108 Martyrs of World War II

This group of martyrs reflects the full diversity of the Church in Poland, as it brings together people from 18 different dioceses and 22 religious families. The exact distribution of these 108 blessed is as follows: 3 bishops, 52 diocesan priests, 26 religious priests, 3 seminarians, 7 religious brothers (or professed brothers), 8 religious sisters, and 9 laypeople. Among the prominent figures in this group, we can mention: Monsignor Antoni Julian Nowowiejski, Archbishop-Bishop of Płock, tortured and died at the Soldau concentration camp in 1941; Monsignor Władysław Goral, Auxiliary Bishop of Lublin, deported and died at the Sachsenhausen concentration camp; Father Joseph Kowalski, a Salesian priest, arrested in Krakow and martyred at the Auschwitz camp in 1942 for refusing to trample on his rosary; Father Hilary Januszewski, a Discalced Carmelite, who voluntarily moved into the typhus ward at the Dachau camp to provide spiritual assistance to the sick, and who succumbed there in March 1945; Marianna Biernacka, a 55-year-old lay mother who offered herself to be shot by the Nazis in place of her pregnant daughter-in-law, thus saving the life of the mother and the unborn child. These men and women continued their pastoral ministry, their life of prayer, and their works of charity at the risk of their lives, refusing to deny their faith or abandon their communities. Many of them were deported to concentration camps, notably to Dachau, where the Polish clergy were interned en masse.

The reputation of holiness and martyrdom of these 108 victims spread rapidly in Poland as soon as the war ended. The steps toward their beatification were initiated at the diocesan level starting in 1992 (notably on January 26, 1992, under the aegis of Cardinal Józef Glemp). The various diocesan inquiries were subsequently unified. The gathered documentation, totaling more than 96,000 pages, was transmitted to the Congregation for the Causes of Saints at the Vatican in 1994. After an in-depth examination, the theological discussion on the martyrdom concluded positively on November 20, 1998. On March 26, 1999, in the presence of Pope John Paul II, the decree officially recognizing their martyrdom in odium fidei (out of hatred for the faith) was promulgated.

The beatification ceremony took place on June 13, 1999, in Warsaw, at Piłsudski Square, during Pope John Paul II's seventh apostolic journey to his native land. Before a vast crowd estimated at one million people, the Sovereign Pontiff raised the 108 Polish martyrs to the honors of the altars. Their common liturgical memorial was set for June 12. As martyrs, no miracle of healing was required for their beatification. They have not yet been canonized and currently hold the status of blessed.

The spirituality of the 108 martyrs is based on the total offering of self, love of neighbor pushed to the point of heroism, and unfailing fidelity to the Church in the face of totalitarian ideologies. In his beatification homily, Pope John Paul II described them as "unknown soldiers of the great cause of God," emphasizing that their sacrifice is a victory of love over hatred and a source of hope for the Christian people. Their legacy remains alive in Poland and throughout the world. Several parishes bear their name (such as in Powiercie and Malbork), and a chapel is specially dedicated to them at the Shrine of Licheń. They are invoked as models of evangelical courage and spiritual resistance in the face of oppression.