In a solemn ceremony in Braniewo, northeastern Poland, 15 nuns from the Congregation of St. Catherine Virgin and Martyr, were beatified — recognized as martyrs who gave their lives during the final, brutal months of World War II.
Newsroom (03/06/2025 08:18, Gaudium Press) In a historic ceremony in Braniewo, northeastern Poland, the Catholic Church elevated 15 nuns from the Congregation of St. Catherine Virgin and Martyr to the ranks of the blessed on May 31. These women, who were martyred in 1945 during the Soviet advance in World War II, were honored not only for their sacrifice but for their extraordinary witness of faith, purity, and forgiveness amid unspeakable violence.
A Choice to Stay and Serve
As Soviet forces swept through Poland in the war’s final months, the sisters refused to abandon those under their care—patients, orphans, and the vulnerable. Instead, they remained, offering spiritual and physical comfort even as terror closed in. According to Sister Lucja Jaworska, postulator of their cause, each sister died at the hands of Soviet soldiers, many while defending their own dignity or shielding others. “They died for their faith, in defense of purity and the people entrusted to them,” she told Vatican News. “They were victims of hatred against Christianity and the Catholic Church.”
Pope Leo XIV, speaking after the Regina Caeli prayer on June 1, praised their unwavering fidelity: “Despite a climate of hatred and terror against the Catholic faith, they persevered in serving the sick and orphans.” He urged the faithful to seek their intercession, particularly for women religious worldwide who continue to serve sacrificially.
A Martyrdom of Love, Not Bitterness
Cardinal Marcello Semeraro, prefect of the Dicastery for the Causes of Saints and the pope’s envoy for the beatification, emphasized that the sisters’ legacy transcends historical remembrance. “We do not recall their stories to seek revenge,” he said in his homily. “Rather, we seek to receive what is most precious from them: forgiveness, mercy, and love for every human being.”
Their martyrdom, he noted, speaks directly to today’s divided world—a world still marred by war, ideological hostility, and the erosion of human dignity. “They urge us to forgive—to remove from ourselves the sadness of harboring resentment,” the cardinal said. “They call us to conversion: choosing peace, fraternity, and respect for others’ freedom.”
A Light in the Darkness of War
The end of World War II was particularly devastating for the St. Catherine sisters. Of the 105 sisters and one postulant killed during the Soviet occupation, these 15 represent the most harrowing cases of martyrdom. Sister Angela Krupinska, a member of the congregation, reflected on their courage in an interview with Gość Niedzielny, Poland’s leading Catholic weekly. “They suffered terrible torments—rape, beatings—out of hatred for the habit,” she said. “And yet, they did not stop loving. They did not pass on the evil they endured.”
Their beatification, she added, is not merely a tribute to the past but a challenge to the present. “In a world of chaos and despair, they stopped hatred. They trusted God to the end, and they all forgave.”
As the 80th anniversary of World War II’s end approaches, Cardinal Semeraro framed their witness as a call to hope: “Let this beatification become a summons to peace for the whole world.” In an era of renewed conflict—including the war in Ukraine—the martyred sisters of Braniewo stand as a testament to the power of faith that conquers fear, and love that refuses to surrender to hatred.
- Raju Hasmukh with files from OSV
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