Pope Francis asked for applause for the 20 martyrs beatified yesterday in the Cathedral of Seville, priests and laymen who were murdered out of hatred for the faith during the beginning of the Spanish Civil War in 1936.
“Yesterday in Seville, Manuel González Serna, a diocesan priest, and 19 fellow priests and laymen murdered in 1936 in the climate of religious persecution of the Spanish Civil War were beatified,” said the Holy Father after praying the Angelus this Sunday in the Vatican.
“These martyrs have borne witness to Christ until the end. May his example comfort so many Christians who in our time are discriminated against for their faith. “Applause for the new blessed!” exclaimed Pope Francis.
Cardinal Marcello Semeraro, prefect of the Dicastery for the Causes of Saints, presided this Saturday, November 18, at the beatification Mass of the 20 martyrs: 10 priests, 1 seminarian and 9 lay people (including one woman).
According to the Archdiocese of Seville, they were murdered “after being detained and without prior trial, in the climate of persecution of anyone who professed to be a member of the Catholic Church.”