[marshmallow]

Viva Cristo Rey!

[Pyro7480]

Blessed José Sanchez del Rio

[Blessed Jose's] martyrdom was witnessed by several people, among them a seven-year-old boy who would later become the founder of a religious congregation, Fr. Marcial Maciel, founder of the Legionaries of Christ and of the Regnum Christi Movement. In the book-length interview “Christ is my Life” (www.christismylife.org), he speaks of the decisive role that his friend, José Luis,’ testimony had for his vocation.

“He was captured by government forces, which wanted to give the civilian population that supported the Cristeros an exemplary lesson,” remembers the founder, who was then seven years old. “[…] Then the skin of the soles of his feet was sheered off, and he was obliged to walk through the village towards the cemetery,” he remembers. “He wept and moaned with pain, but would not give in. Every now and then, the stopped and said: ‘If you cry out “Death to Christ the King,” well will spare your life. Say “Death to Christ the King!”’ But he answered, ‘Hail to Christ the King!’” […] “Once in the cemetery, before shooting him, they asked him once more if he would deny his faith. He refused and was killed right then and there. He died crying out as many other Mexicans did: ‘Hail to Christ the King!’” […] “These are indelible images of my memory and of the memory of the Mexican people, although often there is not much mention of it in the official history” (Christ is my Life, n. 4).

[Incorrigible]

If I lead, follow me; If I pause, push me; If I retreat, kill me.

[TotusTuus]

This is a part of Mexican history during the 20th Century that many are completely unaware of.

[Coleus]

Many of the martyrs were members of the Knights of Columbus

 

St. José María Robles Hurtado -- Priest, Martyr and Knight : A Special Heart With a Special Beat

 

Brothers in Christ

 

[AlaninSA]

Please FReepmail me if you'd like to be added to or removed from the KofC ping list.

[redgolum]

Ran across the anti religion aspects of the Mexican revolution a few months ago while researching a topic on freemasonry. It is amazing that this happened just to our south, during the last 70 or so years, and no one knows about it.

[Nihil Obstat]

Miguel Pro's feast day is Wednesday. He is another Cristeros martyr and I think he was in the KofC too.

MIGUEL AGUSTIN PRO

Memorial 23 November

Son of a mining engineer. From childhood he was known for high spirits and cheerfulness, and he grew up in a pious home. Born to privilege, he had great affinity for the poor and working classes. Jesuit novice at 20. Exiled during the Mexican revolution. Ordained in Belgium in 1925 at age 36. Victim of recurring stomach disorder. Returned to Mexico in 1926, a time when churches were closed, priests were in hiding, and persecution of the Church was policy. Father Miguel used disguises to conduct an underground ministry, bringing the comfort of charity and the sacraments to the faithful.

Falsely accused in 1927 of a bombing attempt, Pro became a wanted man, was betrayed to the police, and without trial, he was sentenced to death. The photograph on this page was taken the day of his martyrdom. As he was about to be shot, he forgave his executioners, refused a blindfold, and died shouting "Love live Christ the King!" The government prohibited a public funeral, but the faithful lined the streets when his body passed.

Born 13 January 1891 at Zacatecas, Mexico
Died martyred by firing squad in 1927

Beatified
25 September 1988 by Pope John Paul II


Readings
We ought to speak, shout out against injustices, with confidence and without fear. We proclaim the principles of the Church, the reigh of love, without forgetting that it is also a reign of justice.

Miguel Agustin Pro

---

Does our life become from day to day more painful, more oppressive, more replete with sufferings? Blessed be He a thousand times who desires it so. If life be harder, love makes it also stronger, and only this love, grounded on suffering, can carry the Cross of my Lord, Jesus Christ.

Miguel Agustin Pro

---

I believe, O Lord, but strengthen my faith... Heart of Jesus, I love Thee; but increase my love. Heart of Jesus, I trust in Thee; but give greater vigor to my confidence. Heart of Jesus, I give my heart to Thee; but so enclose it in Thee that it may never be separated from Thee. Heart of Jesus, I am all Thine; but take care of my promise so that I may be able to put it in practice even unto the complete sacrifice of my life.

Miguel Agustin Pro

[Salvation]

BTTT!

[Salvation]

American Catholic’s Saint of the Day

God calls each one of us to be a saint.

November 23, 2006

Blessed Miguel Agustín Pro

(1891-1927)

¡Viva Cristo Rey! (Long live Christ the King) were the last words Father Pro uttered before he was executed for being a Catholic priest and serving his flock.

Born into a prosperous, devout family in Guadalupe de Zacatecas, he entered the Jesuits in 1911 but three years later fled to Granada, Spain, because of religious persecution in Mexico. He was ordained in Belgium in 1925.

He immediately returned to Mexico, where he served a Church forced to go “underground.” He celebrated the Eucharist clandestinely and ministered the other sacraments to small groups of Catholics.

He and his brother Roberto were arrested on trumped-up charges of attempting to assassinate Mexico’s president. Roberto was spared but Miguel was sentenced to face a firing squad on November 23, 1927. His funeral became a public demonstration of faith. He was beatified in 1988.

Comment:

In 1927 when Father Miguel Pro was executed, no one could have predicted that 52 years later the bishop of Rome would visit Mexico, be welcomed by its president and celebrate open-air Masses before thousands of people. Pope John Paul II made additional trips to Mexico in 1990, 1993 and 1999. Those who outlawed the Catholic Church in Mexico did not count on the deeply rooted faith of its people and the willingness of many of them, like Miguel Pro, to die as martyrs.

Quote:

During his homily at the beatification Mass, Pope John Paul II said that Father Pro “is a new glory for the beloved Mexican nation, as well as for the Society of Jesus. His life of sacrificing and intrepid apostolate was always inspired by a tireless evangelizing effort. Neither suffering nor serious illness, neither the exhausting ministerial activity, frequently carried out in difficult and dangerous circumstances, could stifle the radiating and contagious joy which he brought to his life for Christ and which nothing could take away (see John 16:22). Indeed, the deepest root of self-sacrificing surrender for the lowly was his passionate love for Jesus Christ and his ardent desire to be conformed to him, even unto death.”