Amidst the totalitarian hatred of the Second World War, they remained faithful to Christ, to the Church and to their Salesian vocation until the very end. Their lives and their martyrdom demonstrate that faith is not an idea, but a choice which, in times of trial, requires courage and fidelity.
This solemnity is not merely a remembrance of tragic history, but a celebration of the victory of love over evil. It is also a manifestation of the beauty of their Salesian vocation, which was realised in the various places where they served young people. Their martyrdom was not an act of despair, but a conscious acceptance of the Cross as the path of fidelity to God and to humanity; a path of continuing the offering of their lives to Christ and of their consecration, fulfilled at the moment of their profession.
In the concentration camps of Auschwitz and Dachau, their attitude became a sign of hope, bearing witness that even there a person can remain inwardly free and faithful to their conscience. To those who condemned them to death, it seemed they held the power and were winning; but, on the contrary, they revealed that it was precisely those who appeared to be losing who were the true victors.
Here they are:
- Fr Ignacy Antonowicz, SDB – aged 51;
- Fr Ignacy Dobiasz, SDB – aged 61;
- Fr Karol Golda, SDB – aged 27;
- Fr Franciszek Harazim, SDB – aged 56;
- Fr Franciszek Miśka, SDB – aged 43;
- Fr Ludwik Mroczek, SDB – aged 36;
- Fr Włodzimierz Szembek, SDB – aged 59;
- Fr Jan Świerc, SDB – aged 64;
- Fr Kazimierz Wojciechowski, SDB – aged 37.
Their biographies will be presented in detail on ANS in the coming days. And as early as next Friday, 8 May 2026, we will write about the links between Karol Wojtyła, the future Pope John Paul II, and the Servants of God and future Salesian martyr Blesseds.
