform-that-allows-unlimited-presidential-terms