JAVIER SUÁREZ-GUANES was born in Madrid. He is of Asturian origin and Castilian heart. After receiving a degree in law from the Universidad Complutense of Madrid, he received a doctorate in Rome in 1956. Following ordination as a priest, he went to Mexico to do priestly work in rural areas. In 1962 he went to Guatemala to work with students and members of a youth club. Next came seven years in El Salvador in another student residence. Upon his return to Guatemala, where he lives today, he became chaplain of the church Nuestra Señora de la Paz (Our Lady of Peace).