Saint Margaret Clitheroe
In the north of England, a shrine in York welcomes pilgrims who want to honor the memory of Saint Margaret Clitheroe. “The Pearl of York”, born Margaret Middleton, was the daughter of a candlemaker who was also Sheriff of York. She was not raised a Catholic but became one shortly after her marriage to John Clitheroe, a wealthy butcher. He was not a Catholic, but had a brother who was a priest.
Margaret and John were a devoted couple. In addition to raising their children, Margaret began instructing a number of others in the Faith, and providing facilities for priests, including her brother-in-law, to say Mass. In York, a little house in The Shambles, a butcher’s shop over which the Clitheroe family lived, now honors the memory of all of this.
Eventually, Margaret’s work was discovered and she was arrested. Rather than have her children forced to give evidence against her, or lie in her defense, she chose not to plead before the court, and was sentenced to be pressed to death as a punishment for this. It was a slow and cruel death as weights were loaded on to a board, which crushed her down.
Her courage and faith drew admiration from many, and significance was seen in the fact that the date of her death was Good Friday. Her husband was devastated by her death: “Let them take all I have and save only her, she is the best wife in all England, and the best Catholic”. Their daughter became a nun and both sons became priests. -