Pope Francis on Sunday beatified the seven martyred Greek-Catholic bishops, during the Holy Mass held on the Liberty Field in Blaj, in the presence of one hundred thousands faithful.
Cardinal Lucian Muresan, Major Archbishop of the Greek-Catholic Church, was the one who read the request by which Pope Francis was asked to proclaim the seven martyred bishops as Saints, "for they chose to die instead of denying their Catholic faith."
The Holy Father agreed with the beatification and proclaimed the martyred bishops as Saints to be celebrated on June 2.
Then, they unveiled the martyrs' icon, which was blessed.
Cardinal Lucian Muresan thanked Pope Francis for his presence among the faithful and for presiding over the Holy Mass with the beatification of the seven martyred bishops.
"Here, in Blaj, is where the heart of our Church beats, in the middle of the small herd at the periphery of existence as compared with the greatest of this world. Here, our Church, through prayers and actions, embraces the marginalized, the poor, while expressing its innate vocation for solidarity," said the Cardinal.
"Do bless us, our Holy Father, bless our Church, bless the ill ones, the imprisoned ones, the elderly, the families facing a hard time, the many faithful who live in the Diaspora," said the Cardinal.
Relatives of the seven martyred bishops who were beatified on Sunday by Pope Francis on the Liberty Field were also present at the ceremony.
The procedure of recognition of the martyrdom of the seven bishops lasted for a quarter of a century. Four of the bishops died in the Sighet and Gherla prisons, Valeriu Traian Frentiu, Ioan Suciu, Tit Liviu Chinezu and Alexandru Rusu. Their toms remain unknown, as they couldn't be identified to this day. After they survived the Sighet prison, Vasile Aftenie, Ioan Balan and Iuliu Hossu were buried in the Bellu Cemetery in Bucharest, under the supervision of the Securitate.
According to the tradition, Pope Francis was offered a reliquary with relics and also objects that belonged to the seven Greek-Catholic bishops.
AGERPRES
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