Summary
On October 31, Pope Leo will beatify five Spanish Franciscan friars known as the “Georgia Martyrs” in Savannah, Georgia. The martyrs were named Father Pedro de Corpa, Father Blas Rodríguez, Brother Miguel de Ànon, Brother Antonio de Badajoz, and Father Francisco de Váscola by Pope Francis after recognizing them as such on January 25, 2025. In September 1597, the friars were killed for their stance in defending marriage at a mission in present-day Georgia. The incident occurred two decades before the Pilgrims landed at Plymouth Rock. At that time, the Franciscan missionaries lived among the Indigenous Gaule people, where they preached and provided sacraments. A young Guale man named Juanillo sought to have multiple wives contrary to Christian teachings and the custom of his people. Father de Corpa refused to allow it, leading Juanillo to kill him with a stone hatchet on September 14, 1597. The friars’ martyrdom story has been recounted by Luís Gerónimo de Oré in “The Martyrs of Florida” (c. 1619). While the original manuscript was not recovered, its account along with two other primary sources serve as key information on their lives and deaths.
Key Topics
Papal beatification, Georgia, Marriage sanctity
