Maria Paschalis Jahn and 9 companions

The Congregation of the Sisters of Saint Elizabeth (historically known as the Grey Sisters) was founded on September 27, 1842, in Nysa, Silesia, by four pious women: Blessed Maria Luiza Merkert, Clara Wolff, Mathilde Merkert, and Françoise Werner. Inspired by the example of Saint Elizabeth of Hungary, they dedicated themselves entirely to the home care of the poor sick, the elderly, and the destitute, without distinction of social class or religious confession. During the Second World War, the sisters of the Breslau (Wrocław) province heroically continued their mission of charity. When the Red Army invaded the region at the beginning of 1945, leading to a wave of extreme violence and looting against civilian populations, the superiors left the sisters free to flee. However, the majority of them chose to remain in place so as not to abandon the sick, the orphans, and the elderly who could not be transported. It is in this context of absolute fidelity to their charism of mercy and their vows of chastity that they faced the brutality of the occupying troops.

The reputation of martyrdom of Sister Maria Paschalis Jahn and her companions spread immediately after their death. Their graves, scattered across various locations in Silesia and the Czech Republic, quickly became places of memory and popular devotion. The process for their beatification officially opened on June 28, 2011, with the issuance of the nihil obstat decree by the Congregation for the Causes of Saints. The diocesan inquiry was solemnly opened on November 25, 2011, by the Archbishop of Wrocław, Mgr. Marian Gołębiewski, and concluded on September 26, 2015, under the presidency of Mgr. Józef Kupny. The Positio documenting their lives and the circumstances of their deaths was submitted in Rome in 2019. On June 19, 2021, Pope Francis signed the decree officially recognizing their martyrdom in odium fidei (in hatred of the faith), thus paving the way for their beatification.

The beatification ceremony of Maria Paschalis Jahn and her 9 companions took place on June 11, 2022, in the Cathedral of St. John the Baptist in Wrocław, Poland. The Eucharistic celebration was presided over by Cardinal Marcello Semeraro, Prefect of the Dicastery for the Causes of Saints, acting on behalf of Pope Francis. The following day, June 12, 2022, during the Angelus prayer in Rome, Pope Francis publicly honored the new blesseds with these words: "These ten religious sisters, while aware of the danger they were facing, remained with the elderly and the sick whom they were caring for. May their example of fidelity to Christ help us all, especially Christians persecuted in different parts of the world, to bear witness to the Gospel with courage." Their common liturgical memorial is celebrated each year on May 11, the anniversary of the martyrdom of Blessed Maria Paschalis Jahn.

The sacrifice of the ten Sisters of Saint Elizabeth bears witness to a spirituality of total offering and unreserved charity. By choosing to remain with the weakest amidst the tumult of war, they radically embodied the words of Christ: "Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends" (Jn 15:13). Their resistance in the face of physical violence and their defense of chastity did not stem from a contempt for the world, but from an absolute fidelity to their heavenly Spouse, Christ. Their beatification is also received by the Church as a memorial and a spiritual rehabilitation for all women who are victims of sexual violence and abuse in times of conflict, establishing these ten religious sisters as protectors of female dignity and models of evangelical courage.