Braulio María Corres and 70 companions

The work of this group of martyrs is intimately linked to the charism of the Hospitaller Order of Saint John of God, founded in the 16th century for the care of the sick, the poor, and people suffering from physical or mental disabilities.

In 1936, at the beginning of the Spanish Civil War, the brothers of the Order managed several hospitals, sanatoriums, and apostolic schools throughout the country, notably in Calafell (Tarragona), Talavera de la Reina (Toledo), Ciempozuelos (Madrid), Carabanchel Alto (Madrid), Barcelona, and Sant Boi de Llobregat.

Faced with rising tensions and direct threats of religious persecution, the Superior General of the Order, Brother Narciso Durchschein, had addressed a letter to the communities to exhort them to remain faithful to their mission. He asked them to remain at the bedside of the sick and disabled people in their care, unless forced otherwise by a case of force majeure. The brothers chose to remain at their posts, refusing to abandon their patients despite the imminent danger of death.

The stations of the cross for these religious took place during the first months of the Spanish Civil War, marked by a violent persecution against the Catholic Church.

On July 25, 1936, in Talavera de la Reina, militiamen arrested the four members of the local community, including Father Federico Rubio Álvarez. They were taken outside the city and shot near the sanctuary of the Virgin of the Prado.

In Calafell, Father Braulio María Corres Díaz de Cerio, aware of the danger, spiritually prepared his novices for martyrdom. On July 30, 1936, after distributing communion to them and encouraging them to offer their lives for Christ, he was arrested with 14 of his companions and novices as they were heading toward the train station. They were all shot that same day.

Other executions took place in the following months in the communities of Ciempozuelos, Carabanchel Alto, Barcelona, and Sant Boi de Llobregat. Among the victims were seven young Colombian brothers (Rubén de Jesús López Aguilar, Arturo Ayala Niño, Juan Bautista Velázquez Peláez, Eugenio Ramírez Salazar, Esteban Maya Gutiérrez, Melquíades Ramírez Zuloaga, and Gaspar Páez Perdomo), arrested in Ciempozuelos and shot in Barcelona on August 9, 1936. They thus became the first blessed in the history of Colombia.

In all cases, witnesses report that the martyrs welcomed death with serenity, forgiving their executioners and confessing their faith.

The cause for the beatification of this first group of martyrs of the Hospitaller Order was introduced after the end of the conflict. The decree officially recognizing their martyrdom in hatred of the faith was promulgated by the Congregation for the Causes of Saints on May 14, 1991. On October 25, 1992, Pope John Paul II celebrated the solemn beatification of Braulio María Corres, Federico Rubio, and their 69 companions in Saint Peter's Square in Rome. During his homily, the Holy Father hailed these "witnesses of the crucified and risen Christ" who did not tremble before threats and sealed with their lives the truth they professed. He also paid special tribute to the seven Colombian brothers, the first sons of that nation to be raised to the honors of the altars.

The spirituality of these 71 blessed rests on the perfect synthesis between the martyrdom of faith and the martyrdom of charity. By choosing not to abandon the mentally ill, the disabled children, and the destitute they were caring for, they lived the charism of hospitality up to the supreme gift of their lives.

Their legacy remains alive within the Hospitaller Family of Saint John of God. In 2014, the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments approved the Order's request to unify the liturgical memory of all its martyrs of the Spanish Civil War (the 71 beatified in 1992 and the 24 beatified in 2013) on October 25, the anniversary of the first beatification.

These martyrs still remind the religious and lay collaborators of the Order today of the inestimable value of compassionate service to the most vulnerable and the strength of faith in the face of adversity.