During
the Oblate World Youth Days in Málaga, Spain, Father Louis LOUGEN, the Superior
General, gave three lectures. Below are excerpts from the third one concerning
the Oblate Martyrs, soon to be beatified.
The example of
the 22 Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate who were martyred in Spain is a
strong and brilliant witness to confession of faith in Jesus Christ. For the
sole reason that these men were believers in Jesus Christ and had consecrated
their lives to him, they were despised and brutally executed. … Heroically,
they were faithful to Jesus and to the Catholic faith right up to their brutal
deaths. What do we learn from these witnesses? I would propose four qualities:
The
Spirit’s gifts of Courage and Strength to be faithful
These young
men knew what was happening in Spain at the time. They were threatened publicly
with people shouting at them: “Kill those Brothers!” In the streets, people made
gestures with knives cutting throats to indicate what should be done to
religious men. From their residence, the Oblates could see the smoke of burning
churches and convents destroyed by those who hated the Church. Among
themselves, the Oblates talked about how they would escape from their residence
if it were set on fire. Even in this climate of hostility, they went on
faithfully with their prayers, studies and work right up to the time of
imprisonment.
In the jail,
they were treated mercilessly with scant food, humiliations, physical beatings,
bitter cold, poor hygienic conditions for toilet needs and lice. Crowded
conditions and the bitter cold forced them to sleep standing up at times.
The response
of these men was unfailing courage and strength. They endured the conditions in
the jail with a spirit of prayer. They remained closely united, caring for each
other and encouraging one another and they maintained spirits of serenity and
even joy, trusting in God.
The exact
words of Clemente RODRIGUEZ TEJERINA, 18 years old, were recounted by his
sister: “We are in danger and we fear
that we will be separated; we encourage each other. But even if we have to die,
I am ready, and I am sure that God will give us the strength that we need to be
faithful.”
Love
for Jesus and for the Catholic Church
These men were
made to suffer and were killed because they were Catholic priests and Brothers.
To save themselves they only had to renounce their faith and deny their
beliefs. What would it matter? Who would care? Why suffer so much? Why cause pain
for their families?
In the
suffering that led up to their execution before the death squads, they
professed their faith in Jesus Christ, their love for the Catholic Church and
for their missionary vocation. One of the martyrs, Publio RODRIGUEZ MOSLARES,
24 years old, had given his mother a small crucifix and told her: “Kiss it frequently, and whatever happens,
remember that everything we suffer for Christ, no matter how great it seems,
would be small compared to how much Christ loves us and suffered for us.” As
they were executed they cried out their profession of faith: “Long live Christ the King!”
Gregorio ESCOBAR
GARCIA, executed at 24 years of age wrote: “I
have always been profoundly moved by the stories of the martyrs. Whenever I
have read about them, I have been taken by a secret desire to have the same
fate. This would be the greatest priesthood to which a Christian could aspire:
to offer to God one’s own body and blood in sacrifice for the faith. What a
blessing it would be to die as a martyr.”
Today we are
rarely threatened with death for believing in Jesus and being Catholic,
although it still does happen in some parts of the world. We can express our
love for Jesus and the Church by faithfully living the Gospel with integrity. Following
Jesus is not easy when I am truly committed to make the faith a living
relationship with God that shapes everything else I do, how I relate to others
and what I believe is right and wrong.
The
spiritual power of Love, Forgiveness, Prayer and Joy
Fr. Francisco ESTEBAN
LACAL, the Provincial, executed at 48 years of age, received a coat from his
family to keep himself warm in the cold prison. Not thinking of his own needs
or comfort, he promptly gave it to another companion in prison who was suffering
much from the bitter cold. Fr. Francisco was heard to have said to the guards: “We know that you are killing us because we
are Catholics and religious; we are that. I and my companions forgive you from
our hearts.”
Publio
Rodriguez Moslares (24 years old), with one of the priests, entertained the
seminarians in the jail with comedies in verse. A witness wrote about Publio: “He was able to endure the jails in Madrid
with integrity and joy and when they gave him provisional liberty it was
especially he who kept his companions who were suffering this Calvary connected
to one another and to their Superiors, going from one place to another.”
Although they
were aware of impending death, these Oblates chose to live the Gospel mandate
to love their enemies, forgive and pray for those who persecuted them and to
rejoice for being made to suffer for the name of Jesus. In society today, pleasure,
ease and comfort are the ultimate goals of life. We see a challenging and prophetic
message in the lives of these Oblates. They question the way we live and call
us to be authentic witnesses of our Christian faith.
The
Gift of Self -- Oblation
These men were
Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate. The word “Oblate” means an oblation, an
offering. Through our way of life, we Oblates strive to offer our lives to God
through Mary, the Mother of Jesus. We make a gift of ourselves to serve God’s
people, especially the poor. The passion and death of these 22 Oblates of Mary
Immaculate was the total gift of their lives for Jesus Christ, their Lord; it
was the gift of their lives for the good of the people of Spain; it was the
gift of their lives for the good of the mission of the Church and of the
Oblates all over the world. Many of them were filled with Oblate zeal,
preparing to head to the missions that the Province of Spain had in Argentina
and Uruguay. They did not reach their missionary destinations, but their violent
execution was the complete oblation, the total gift of self offered to God for
the good of Christ’s mission.
One of the
Oblates who was not executed gave this testimony: “What also stood out was the desire to offer our lives for the Church,
for the peace of Spain and for those whom we thought were going to execute us. The
only motive that guided us was supernatural since humanly speaking we had lost
everything.”
Each one of us
is invited to offer our lives to God for the service of the Gospel, to live out
our faith and to be witnesses. Because of our Baptism and Confirmation we are
sent as followers of Jesus to be the light of God’s love in the world. We are
all called to make a gift of our lives, to be “oblates” within our families, at
school, where we work, when playing sports and in all our relationships. Jesus
showed us this so strongly when he washed his disciples’ feet as a gesture of
service and humility. That is the sense of being an “oblate.”
As we
experience the communion of the saints in this land washed with the blood of
these 22 young Spanish Oblates, may the Holy Spirit strengthen our hearts so
that we, as young Catholics, also witness to our faith in Jesus Christ with a
spirit of prayer, love, forgiveness and joy, making our lives an oblation to
God.
