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| The 19 Holy Martyrs of Gorkum, hanged and mutilated by Protestants on July 9, 1572, in Brielle, Holland |
I'm not interested in converting Evangelicals to Catholicism. I want people to find Jesus in their own community. There are so many doctrines we will never agree on. Let’s not spend our time on those. Rather, let’s be about showing the love of Jesus.
Franciscus
June 23, 2014
We will have much more on this meeting shortly.
On July 2, 1572, Feast of the Visitation, Fr. Leonard van Veghel, the pastor of Gorkum (Gorinchem, Holland), was under great pressure. He had been temporarily released from captivity by the Protestants to tend to Catholic laity - but only under the condition that he did not preach, unless he limited himself to pure Reformed doctrine. In his sermon, instead,
Fr. Leonard, and 18 companions, paid the ultimate price one week later.
This short note is just to acknowledge publicly, coming from our humble selves, who owe them so much, the sacrifices of the thousands of Catholics martyred by Protestants, or "Evangelicals", in the past 500 years.
- Dear Martyrs, unforgettable Martyrs, you are still remembered, loved, cherished, as alive with us today as ever through the Communion of Saints.
- Dear Martyrs, your blood is a living witness, streams of blood shed for Our Lord, Our Lady, the Sacrosanct Sacrifice of the Mass, the inerrant Apostolic Doctrine, the missionary duty of the Church, and the legitimate rights of the Roman See, reflecting the Sacrifice of the Crucified and lighting our way.
- Dear Martyrs, as you did, may we also, through your powerful intercession, attain final perseverance and eternal life with you and Our Lord: "Blessed are they that wash their robes in the blood of the Lamb: that they may have a right to the tree of life, and may enter in by the gates into the city."
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"He swore to remain faithful to the Catholic Faith, outside of which no salvation was possible. Attentive listeners said that at the end he stated that he would always proclaim, for as long as it was granted him to preach, the teachings of the Holy Roman Church, even if he had to pay for it with death." [C.J. van Blijswijk, De Martelaren van Gorcum: voorbeelden van trouw, Oegstgeest, 1993, p. 69]
Fr. Leonard, and 18 companions, paid the ultimate price one week later.
This short note is just to acknowledge publicly, coming from our humble selves, who owe them so much, the sacrifices of the thousands of Catholics martyred by Protestants, or "Evangelicals", in the past 500 years.
- Dear Martyrs, unforgettable Martyrs, you are still remembered, loved, cherished, as alive with us today as ever through the Communion of Saints.
- Dear Martyrs, your blood is a living witness, streams of blood shed for Our Lord, Our Lady, the Sacrosanct Sacrifice of the Mass, the inerrant Apostolic Doctrine, the missionary duty of the Church, and the legitimate rights of the Roman See, reflecting the Sacrifice of the Crucified and lighting our way.
- Dear Martyrs, as you did, may we also, through your powerful intercession, attain final perseverance and eternal life with you and Our Lord: "Blessed are they that wash their robes in the blood of the Lamb: that they may have a right to the tree of life, and may enter in by the gates into the city."
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Rex gloriose Martyrum :
Ignosce quod deliquimus.
Amen.
Rex gloriose Martyrum :
Ignosce quod deliquimus.
Amen.
