Victoriano Gondra Muruaga

When the Spanish Civil War broke out in 1936, Father Francisco was mobilized as a military chaplain to accompany the Basque soldiers (the gudaris). It was at this time that he began to be called "Aita Patxi." Appointed chaplain of the Rebelión de la Sal battalion, he traveled along the front lines with a portable altar contained in a 27-kilo suitcase, while imposing strict fasts upon himself. Although close to the Catholic Basque nationalists, he deployed his pastoral zeal among all combatants without distinction, including the socialist and communist soldiers of the Rosa Luxemburgo or Amuátegui battalions. He was notably a witness to the bombing of Guernica in April 1937.

In June 1937, during the fall of the Iron Belt of Bilbao, he was taken prisoner by a Carlist priest from the opposing side. Refusing to claim his status as a chaplain or officer to escape forced labor, he shared the fate of ordinary prisoners. He was first interned at the Carmelite convent in Vitoria, then transferred to the San Pedro de Cardeña concentration camp, near Burgos, before being sent to the Madrid front (at Carabanchel, Brunete, and Jarama) to perform forced labor.

It was during this captivity that Aita Patxi performed acts of heroism comparable to those of Saint Maximilian Kolbe: - In July 1937, at San Pedro de Cardeña: An Asturian communist prisoner, Esteban Plágaro, a father, attempted to escape but was recaptured and sentenced to death. Aita Patxi offered to be shot in his place. Although the camp commander seemed to initially accept the exchange and Aita Patxi was placed before the firing squad, smiling at the thought of giving his life, the officer in charge of the execution, moved, ordered him to withdraw. The Asturian prisoner was finally executed the next day, plunging the religious into deep sorrow. - In 1938, at Carabanchel (Madrid): Following the escape of several Republican prisoners, the authorities decided to shoot five hostages chosen by lottery as a reprisal. To prevent this massacre, Aita Patxi voluntarily inserted himself into the line of the condemned and refused to leave until the execution order was revoked. His courageous gesture bore fruit and the execution was canceled.

Released on August 27, 1939, he returned to Deusto (Bilbao). At the request of his superiors and the president of the Basque government in exile, José Antonio Aguirre, he wrote his war memoirs. He devoted the rest of his life to pastoral ministry, distinguishing himself by his absolute dedication to the sick, the elderly, and the excluded in the hospitals of Bilbao, particularly at the Basurto Hospital.

The reputation for holiness of Aita Patxi, already firmly established during his lifetime among prisoners and the faithful, spread rapidly after his death. On September 12, 1989, the Congregation for the Causes of Saints granted the nihil obstat for the opening of his cause for canonization. The diocesan inquiry was officially opened by the Diocese of Bilbao on November 15, 1989, and concluded on June 14, 1990. The validity of this inquiry was recognized by a Roman decree on January 15, 1993.

After the examination of the Positio by the theological consultants and the cardinals of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints, Pope Benedict XVI authorized, on March 15, 2008, the promulgation of the decree recognizing the heroic nature of his virtues. Victoriano Gondra Muruaga was then declared venerable. For his beatification to be pronounced, the official recognition of a miracle attributed to his intercession is required.

The spirituality of Aita Patxi is deeply rooted in the Passionist charism, centered on the contemplation of the Passion of Christ as the supreme expression of God's love. His life bears witness to an intense Eucharistic faith and a constant devotion to the Rosary, which he recited tirelessly. His legacy lies in his example of universal charity and reconciliation in times of war: he was able to transcend ideological and political divisions to become the servant and protector of all, whether they were fervent Catholics or atheist communist militants. He remains a luminous figure of peace and self-giving at the heart of one of the most painful conflicts of the 20th century.