On 6 November the Catholic Church celebrates the memory of a substantial group of Brothers of the Christian Schools who were persecuted and martyred in Spain in 1936.
It is estimated that at that time there were 1,087 Brothers in the country, organised in three provinces: Barcelona, with 353; Madrid, with 311; and Valladolid with 423 Brothers. At the end of the persecution 165 Brothers were killed, i.e. 15.7% of them.
In the city of Almería seven Brothers were murdered in two different circumstances and on different dates in 1936. They were Brothers Aurelio María, José Cecilio, Edmigio, Amalio, Valerio Bernardo, Teodomiro Joaquín and Evencio Ricardo.
In Valencia five Brothers were executed, three of them (Brothers Florencio Martín, Honorato Andrés and Ambrosio León) were working in Barcelona and were trying to reach their home towns when the persecution erupted. The other two (Brothers Elías Julián and Bertrán Francisco) worked in the formation house in Cambrils, and were also killed in Valencia.
The martyrdom of 44 Brothers in Barcelona has also been recognised, including Brother Leonardo José, who was the Visitor of the District. The youngest of them was 20 years old (Brother Francisco Alfredo), while the oldest was 60 (Brother Raimundo Eloy).
The martyr Brothers of Cartagena were killed on 18 November near a sulphur well which today is known as the “Well of the Martyrs”. They were Brothers Ovidio Bertrán, Estanislao Víctor, Hermenegildo Lorenzo, Lorenzo Santiago and Luciano Pablo.
Five other Brothers were martyred in Ciudad Real. They were Brothers Agapito León, Dámaso Luis, Josafat Roque, Julio Alfonso and Ladislao Luis, who ran a school in Santa Cruz de Mudela.
In Toledo, Brothers Teodosio Rafael, Carlos Jorge, Eustaquio Luis and Felipe José, who ran the Fundación Díaz-Cordovés school, were killed between 6 and 8 August.
In Griñón, near Madrid, where the Brothers had a house of formation and a ward for elderly and sick Brothers, 21 Lasallian religious were martyred and shot on 28 July. The same fate befell 16 other Brothers from various schools in Madrid and from the Bruño publishing Company on 30 July.
Likewise, it was recognised the martyrdom of 39 De La Salle Brothers in Tarragona, in various circumstances, who were living their consecration and providing their educational service in different educational works.
Let us ask the intercession of the martyred Brothers of Spain that we may be faithful in our mission in the service of the Gospel, even to the last consequences.
Blessed martyrs of Spain, pray for us.
Live Jesus in our hearts… forever!