Bl. Maria Guadalupe Ricart Olmos, OSM - Virgin and Martyr (Oct. 3rd)

Of the various saints and commemorations to choose from:

Sept 29th - The Holy Archangels of Gabriel, Michael and Raphael

Sept 30th - St. Jerome, Priest and Doctor of the Church

Oct 1st - St. Thérèse of the Child Jesus, Virgin and Doctor of the Church

Oct 2nd - The Holy Guardian Angels

Oct 3rd - Blessed Maria Guadalupe Ricart Olmos, OSM, virgin and martyr

Oct 4th - St. Francis of Assisi

Oct 5th - TWENTY SEVENTH SUNDAY OF ORDINARY TIME - Year C

Oct 5th - St. Faustina Kowalska, Virgin


this week, I chose to write about Bl. Maria Guadalupe Ricart Olmos, OSM.


María Francisca Ricart Olmos was born in 1881 in the town of Albal a few kilometers outside of Valencia, Spain.  Her father Francisco Ricart died when she was four.  Her mother María Olmos, devout and left with four children, including María Francisca was regarded in the village to be living saint.


From the time of her first communion at 8 years of age, María Francisca expressed interest in joining the Convent.  She came to know the sisters at the Servite Convent in Valencia quite well and at 19 took her solemn vows, taking the name Maria Guadalupe.  


During her time as religious sister she served as novice mistress and at the time of beginning of the Spanish Civil War she was the community’s prioress.


In 1936, due to persecution by the Leftist (Communist) Republican government, the local bishop asked that the sisters in his Diocese give-up the habit, start wearing civilian clothes and leave their convents to live with their families.


As such Sr. Maria Guadalupe, went first back to a niece of hers, but finding that her niece was expecting a child, not wanting to but her family at risk, moved to a sister of hers instead.


On Oct 2, 1936, just after midnight, four militiamen knocked on her sisters’ door demanding that they be let in.  When Sr. Maria Guadalupe identified herself as living with them, they asked if she was a nun.  She answered affirmatively.  They took her then with them and sentenced her to death that night before an impromtu “People’s Tribunal.”   She was then shot to death at 4 AM, even as a number of the militiamen showed themselves squeamish to carry out the sentence.


Buried in a common grave, her remains were exhumed in 1940 and laid beside the main altar of the convent church at Mislata, in Valencia.  Process for her beatification began in 1958, stopped perhaps because of political reasons (Franco was still in power in Spain, and the Church didn’t want to see itself as too aligned with him) but recommenced in 1999 under St. John Paul II.  She was beatified along as part of the 233 Spanish Martyrs who died as Catholic martyrs during the Spanish Civil War.


To me Bl. Maria Guadalupe Ricart Olmos, OSM serves as a concrete reminder of why Generalisimo Franco came to power in Spain.  That the Leftists (Communists) of that time would arrest and shoot-up nuns (!), was simply shocking to the populace of the time.  Similar atrocities committed by Leftists in both Soviet Russia and even in Mexico were well known across the world and produced a world-wide reaction.  It is doubtful that someone like Franco would have ever existed much less taken power if not for such shocking actions of the Revolutionaries of the time.


Today, of course, the would be right-wing dictators try to paint the Left in similar light.  So for the wellbeing of the world, it is ABSOLUTELY ESSENTIAL that any group seeking to defend the rights of the poor / marginalized NOT GIVE EXCUSE to the would be dictators of our time to justify their own abuses of power.


Bl. Maria Guadalupe Ricart Olmos, OSM, in our day, pray for us!

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