FIFTIETH ANNIVERSARY

On Sunday, 25 October, 1970, Pope Paul VI canonised 40 of the almost 400 men and women who gave their lives rather than deny their Catholic faith during the terrible religious persecutions of the 16th and 17th centuries.

Pope Paul VI and Cardinal Heenan,

Almost all the hierarchy of England and Wales were in Rome on that glorious day.  The canonisation ceremony took place during Mass and was begun by the Cardinal Prefect of the Congregation for Causes of Saints, Cardinal Bertoli.  Speaking in Latin, Cardinal Bertoli asked "That your Holiness inscribes in the catalogue of saints the Forty Blessed Martyrs of England and Wales so that all Christ's faithful may proclaim them as saints." 

The vice-postulator of the cause, Fr James Walsh S J, then read a plea for the canonisation, including short profiles of each of the martyrs.  The Litany of the Saints was sung before the Pope started the solemn proclamation: "to the glory of the holy and undivided Trinity, for the honour of the universal faith and the advancement of Christian life ...... we decree and define the Forty Blessed Martyrs of England and Wales to be saints." His Holiness then recited the names of the newly canonised using the Latinised Christian names for each of the martyrs.  In his homily on the martyrs, Pope Paul said that the 40 Martyrs had been "loyal to the Crown  but faced with the choice of remaining faithful to the revealed truths of their faith, or of denying them and saving their lives, without hesitation they chose martyrdom."

To read more about the Forty Martyrs of England and Wales just follow this link,  "BUT JUST WHO WERE THEY?" HERE

Six of the Martyrs were Welsh.  They were:

ST RICHARD GWYN, martyred at Wrexham on 15 October 1584

ST JOHN JONES SFM, martyred at Southwark on 12 July 1598

ST JOHN ROBERTS OSB, martyred at Tyburn on10 December 1679

ST PHILIP EVANS SJ, martyred at Cardiff on 22 July 1679

ST JOHN LLOYD, martyred at Cardiff on 22 July 1679

ST DAVID LEWIS SJ, martyred at Usk on 27 August 1679.  He was the last Welsh Martyr.

To read more of the six Welsh Martyrs, please follow this link SIX OF THE FORTY HERE

You can find more information about the Forty Martyrs of England and Wales by using the search box at the top left hand corner of the Blog.

FORTY MARTYRS OF ENGLAND AND WALES, PRAY FOR US.