Photo by Julianna Leopold

SAVANNAH—The doors had barely opened at 8 a.m. when attendees rushed inside to claim seats near the altar in the Savannah Convention Center.

Couples sat holding hands. Young adults gathered with friends, and families settled in with children. Clergy, religious communities and pilgrims joined the growing crowd, many having traveled from across the country and globe to witness a moment more than four centuries in the making.

Nearly 10,000 people gathered on Oct. 31 to witness the Beatification Mass of the Georgia Martyrs, the five Franciscan friars killed along the state’s coast for defending the Church’s teaching on marriage.

The liturgy, celebrated by Cardinal Frank Leo of Toronto, was the culmination of a weekend filled with prayer and pilgrimage. In the days leading up to the beatification, bishops, priests Franciscans and pilgrims visited historic mission sites where the friars served and died.

During his homily, Cardinal Leo called the friars “bright lights for our journey of faith.” They do not shine with their own power, noted the cardinal, “but reflect the light of Christ into the challenges and complexities of a wounded world.”

Christopher Larkins, a seminarian of the Archdiocese of Atlanta, carries the processional crucifix with palm leaves behind it as he leads seminarians, priests and bishops during the Mass for the Beatification of the Georgia Martyrs on Oct. 31. Photo by Julianna Leopold

Pedro de Corpa, Blas Rodríguez, Miguel de Añón, Antonio de Badajoz and Francisco de Veráscola were Spanish Franciscans who established missions along the islands of Georgia in 1595. They evangelized the Guale people, prompting conversions and providing support for the village.

In 1597, Father de Corpa denied the heir to Guale chiefdom, Juanillo, to take a second wife. As a baptized Christian, Juanillo was expected to practice monogamy. The denial of polygamy resulted in Father de Corpa’s death. The other four friars were killed within days of one another. The event is known as the 1597 Guale Uprising. Francisco de Ávila, a sixth friar, was kidnapped and tortured for months, and survived.

Retracing the steps of the friars

The weekend’s events began Oct. 29 when a group of bishops, priests, Franciscans and pilgrims traveled by ferry boat to St. Catherines Island. The island holds the ruins of Mission Santa Catalina de Guale, the site where Blessed de Badajoz and Blessed de Añón served and were killed.

Archaeologist David Hurst Thomas, senior curator in residence for North American Archaeology at the American Museum of Natural History, led its discovery in the 1980s.

Today, palm trees mark the foundation of the original church. The trees outline the space where hundreds of Guale Catholics were buried. It was there that Bishop Stephen D. Parkes of Savannah led Mass for the visiting group.

On Oct. 30, the group traveled to Fort King George in Darien, a state historic park believed to have been the location of the Spanish mission Santo Domingo de Talaje. Spanish moss drapes the trees throughout the park. Visitors can take in the coastal Georgia landscape the Franciscan missionaries would have known during their time in the region

Park rangers guided the visitors by sharing the history of the Guale people and their way of life. The pilgrims explored a replica of a Guale roundhouse, and inside the museum, viewed artifacts recovered by excavations, including rosary beads.

Blessed Veráscola is believed to have served at the mission, as well as may have died there after arriving by canoe from St. Augustine, Florida.

Among those visiting was María Isabel Inoriza De Villota, a 12th-generation descendant of one of Blessed Verascola’s brothers. She traveled from Spain with her 16-year-old son, Imanol, to take part in the beatification weekend and see a place connected to her family’s history.

Being in the location was surreal, she said, because “he impacted the lives of those in the village, and put so much faith into this place.”

The exact locations of all the friars’ ministry and martyrdom have not been identified, and the search for more information continues. A skull recovered at Fort King George is being tested to determine whether it may have belonged to one of the friars.

After visiting the park, the pilgrims traveled to the nearby Nativity of Our Lady Church, where Mass was celebrated. Outside the church, bishops, priests and friars gathered to pray and sing before a monument of the Georgia Martyrs.

That evening, the Cathedral Basilica of St. John the Baptist celebrated Solemn Vespers on the eve of the beatification. Voices of the choir echoed throughout the cathedral basilica as participants listened and prayed intently.

A banner of Fray Francisco hangs in the Savannah Conference Center above dozens of bishops as they process in for the Beatification Mass of the Georgia Martyrs on Oct. 31. Photo by Julianna Leopold

A historic moment in the Church

The Savannah Convention Center, decorated with blue waves illuminated on its walls and palm trees surrounding the altar, became a booming gathering place for Catholics on Oct. 31.

Beyond the altar, attendees could explore two exhibits that offered a closer look at the lives and legacy of the five friars.

An art exhibit displayed works submitted by artists of the Diocese of Savannah art contest for the official beatification image, showcasing different artistic interpretations of the martyrs. Another display featured replicas of the friars’ religious habits and information about each man, giving visitors an opportunity to learn more about their individual lives, personalities and missionary work.

A procession of priests, bishops, religious orders and communities began the celebration. As a symbol of martyrdom, palm branches covered the processional cross.

Caitlyn Yap, a parishioner of St. Catherine of Siena Church in Kennesaw, shared that seeing the many religious members process added to the impact of the event.

“It was a magnificent experience,” she said. “It made me realize, ‘wow this really is a once in a lifetime experience.'”

Among the concelebrating bishops were Archbishop Gabriele Caccia, apostolic nuncio to the United States; Bishop Parkes; Archbishop Gregory J. Hartmayer, OFM Conv., of Atlanta; Archbishop José Rodríguez Carballo of Mérida and Badajoz, Spain; and Archbishop Joan-Enric Vives i Sicília of Urgell, Spain, who represented the Spanish bishops’ conference.

Bishop Parkes formally requested the beatification from Cardinal Leo, outlining the history of the cause and the friars’ witness. He noted the significance of the Church’s Jubilee Year, which marks the 800th anniversary of the death of St. Francis of Assisi, founder of the Franciscan order.

Cardinal Leo then read the apostolic letter declaring the five friars blessed because they had “placed the saving truth of the Gospel before their own safety.”

Dr. Paul Thornock, Director of Music at the Cathedral Basilica of St. John the Baptist, conducts the choir at the Mass for the Beatification of the Georgia Martyrs on Oct. 31. Photo by Julianna Leopold

Archbishop Hartmayer, who was Bishop of Savannah from 2011 to 2020, read the English translation of the letter, while Archbishop Vives i Sicília read the Spanish version. The letter established Sept. 22 as the feast day of the Georgia Martyrs.

With the proclamation, the official image of the Blessed men was unveiled. The artwork, titled “The Georgia Martyrs,” was created by artist Jared Matthew Seff. Depicting the men surrounded by golden light, the image prompted applause from the congregation.

In his homily, Cardinal Leo reflected on three dimensions of the friars’ witness. First, their response to the universal call to holiness. Then, their defense of the dignity of the human person and the sanctity of marriage and family and lastly, their commitment to evangelization through apostolic zeal and charity.

“The Georgia Martyrs embraced the call to holiness which led them to further embrace the call to consecrated life, the call to the sacred priesthood, the call to missionary work, the call to evangelize, the call to share and defend the faith, and ultimately the call to give their very life,” he said.

A mother is moved to tears as she holds her baby and kneels after receiving communion at the Mass for the Beatification of the Georgia Martyrs on Oct. 31. Photo by Julianna Leopold

Cardinal Leo also emphasized the significance of the friars’ defense of marriage, connecting their witness to the responsibility of Catholics today to uphold the Church’s teaching on family life and the dignity of each human person.

“Coupled with this truth is the need to underscore clearly and boldly the blessedness and vocation to holy matrimony, and the sacredness of family founded upon the covenantal, sacramental, indissoluble union of one man and one woman,” he said.

The martyrs, he added, offer a reminder of the importance of transmitting those teachings to future generations with fidelity and in a way they can understand. Their example, he said, can help young people recognize that following Christ and serving others are among the greatest treasures of life.

For Yap, that message was heard by the many young adults in the crowd.

“The amount of young people and young families was incredible,” she said. “There’s been an influx of young people coming to church, and the families really encompass the importance of marriage, which the martyrs died protecting.”

At the end of Mass, Bishop Parkes thanked leaders, clergy, religious communities and others who helped advance the cause and prepare the liturgy. He also announced that the eight palm trees used to decorate the convention center would be transplanted at the Georgia Martyrs’ monument outside Nativity of Our Lady Church.

Impact beyond Savannah

A Mass of Thanksgiving ended the celebratory weekend on Nov. 1, the feast of All Saints. All Saints’ Day celebrates saints and martyrs, recognized or not by the Church, who have entered heaven.

In his homily, Bishop Parkes connected saints to stained-glass windows, sharing they are “the people who let God’s light shine through them.”

Bishop Parkes shared he hopes the impact of the beatification expands beyond Savannah, and that Blessed Pedro de Corpa and his four companions support all Catholic marriages and families. He asked marrying couples to consider including in their wedding Mass an intercessory prayer for the martyrs.

For Catholics who gathered in Savannah, the beatification marked years of prayer and historical research, but it also opened a new chapter in the life of the Church in Georgia.