Martín Lumbreras y Peralta, also known as Martín de San Nicolás (1591 – 25 August 1624), was a

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

missionary A missionary is a member of a Religious denomination, religious group which is sent into an area in order to promote its faith or provide services to people, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care, and economic development.Tho ...

from Spain. He was beatified in April 1989 by

Pope John Paul II Pope John Paul II ( la, Ioannes Paulus II; it, Giovanni Paolo II; pl, Jan Paweł II; born Karol Józef Wojtyła ; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was the head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 1978 until his ...

."Martirologio: December", Roman Curia Pontifical Academies
/ref>

Early life

Martín Lumbreras y Peralta was born in

Zaragoza Zaragoza, also known in English as Saragossa,''Encyclopædia Britannica'"Zaragoza (conventional Saragossa)" is the capital city of the Zaragoza Province and of the autonomous community of Aragon, Spain. It lies by the Ebro river and its tributari ...

, Spain, to a noble family, on 8 November 1598. He was baptized on 10 November 1598 in Pilar. He took the habit of an

Augustinian Recollect The Order of Augustinian Recollects (OAR) is a mendicant Catholic religious order of friars and nuns. It is a reformist offshoot from the Augustinian hermit friars and follows the same Rule of St. Augustine. History The Order was founded in 16t ...

in Borja, taking vows in Zaragoza in 1619. His name in religion was Juan de San Nicolás.

Missionary

In July 1622, Peralta set sail from

Cádiz Cádiz (, , ) is a city and port in southwestern Spain. It is the capital of the Province of Cádiz, one of eight that make up the autonomous community of Andalusia. Cádiz, one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in Western Europe, ...

to the

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

, where he arrived in 1623. As a result of the persecution and the withdrawal of missionaries in Japan, his superiors assigned him to

Manila Manila ( , ; fil, Maynila, ), officially the City of Manila ( fil, Lungsod ng Maynila, ), is the capital of the Philippines, and its second-most populous city. It is highly urbanized and, as of 2019, was the world's most densely populate ...

, to serve as sacristan major and then as novice master.Martinez-Cuesta, Angel " Beati Martino Lumbreras Peralta e Melchiorre Sanchez Perez: Sacerdoti agostiniani, martiri", 2008
/ref> During his years in the Philippines, he greatly promoted the devotion of the Virgin of Pilar, to which he dedicated a picture and an altar in the Iglesia de San Nicolás de Tolentino de los Agustinos. Peralta still had a strong desire to evangelize Japan. In a letter, dated 4 August 1631, he announced his desire for this apostolate to the vicar general, and exactly one year later, on 4 August 1632, he departed from Manila for Japan, in the company of Melchior de San Augustin, who would be his constant companion until his martyrdom. Both arrived in Nagasaki eight days later. Hostility had arisen between the Chinese traders, who gave them passage to Japan. One of these traders denounced their entry into Japan to the authorities in Nagasaki. Upon finding out of this betrayal, Peralta and Melchior, fled into the mountains, where they befriended Dominican priest Domenico Equicia. They were instructed in the Japanese language. Their anxiety soon pushed them down in a city where, discovered and recognized by government agents, they were arrested on 3 November 1632. Met with resistance, the government tried to make them renounce Christianity.

Martyrdom

On 11 December 1632, these Augustinian priests were led to the site of their execution, through the method of Hi-aburi (punishment by burning at the stake). Melchior died four hours after the start of execution, while Peralta, to the amazement of the spectators, held out for eighteen hours. The cause for Melchior's and Peralta's beatification was formally opened on 14 March 1928, granting them both the title of

Servant of God "Servant of God" is a title used in the Catholic Church to indicate that an individual is on the first step toward possible canonization as a saint. Terminology The expression "servant of God" appears nine times in the Bible, the first five in th ...

. Their spiritual writings were approved by theologians on 1 February 1933. Peralta and Melchior were declared

Venerable The Venerable (''venerabilis'' in Latin) is a style, a title, or an epithet which is used in some Western Christian churches, or it is a translation of similar terms for clerics in Eastern Orthodoxy and monastics in Buddhism. Christianity Cathol ...

on 28 November 1988, and beatified on 23 April 1989 by Pope John Paul IIMartyrs of Japan (1597–1637)
at Hagiography Circle and their feast day is celebrated on 11 December.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lumbreras 1598 births 1632 deaths Roman Catholic missionaries in Japan Spanish people in the colonial Philippines Spanish beatified people Augustinian Recollects Spanish expatriates in Japan Martyred Roman Catholic priests Spanish Roman Catholic priests 17th-century executions by Japan Spanish Roman Catholic missionaries Spanish people executed abroad 17th-century Spanish people 17th-century Roman Catholic martyrs 17th-century venerated Christians People executed by Japan by burning Roman Catholic missionaries in the Philippines