IV
The Twelve
He did not die alone. In the summer and autumn of 1936, twelve Redemptorists from the congregation’s two communities in Madrid were killed. The Church beatified them together.
Two communities
In 1936 the Redemptorists had two houses in Madrid: the shrine of Perpetual Help, in Chamberí, and the pontifical basilica of San Miguel, in La Latina. They were missionaries devoted to preaching parish missions, hearing confessions and spreading devotion to Our Lady of Perpetual Help. When the war began, the religious left in lay clothes and sought refuge in the homes of friendly families. Each of them lived through his own flight.
Profile in Hispania Martyr. Archdiocese of Madrid, 17 October 2022.
Four of the San Miguel community died. Three of them, Fr Crescencio Ortiz, Fr Ángel Martínez and Br Gabriel Sáiz, left the house on 20 July to go into hiding and were captured and killed that same day. The fourth was Fr Donato, who survived in hiding for almost two months. Eight members of the Perpetual Help community died, between August and November.
Interview with the vice-postulator, Fr Antonio Manuel Quesada (Religión en Libertad, 25 October 2022). Official biographies.
The twelve martyrs
The group bears the name of the first on the list: “Vicente Renuncio Toribio and eleven companions”. Six priests and six brothers.
| Name | Born | Community | Martyred |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fr Vicente Nicasio Renuncio Toribio | Villayuda (Burgos), 1876 | Perpetual Help | 7 Nov 1936 |
| Fr Crescencio Ortiz Blanco | Pamplona, 1881 | San Miguel | 20 Jul 1936 |
| Fr Ángel Martínez Miquélez | Funes (Navarre), 1907 | San Miguel | 20 Jul 1936 |
| Br Bernardo (Gabriel) Sáiz Gutiérrez | Melgosa (Burgos), 1896 | San Miguel | 20 Jul 1936 |
| Br Nicesio Pérez del Palomar Quincoces | Tuesta (Álava), 1859 | Perpetual Help | 16 Aug 1936 |
| Br Gregorio Zugasti Fernández de Esquide | Murillo de Yerri (Navarre), 1884 | Perpetual Help | 16 Aug 1936 |
| Br Aniceto Lizasoain Lizaso | Irañeta (Navarre), 1877 | Perpetual Help | 18 Aug 1936 |
| Fr José María Urruchi Ortiz | Miranda de Ebro (Burgos), 1909 | Perpetual Help | 22 Aug 1936 |
| Br José Joaquín (Pascual) Erviti Insausti | Imotz (Navarre), 1902 | Perpetual Help | 22 Aug 1936 |
| Fr Antonio Girón González | Campo (Ponferrada, León), 1871 | Perpetual Help | 30 Aug 1936 |
| Fr Donato Jiménez Bibiano | Alaejos (Valladolid), 1873 | San Miguel | 18 Sep 1936 |
| Br Rafael (Máximo) Perea Pinedo | Villalba de Losa (Burgos), 1903 | Perpetual Help | 2 Nov 1936 |
Some dates differ by a day depending on the source, because several bodies were found on the morning after the killing. For Fr Donato the date given is the one in his death record.
Biographies published in cssr.news (21 October 2022) and in Religión en Libertad (24 April 2021).
“We are not fascists”
When they were arrested, some of them were met with shouts of “Fascists!”. They replied: “We are not fascists; we are Redemptorist religious”. Besides the vows of poverty, chastity and obedience, Redemptorists take a vow of perseverance. The vice-postulator of the cause has described them as twelve fragile people who identified so closely with Jesus the Redeemer that he granted them the reward of identifying with him even in his death.
ACI Prensa, 21 October 2022.
The beatification
The cause was requested in 2005. The diocesan inquiry opened in Madrid on 19 September 2006 and closed on 27 November 2007. On 24 April 2021 Pope Francis authorised the decree recognising their martyrdom in hatred of the faith.
Archdiocese of Madrid. Profile in Testigos de la Redención.
The twelve were beatified on Saturday 22 October 2022 in the Cathedral of Santa María la Real de la Almudena. The ceremony was presided over by Cardinal Marcello Semeraro, Prefect of the Dicastery for the Causes of Saints, as the Pope’s delegate. More than a hundred and thirty relatives of the new Blesseds attended.
cssr.news, 22 October 2022.
Their liturgical memorial is celebrated on 6 November, together with that of the six Redemptorist martyrs of Cuenca, beatified in 2013.
Ibid.