 |
| The persecutions in Mexico of the 1920s produced
numerous saints. Six of them were member
were members of the Knights of Columbus.
They share the reliquary above. It
was financed by the Knights of Columbus of Mexico and donated to the Supreme
Council. It can be seen in the Knights
of Columbus National Museum in its national headquarters in New Haven,
Connecticut.
Viva
Cristo Rey! Hail Christ the King! This Sunday is the Feast
of Christ the King. Pope Pius XI proclaimed the feast in 1925 in
his
encyclical, “Quas Primas” (see http://w2.vatican.va/content/pius-xi/en/encyclicals/documents/hf_p-xi_enc_11121925_quas-primas.html)
as a response to growing nationalism and secularism…….the
promotion
of human development through material means with no role for faith,
religion, or belief in God. In secular
states, there may be freedom of
worship within the home or church building, but
freedom of religion
outside of the church building to practice the faith,
follow basic beliefs,
and have an influence in the public square through its
own publications, schools, hospitals, etc. is restricted if not
eliminated.
In the United States secularism is growing at an alarming
rate and indeed threatens religious freedom.
Catholic institutions are being forced to provide health insurance that
includes coverage for sterilization, abortifacients, and in some cases
abortion. In the future the government’s
version of political correctness could be imposed upon pastors even in
homilies. Western Europe is very secular;
the European Union in its constitution refused to recognize the historical
contribution of the Church to their civilization, institutions, and
culture.
However, there is hope……Poland, Peru, and the Ukraine for a start, and Church in Russia is beginning to bloom. Historically, Poland has been a staunchly Catholic country, strong even
under Communism. However, as a member of the very secular European Union,
it had been slipping. But yesterday, the eve of the great Feast of Christ the King, during a
solemn ceremony at the Shrine of Divine Mercy in Krakow, the Catholic bishops
of Poland officially recognized Christ as King of Poland. The consecration was carried out in the
presence of Polish President Andrzej Duda, implying presidential approval. The consecration Mass was
officiated by St. Pope John Paul’s former secretary, Cardinal Stanislaw
Dziwisz. Today, on the actual feast, the Polish people followed that up by consecrating
Poland and themselves to Christ the King in every parish in the country after a
novena of preparation. See http://www.churchmilitant.com/news/article/christ-recognized-as-king-of-poland.
A month before the President of Peru, Pedro
Pablo Kuczynski, officially consecrated Peru at the National Prayer Breakfast
on October 21, 2016 in Lima to the Sacred Heart of Jesus and the Immaculate
Heart of Mary. The action echoes that
Ecuadorian president Gabriel Garcia Moreno, who consecrated Ecuador to the
Sacred Heart on March 25, 1874. Two days later on October 23, the Ukrainian Greek-Catholic Patriarch Sviatoslav Shevchuk, at a ceremony held at Fatima consecrated the Ukraine to the Immaculate Heart of Mary. See http://www.sspx.org/en/news-events/news/polish-recognition-christ-king.
In Russia of all places the faith is growing as never before since the consecration of Russia by St. Pope John Paul II in union with the bishops of the world to the Immaculate Heart of Mary in 1984……..the number of churches has increased from 400 to 30,000; monasteries from 22 to 800, and schools of theology from 0 to 100.
The
Knights of Columbus was founded in the United States in 1882 and in Mexico
in 1905. By 1923 the latter had 43
councils and 6,000 members. The Knights
provide great fellowship while serving the parish
and the community. Its life insurance with a top financial
rating at lower than commercial rates provides for the security of the families
of its knights. Any surplus is used for
Knights of Columbus charities and rebates for its policy holders. At the same time the Knights of Columbus promotes
religious freedom, the traditional family and marriage, the right to life,
and
the spiritual formation of its members.
 In Mexico during the Cristero War (1926-1929), hundreds of knights gave their lives in the battle for religious freedom against intense persecution and six of them are saints. Can that happen here? Indifferent and lax Christians may not recognize the threat to religious freedom until they have lost it completely. We must be vigilant and fight to maintain our religious liberty.
In Mexico the Knights of Columbus helped to organize the main
Catholic institutions into the League for the Defense of Religious
Liberty. The League raised the nation’s
consciousness and demanded respect for human rights. In the United States the Knights of Columbus provided
aid for the exiled and the migrants.
They lobbied the Coolidge Administration and rallied public opinion in
an education campaign, issuing 5 million pamphlets with eye witness accounts, to
pressure the Mexican government to cease its intense persecution of the
Catholic Church and thousands of executions
of its members, especially priests who were forbidden from even saying
Mass. As a result, President Plutarco
Calles outlawed the Knights of Columbus and its members were singled out for
persecution. Pius XI publicly gave the
Knights of Columbus special praise.
 In the year 2000 St. Pope John Paul II canonized 25 Mexican martyrs, mostly priests (see https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saints_of_the_Cristero_War). Six of them were members of the Knights of Columbus. Their photos are above with a reliquary they share. It was financed by the Knights of Columbus of Mexico and donated to the Supreme Council. Their stories tell what the priesthood is all about. As Fr. Juan Diego Brunetta said, their stories affirm the priesthood and the role of priest as servant to spread the good news. St. Pope John Paul II said in his encyclical, “Ecclesia in America” (see https://www.ewtn.com/jp99/ecclesia.htm), “They stir us up to take up fearlessly and fervently today’s task of the new evangelization.” They continue to evangelize by inspiring us to be faithful Catholics. Let’s review their heroic stories. 
San José María
Robles Hurtado inspired enthusiasm
and devotion to the Sacred Heart in Tocolotlán.
While preparing for Mass he was arrested by government soldiers and led
to his execution. He knelt down in front
of the firing squad, blessed his parish and his murderers, and forgave them.
San Rodrigo
Aguilar Alemán delayed his escape from
the Colegio de San Ignacio in Ejutla to destroy the seminary’s student
enrollment records. When asked to
identify himself, he replied: “I am a priest”.
He blessed the noose of the rope and loudly forgave his
executioners. The officer in charge
asked the priest, hanging from a mango tree in the town square: “Who lives?”
“Christ the King and Our Lady of Guadalupe” was the reply. They lowered him three times and asked him
the same question and got the same answer each time.
San Luis Batis
Sainz dedicated himself to youth as
pastor in Zacatecas. In 1926 he was
arrested with one of his aides, Manuel Morales.
He pleaded for the life of this layman for the sake of his family. However, Morales said: “I am dying for God, and God will care for my
children.” Smiling, Father Bátis absolved his aide and said, “I’ll see you in
heaven.”. What faith! Would we be up to that?
San Mateo Correa
Magallanes was seized while bringing the Eucharist
to a sick woman and sent to prison. The
commandante ordered him to hear confessions of the other prisoners. Then he was ordered with a death threat to
reveal what he heard from the penitants.
“I’ll never do that”, repied the
priest. “I am willing to die”. Absolutely nothing can justify a priest to
break the sacred seal of confession.
San Miguel de la
Mora would say Mass in secret. He took
part with other priests in a Holy Hour led by his Bishop after signing a
rejection of the anti-Catholic laws.
After being taken to army headquarters, the Captain in charge shot the
priest dead while praying the rosary in Tecalitlan, Jalisco.
San Pedro de Jesús
Maldonado Lucero promoted perpetual
adoration of the Blessed Sacrament and devotion to Mary. After being exiled to Texas in 1937, he
returned to administer the sacraments.
While distributing ashes on the first day of Lent, he was seized by a
gang who beat him to a pulp with rifle butts and left him in a pool of
blood. His tombstone reads: “You
are a priest”.
In 2005 Pope Benedict beatified 13 other martyrs, three of whom were members of the Knights of Columbus. They include José Trinidad Rangel Montaño,
a diocesan priest from León in San Felipe, Guanajuato; Andrés Sola Molist, a Spanish
Claretian priest in León, Guanajuato; and Leonardo Pérez Larios, a layman. The three were executed together in 1927.
Clearly, persecution and adversity breed heroism, holiness,
and sanctity. This era of persecution
was probably the darkest chapter of Mexican history, yet perhaps the most glorious. The number of cannonized saints Mexico
produced is incredible. According to one
story, a mystic asked Our Lady of Guadalupe, the patroness of Mexico: “Where
were you during all this time?” Mary
replied” “I was there all the time”. The title of the movie underwritten by the
Knights of Columbus is so appropriate: “For Greater Glory” (available at ignatius.com). They sacrificed all for
greater glory. Can we have that same
priority amidst all of the distractions of ambition for prestige, promotion, and
money?
Supreme Knight Carl Anderson affirmed: “The Order’s history
is forever linked to the history of this great nation. ....... Loving God above
all things and our neighbor as we love ourselves is the only response that we
can give to Christ the King”. See
https://www.kofc.org/un/en/resources/communications/martyrs_booklet.pdf.
Links to My Articles on Mexico and
the Cristero War
|
Sunday, November 20, 2016
(181) VIVA CRISTO REY: THOUSANDS DIED FOR THE FREEDOM TO PROCLAIM IT......The Role of the Knights of Columbus for Religious Liberty Against Persecution of the Church in Mexico
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment