By Fr Łukasz Bankowski – Vatican
The nine Salesian martyrs were engaged in pastoral and educational work. When the Second World War broke out, they were arrested solely because they were Catholic priests. They had taken no part in political or military activities, yet the Nazi regime regarded their ministry as a threat.
In the concentration camps, the future Blesseds remained faithful to their vocation. Despite hunger, humiliation, and torture, they continued to support their fellow prisoners, pray, and bear witness to their faith. Their martyrdom was recognized by the Church as death in odium fidei—death out of hatred for the faith.
“This beatification is a public recognition of their dedication to God, which proved stronger than violence, fear, and death. In the reality of totalitarian hatred, they remained faithful to Christ, the Church, and their Salesian vocation until the very end,” emphasized the organizers of the celebrations.
A place closely linked to John Paul II
The beatification will take place at the Shrine of St John Paul II in Kraków. The choice of this location carries profound historical and spiritual significance.
The young Karol Wojtyła, who lived in Kraków’s Dębniki district during the war, witnessed the arrest of six of the nine Salesians. The Germans later deported them to the Dachau concentration camp, and this experience left a deep mark on the future pope. It became one of the events that influenced the maturation of his priestly vocation.
“I firmly believe that the priestly vocation of St John Paul II was also born from their martyrdom,” said Cardinal Grzegorz Ryś, Archbishop of Kraków.
As the Cardinal recalled, the young Wojtyła experienced firsthand what the absence of priests meant and how great a loss it was for the Church community to be deprived of its shepherds.
Prayer for new vocations
Cardinal Ryś expressed the hope that the beatification would become not only a remembrance of heroes of the faith but also a prayer for new priestly and religious vocations.
“May it become our great prayer for priestly and religious vocations—we are in great need of them today. It would be wonderful to know that the witness of these nine martyrs serves as an invitation for others to follow in their footsteps,” Ryś stressed.
Fr Jan Świerc, Fr Ignacy Antonowicz, Fr Karol Golda, Fr Włodzimierz Szembek, Fr Franciszek Harazim, Fr Ludwik Mroczek, Fr Ignacy Dobiasz, Fr Kazimierz Wojciechowski, and Fr Franciszek Miśka suffered martyrdom in the German Nazi concentration camps of Auschwitz and Dachau between 1941 and 1942.
Pope Leo XIV approved the decree recognizing their martyrdom on Oct 24, 2025.
The beatification of the nine Salesians will not only pay tribute to the martyrs of the Second World War but will also remind the faithful that witness to faith and fidelity to one’s vocation can remain a source of hope for future generations of Christians. – Vatican News
