Martyrs of Arras
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26 June 1991
Montreal, Canada

My dear Sisters and my dear Confreres,

Today the two Communities of St. Vincent are honoring a group of Daughters of Charity who seventy-one years ago this year were beatified by Pope Benedict XV. In 1994 we will be celebrating the two hundredth anniversary of the martyrdom of these four Daughters of Charity. It was on this day that they witnessed for Christ by undergoing martyrdom in Cambrai in France.

When we think of martyrs, our minds probably travel back to the eras in the history of the Church when Christians were being persecuted in great numbers. We think of the decades of persecution that Christians suffered before Christianity was recognized by the Roman Emperor. Our minds will make contact, too, with Christians of the last century in China, notably two martyrs of our own Community, John Gabriel Perboyre and Francis Regis Clet and the Daughters of Charity whom we are honoring today. In this century we will think of the excesses of Stalin against Ukrainian Catholics.

But what of the present? Is the present climate in the world such that we have seen the end of martyrdom? With the political changes in Russia and Eastern Europe, can we say that the age of martyrs is over? We may be inclined to think along such lines, but further reflection will show us that the age of martyrs has not passed. Eighteen months ago we had six Jesuits in San Salvador brutally murdered because they were strong witnesses for Christ and His Gospel.

During my visit to Czechoslovakia last year I talked with a Jesuit Bishop. He was ordained a priest in 1950 and then a year later secretly ordained a Bishop in the basement of a hospital. For eighteen or nineteen years he worked clandestinely, and then in the brief year of Dubcek he surfaced. With the advent of the Russians he was put into prison because he was known to be a Bishop. After his release in 1978 attempts were made on his life by agents of the secret police and he was subject to much harassment, until a year ago when his country became free. Following that he was officially named Bishop of one of the ancient dioceses of Czechoslovakia. Eight years in prison and then ten years of harassment by the police is a form of suffering that comes very close to martyrdom. That Bishop is among those who in two days' time will be created Cardinal by the Holy Father.

An element in the expression of most martyrs is that of resistance. Martyrs are Christians who, when asked to say yes, uttered a categorical no because of the convictions of their faith. They persisted in saying 'no' under suffering that was inflicted upon them and brought them to death. They did this because of their loyalty to Jesus Christ and to His Church.

If the word martyr means witness--and all of us are called to be witnesses to Christ--where is the element of witness in our lives, and where is the element of resistance? For us, priests and Sisters, we should look for it first in the area of our vows. Where do others see resistance in our lives? For all Christians resistance will be shown by being obedient to the Gospel of Jesus Christ and to His Church. That is not always easy. It is always easy to do something that everyone else is doing, but that does not mean that it is always right. It takes courage to profess our faith in word and action. When courage is called for, resistance will be called for. Pilate had not the courage to go against the crowd when they asked that Jesus be crucified. He had no courage. He could put up no resistance.

Our Lord has said: "You also are witnesses because you have been with Me from the beginning." (Jn 15:27). It is the Spirit of God, as Our Lord reminds us, Who will support us and strengthen us in giving witness to Him, in being martyrs. "If our perfection is to be found in charity, as is clear," wrote St. Vincent, "then there is no greater charity than that of giving oneself for the salvation of souls and to be consumed for them in the way that Jesus Christ was." (Coste VII, Fr. ed., pp. 292-293).

May Blessed Marie Madeleine and her companions intercede for us so that our charity may be perfected for the salvation of souls and for the glory of God.

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