Felipe de Jesús Munárriz and 50 companions

The work of the Claretian community of Barbastro was above all a work of priestly and missionary formation. In July 1936, as Spain descended into civil war, tension rose in Barbastro. On July 20, 1936, anarchist revolutionary militiamen stormed the Claretian seminary under the fallacious pretext of searching for weapons. Although no weapons were found, the entire community was arrested. The militiamen immediately separated the superiors from the rest of the group. Father Felipe de Jesús Munárriz (superior), Father Juan Díaz Nosti (prefect of the seminarians), and Father Leoncio Pérez Ramos (bursar) were taken to the municipal prison. The elderly or sick religious were transferred to the local hospital or hospice. The 39 seminarians and the other brothers were locked up in the auditorium of the Piarist Fathers' college (Escolapios). During their captivity in this auditorium, the young seminarians lived a true Way of the Cross. Despite the stifling summer heat, the lack of water, and constant humiliations (notably the introduction of prostitutes to try to make them break their vows), they maintained an intense life of prayer. They recited the Divine Office, the Rosary, and clandestinely received Communion during the first few days. The militiamen repeatedly offered them freedom in exchange for abandoning their faith and their religious habit, but all categorically refused. Two seminarians of Argentine nationality, Atilio-Cecilio Parussini Sof and Pablo Hall Fritz, were finally released on August 12, 1936, due to their status as foreigners. It was they who, having reached Rome, transmitted the heroic testimony of their companions and saved the famous 'Farewell Letter to the Congregation' (the Testament of the Martyrs of Barbastro), written by Faustino Pérez and signed by the seminarians.

The martyrdom of the community was accomplished in several waves of executions between August 2 and August 18, 1936. The first to shed their blood were the three superiors: Father Felipe de Jesús Munárriz, Father Juan Díaz Nosti, and Father Leoncio Pérez Ramos. Without any trial, they were shot at dawn on August 2, 1936, at the gates of the Barbastro cemetery. The other members of the community were executed in successive groups: on August 12, 1936, a group of 6 religious was shot; on August 13, 1936, 20 seminarians and brothers were executed; on August 15, 1936, another group of 20 religious was led to martyrdom; on August 18, 1936, the last two seminarians, who had remained at the hospital, were shot in their turn. In total, 51 Claretian missionaries (9 priests, 37 seminarians, and 5 coadjutor brothers) died as martyrs, explicitly forgiving their executioners and proclaiming their faith. They died shouting: "Long live Christ the King!" and "Long live the Heart of Mary!"

The cause for the beatification of Felipe de Jesús Munárriz and his 50 companions was introduced after the Civil War, relying notably on the eyewitness accounts of the two Argentine survivors. The decree recognizing their martyrdom in odium fidei (in hatred of the faith) was promulgated by the Holy See on March 7, 1992. They were solemnly beatified by Pope John Paul II on October 25, 1992, in Saint Peter's Square in Rome. During the ceremony, the Sovereign Pontiff hailed this exceptional group by calling it a "martyr-seminary," emphasizing the communal and ecclesial dimension of their heroic testimony. Their relics are piously preserved and venerated in the Martyrs' Mausoleum, located in the Heart of Mary church at the Claretian house in Barbastro.

The spirituality of the martyrs of Barbastro is deeply rooted in the charism of Saint Anthony Mary Claret, founder of the congregation. It is characterized by a filial love for the Immaculate Heart of Mary, an intense Eucharistic devotion, and absolute fidelity to the missionary vocation. Their most striking legacy lies in their attitude of heroic forgiveness and non-violence. In their farewell letter, written on chocolate wrappers, they wrote: "We all die happy, without anyone faltering or regretting; we all die praying to God that the blood that will flow from our wounds may not be vengeful blood, but blood that, entering red and alive into your veins, stimulates your development and your expansion throughout the whole world." Their liturgical memory is set for August 13. Furthermore, since 2019, the Congregation of Claretian Missionaries has jointly celebrated the memory of all its martyrs on February 1. Their martyrdom inspired the Spanish historical film Un Dios prohibido (A Forbidden God), released in 2013, which faithfully retraces their final weeks of captivity.