Modern Martyrdom

On October 19^th, the Church celebrated Saints John de Brébeuf, Isaac Jogues, and Companions, but they are commonly called the North American Martyrs. They were Jesuit missionaries from France who had come to North America to convert the natives, and they came knowing full well they would be in constant danger. The natives thought their unwelcome guests had come to destroy their lives, even though the missionaries were only there to bring Christ to the somewhat Godless population.

The missionaries spent six years with the Huron people, and had great success in converting and baptizing them. While traveling on the road with some of the now converted natives, they were captured by Mohawk people. Jogues was able to hide behind a bush, but when he saw that his companions had been captured, he stood up and willfully submitted to the assailants. These holy men were enslaved, tied up spread eagle in cabins, beaten with sticks, and showered with hot coals by the young boys of the tribe. Jogues experienced the worst of the brutality; his fingernails were pulled out, the ends of his fingers were gnawed on until bone was exposed, and several of his fingers were cut, burned, or chewed, rendering it impossible for the young priest to say Mass. After 13 months of suffering, he was freed by the Dutch and returned to France.

With all of the suffering he endured, nobody would have blamed him if he stayed in France to die peacefully in his homeland. However, his zeal for the Faith brought him back to the Huron mission 6 months after his return to France. With special permission from Pope Urban VIII, he was able to say Mass even with his mutilated hands, which was usually forbidden. He was tomahawked and beheaded on October 18^th in the year 1646 when the Iroquois violated a recently signed peace treaty.

The entrance antiphon for the Mass on their feast day is truly touching, and it captures the very essence of the Christian life with only two short sentences.

“May we never boast, except in the Cross of our Lord Jesus Christ. For the word of the Cross is the power of God to us who have been saved.”

Their sacrifice was selfless and joyful, because they knew that their martyrdom was not the end of life, but rather the beginning of eternal life. Their suffering was the means to their salvation, and this is something we Christians often forget.

Many Christians today feel welcome and loved in our secular world. They are comfortable, content, and happy to be so wonderfully accepted by such a progressive and inclusive society. But with the example of the Christ and the Saints in mind, something is missing from the lives of many Christians today: persecution.

Christianity, correctly understood, stands diametrically opposed to the evils that the world calls good. The destruction of the family is worshipped, the murder of innocent unborn human lives is a right, and the gravest of sins are accepted and even encouraged.

So how can a Christian be content and comfortable in such a world? A Christian is accepted when he fails to speak out against evil. He either sits quietly or encourages the evils of the world because it’s easy. Nobody’s bothering the Christian who celebrates LGBT pride, or the Christian who stands by while innocent children are murdered savagely in the womb, or the Christian who accepts the murder of the elderly and infirmed in the name of false mercy. This kind of Christian is plentiful and prospering, showered with praise by such a backwards world.

The Christian who stands up and openly rejects evil is the one who is beaten and battered by hateful remarks and accusations of bigotry. The Christian who stands upright in an upside down world looks upside down to everyone else, and because of this he is condemned. He is rejected, he is downtrodden, and he is hated with the fiercest of passion. He is, in a sense, a martyr. He may never be physically harmed, but he faces the evils that seek to destroy him with faith, hope, and love. He puts on the radiant armor of Christ and he stands firmly against the darkness. He is a beacon of blazing light surrounded by pure darkness. And though he feels the full weight of the Cross on his back, he rejoices in it. He knows that his suffering is not without purpose.

In the United States this true Christian, be it man or woman, is all too rare. We Christians have forgotten what we are here for. It is time to put on the armor of Christ, and join the few who resist evil, who suffer dearly under the massive Cross that rests on their backs. We must stand firmly against evil, and stand firmly with Christ. It is time for us to become martyrs, so that we can share in the eternal glory of the life to come.

“May we never boast, except in the Cross of our Lord Jesus Christ. For the word of the Cross is the power of God to us who have been saved.”