Learn about Blessed Mariano de Jesús Euse Hoyos: his life, miracles, charity, and devotion—an inspiring story of sanctity from Colombia. A true miracle worker with a reputation for holiness, essentially, Blessed Mariano was this: a good Parish Priest.
Newsroom, July 15, 2025, Gaudium Press – “A faithful follower of Jesus Christ in the selfless exercise of the priestly ministry, Father Mariano de Jesús Euse Hoyos, a Colombian, who today ascends to the glory of the altars. From his intimate experience of encountering the Lord, Father Marianito, as he is familiarly known in his homeland, tirelessly committed himself to the evangelization of children and adults, especially of the peasants. He spared no sacrifice or hardship, dedicating himself for nearly fifty years in a modest parish in Angostura, Antioquia, to the glory of God and the good of the souls entrusted to him,” were the words pronounced by Saint John Paul II on April 9, 2000, in the homily of the beatification ceremony of five Servants of God, among them Father Marianito.
“If April 9, fifty-two years ago, marked the beginning of violence and conflicts that, unfortunately, still persist, may this day in the year of the Great Jubilee mark the beginning of a stage in which all Colombians build together the new Colombia, founded on peace, social justice, respect for all human rights, and fraternal love among the children of the same homeland,” continued the Polish Pope as he recalled the acts of violence that occurred in Bogotá on April 9, 1948, which marked the history of the South American country.
Who Was Father Marianito?
Blessed Mariano de Jesús Euse Hoyos was born in Yarumal, Colombia, on October 14, 1845. He was the eldest of seven siblings and grew up in a family with deep Christian roots, so much so that he was baptized the day after his birth and confirmed at the age of two.
His parents, Pedro Euse and Rosalía de Hoyos, took responsibility for his education due to their distrust of the public school system, which at the time behaved in a hostile manner toward the Church.
At a very young age, just 16, he expressed his desire to become a priest. His parents then entrusted his formation to his uncle Fermín Hoyos, who was then the parish priest of Girardota. He later accompanied his uncle in his pastoral work in San Pedro, where his uncle served as parish priest and later vicar.
Priestly Formation and Ministry
In 1869, at the age of 24, he entered the Seminary of Medellín, which had recently been inaugurated, where he earnestly prepared for his future priestly ministry. Mariano de Jesús was ordained a priest on July 14, 1872. His first assignment as a shepherd of souls was in San Pedro alongside his uncle Father Fermín. But soon—after his uncle’s death—he was transferred to Yarumal and later to Angostura, where he served as assistant vicar until 1878.
After a brief period in Sabanalarga, where he was parish priest, he returned to Angostura, where he remained as parish priest until his death on July 13, 1926. It was in this Colombian town that Father Marianito gained a reputation for holiness. He completed the construction of the parish church, which had been started by the previous parish priest but could not be finished due to lack of funds and the threats of civil war in the region. He also built the bell tower, the chapels of Our Lady of Mount Carmel and Saint Francis, and the cemetery.
But more than the material works, his spiritual and charitable works were the personal hallmark of the Blessed. He cared deeply for the poor, whom he called “the nobles of Christ,” as well as for the peasants, remembering that he had been one himself until the age of 16, when he left his native land to pursue the priesthood. He frequently visited the elderly and the sick, and he cared for children and young people, guiding them in the ways of good morals. He encouraged religious practices such as Sunday Mass attendance, praying the Holy Rosary as a family, and devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus, a devotion deeply rooted in Colombia.
His Beatification Process
His cause for beatification was introduced on October 10, 1980. His heroic virtues were proclaimed on May 3, 1981, and he was granted the title of Venerable on March 3, 1990. After the approval of a miracle through his intercession on March 26, 1990, his beatification was approved by Pope John Paul II on June 29, 1999. The mortal remains of Blessed Marianito rest in the Church of Our Lady of Mount Carmel in Angostura, now a shrine dedicated to the priest.
His Miracles
Like scenes from legends, his many miracles are still told today in his sanctuary in Angostura. Among them, it is said that Father Marianito made a dry tree trunk blossom so that a sinner would convert—an event immortalized on the commemorative medal of his beatification.
Another miracle, still widely discussed by the residents of Angostura, was the injury that a little girl did not suffer after a fall. According to reports, one day Father Marianito, who was about to begin a series of baptisms, saw from a block away a small girl—three-year-old Gabriela Trujillo Cárdenas—fall from a high balcony. The Blessed raised his hand in blessing from afar, and the girl fell without suffering any injury.
Other miracles, such as the healing of a girl deaf from birth and the removal of a cyst, are also attributed to Father Marianito. (ST)
Sources: santuariomarianito.org and vatican.va.
Compiled by Adele Wong.
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