José Antón Gómez and 3 companions

The priory of Santa María de Montserrat, located on Calle San Bernardo in Madrid, was entrusted to the Benedictines of the Abbey of Santo Domingo de Silos in 1922. Under the leadership of Father José Antón Gómez, the small monastic community focused on restoring the church and spreading Benedictine life in the Spanish capital. The monks led a life of prayer, intellectual study (historical research, cataloging of private libraries such as the Zabálburu library), and pastoral work (confessions, spiritual direction, Gregorian chant classes).

In July 1936, the Spanish Civil War broke out, accompanied by violent religious persecution. On July 19, 1936, faced with the burning of the Cathedral of San Isidro in Madrid and growing threats, the prior, Father José Antón Gómez, decided to temporarily dissolve the community to allow everyone to seek safe refuge with friends or in boarding houses.

Dispersed throughout Madrid, the four monks were quickly hunted down due to their status as priests and religious:

José Antón Gómez took refuge in a boarding house (the Hotel Laris). Arrested on September 24, 1936, he was taken to the 'checa de Fomento' and shot in odium fidei in the early hours of September 25, 1936, on the road to Andalusia.

Rafael Alcocer Martínez found refuge in the Saeta bookstore. Discovered by militiamen on September 30, 1936, he was taken to the 'checa de la calle Ferraz' and shot on October 4, 1936, at the Cuesta de la Elipa.

Antolín Pablos Villanueva was arrested and incarcerated at the Modelo prison in Madrid. On November 8, 1936, he was taken to the Soto de Aldovea (Torrejón de Ardoz) where he was shot.

Luis Vidaurrázaga González hid at a friend's house, but he was denounced and arrested. After an initial incarceration and temporary release, he was arrested again and shot on the night of December 31, 1936, at the Elipa stream.

After the war, their remains were exhumed and gathered together. In 1960, they were transferred to the church of Nuestra Señora de Montserrat in Madrid. A portion of their relics (the femurs) is kept at the Abbey of Santo Domingo de Silos.

The cause for the beatification of the four Benedictine martyrs was opened in the Archdiocese of Madrid in 2004. On April 26, 2016, Pope Francis authorized the promulgation of the decree recognizing their martyrdom in odium fidei (in hatred of the faith). The beatification ceremony was celebrated on October 29, 2016, at the Cathedral of Santa María la Real de la Almudena in Madrid. It was presided over, in the name of Pope Francis, by Cardinal Angelo Amato, then Prefect of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints. Their common liturgical feast is set for September 25, the day of the martyrdom of Father José Antón Gómez.

The spirituality of these four martyrs is deeply marked by the Rule of Saint Benedict, which exhorts not to render evil for evil, to bear injuries patiently, and to love one's enemies. During their beatification, Cardinal Angelo Amato emphasized that these monks did not seek martyrdom but accepted it with serenity and forgiveness, remaining faithful to their monastic vocation to the end.

Their legacy remains alive at the priory of Montserrat in Madrid and at the Abbey of Santo Domingo de Silos, where a side chapel houses an altarpiece and a reliquary inaugurated in 2017 in their honor, recalling their testimony of faith and peace in the midst of violence.