Blessed Miguel Pro: Jesuit Martyr for Christ the King

On November 23, the Church celebrated the feast day of Blessed Miguel Pro, a Jesuit priest who was martyred on that day in 1927. He was beatified in 1988 by Pope Saint John Paul II, who said of the man that “neither suffering nor serious illness, nor the exhausting ministerial activity, frequently carried out in difficult and dangerous circumstances, could stifle the radiating and contagious joy which he brought to his life for Christ and which nothing could take away. Indeed, the deepest root of self-sacrificing surrender for the lowly was his passionate love for Jesus Christ and his ardent desire to be conformed to him, even unto death.”

Pro was born on January 13, 1891, in Guadalupe, Mexico, and was known to be a pious and joyful child. Inspired by his sister, who dedicated her life to Christ by joining a cloistered convent, he joined the Jesuits in 1911, and in 1914, due to rising persecution against Catholics in Mexico, fled to Spain, where he continued his studies. He was ordained a priest in Belgium in 1925.

In 1917, the Mexican government passed a constitution that openly discriminated against Catholicism in the country. Priests were prohibited from wearing clericals outside of churches, land owned by the Church was seized, and priests were no longer permitted to vote. A year after Miguel Pro was ordained a priest, practicing the faith was completely banned in Mexico; celebrating the Mass, for example, was punished with execution or imprisonment. Nevertheless, Pro returned to his home country and celebrated the sacraments undercover, using various disguises to avoid being caught by the authorities. According to the Catholic News Agency, he would even disguise himself as a policeman to minister to Catholic prisoners held in police headquarters before their executions.

Pro was arrested in 1927 after the government falsely accused him of taking part in a failed assassination attempt on the president, Plutarco Elias Calles. He was condemned to death by firing squad, and his execution was well-photographed in an attempt to deter Catholics from trying to resist the government’s anticatholic policies. Before he was shot, Pro, holding a rosary and a crucifix, raised his arms to emulate Christ on the cross, forgave his executors, and shouted “Viva Cristo Rey!” which means “Long live Christ the King!”

It is fitting, then, that Bl. Miguel Pro’s feast day always falls within three days of the feast of Christ the King, which was instituted by Pope Pius XI in 1925, two years before Pro was executed. This year, the Feast of Christ the King occurs on Sunday, November 24th, the day after Pro’s feast day.

Bl. Miguel Pro’s story reminds us to be thankful for the many opportunities we have to attend Mass and receive the sacraments freely, and to pray for those living in cultures hostile to their faith. His example inspires Catholics to rely on God’s grace in the face of persecution and to use their talents for His greater glory even in difficult times.