José María of Manila ( : 5 September 1880 – 17 August 1936) was a

Criollo Criollo or criolla (Spanish for creole) may refer to: People * Criollo people, a social class in the Spanish colonial system. Animals * Criollo duck, a species of duck native to Central and South America. * Criollo cattle, a group of cattle bre ...

Catholic priest The priesthood is the office of the ministers of religion, who have been commissioned ("ordained") with the holy orders of the Catholic Church. Technically, bishops are a priestly order as well; however, in common English usage ''priest'' refe ...

and

friar A friar is a member of one of the mendicant orders in the Catholic Church. There are also friars outside of the Catholic Church, such as within the Anglican Communion. The term, first used in the 12th or 13th century, distinguishes the mendi ...

of the

Order of Friars Minor Capuchin The Order of Friars Minor Capuchin (; postnominal abbr. OFMCap) is a religious order of Franciscan friars within the Catholic Church, one of three " First Orders" that reformed from the Franciscan Friars Minor Observant (OFMObs, now OFM), the ...

. He was martyred in the early phase of the

Spanish Civil War The Spanish Civil War () was a military conflict fought from 1936 to 1939 between the Republican faction (Spanish Civil War), Republicans and the Nationalist faction (Spanish Civil War), Nationalists. Republicans were loyal to the Left-wing p ...

, and is the third Filipino to have been declared blessed by the

Roman Catholic Church The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

Biography

José María was born in

Manila Manila, officially the City of Manila, is the Capital of the Philippines, capital and second-most populous city of the Philippines after Quezon City, with a population of 1,846,513 people in 2020. Located on the eastern shore of Manila Bay on ...

, Philippines on 5 September 1880 to Spanish parents Don Eugenio del Saz-Orozco de la Oz, the last Spanish

Mayor of Manila The City Mayor of Manila (, sometimes referred to as, ''Alkalde ng Maynila'') is the head of the executive branch of Manila's city government. The mayor holds office at Manila City Hall. Like all local government heads in the Philippines, the m ...

, and Doña Felisa Mortera y Camacho. His early education took place at Ateneo de Manila University,

Colegio de San Juan de Letran The Colegio de San Juan de Letran (), also referred to by its acronym CSJL, is a private Catholic coeducational basic and higher education institution owned and run by the friars of the Order of Preachers in Intramuros, Manila, Philippines. I ...

, and

University of Santo Tomas The University of Santo Tomas (UST; ), officially the Pontifical and Royal University of Santo Tomas, The Catholic University of the Philippines or colloquially as ''Ustê'' (), is a Private university, private Catholic school, Catholic researc ...

. He left the Philippines when he was 16 years old to study in

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

. His father wanted him to become a lawyer. Having obtained his degree, after practicing law only a few months, he decided he wanted to be a priest. He was ordained on 30 November 1910. Circumstances, however, prevented him from following his plan to return to the land of his birth."Pinoy priest Jose Maria to be beatified in Spain in October", GMA News, July 19, 2013
/ref> Desiring to return home to the Philippines to serve the local Philippine Church despite the fall of the

Spanish East Indies The Spanish East Indies were the colonies of the Spanish Empire in Asia-Pacific, Asia and Oceania from 1565 to 1901, governed through the Captaincy General of the Philippines, captaincy general in Manila for the Monarchy of Spain, Spanish Crown, i ...

government in 1898 because of the

Philippine Revolution The Philippine Revolution ( or ; or ) was a war of independence waged by the revolutionary organization Katipunan against the Spanish Empire from 1896 to 1898. It was the culmination of the 333-year History of the Philippines (1565–1898), ...

. Circumstances prevented him from returning, and so he resolved to zealously proclaim the Gospel in Spain, which was still suffering from poverty brought about by

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

. Anti-clericalism escalated in Spain. A military coup in July 1936 precipitated the Spanish Civil War and the ''Terror Rojo'' that continued until the end of the conflict. On 17 August 1936, José María was executed by a leftist faction at the gardens of the Cuartel de la Montaña, a military building in Madrid.

Beatification

2665Santo Cristo Saint Andrew Kim Taegon Parish Church 06

On 27 March 2013,

Pope Francis Pope Francis (born Jorge Mario Bergoglio; 17 December 1936 – 21 April 2025) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 13 March 2013 until Death and funeral of Pope Francis, his death in 2025. He was the fi ...

approved the findings of the

Congregation for the Causes of Saints In the Catholic Church, the Dicastery for the Causes of Saints, previously named the Congregation for the Causes of Saints (), is the dicastery of the Roman Curia that oversees the complex process that leads to the canonization of saints, passi ...

that José María and 521 other companions were killed because of their Roman Catholic faith, clearing the way for their beatification. They were beatified on 13 October 2013 in Tarragona, Spain.Arcalas, Jasper and Opiniano, Jeremaiah. "Spanish priest whom Francis declared blessed still 'Filipino'", ''The Philippine Star'', January 15, 2015
/ref>

References

External links

Martyrs of the Religious Persecution During the Spanish Civil War
at Hagiography Circle {{DEFAULTSORT:Sanz-Orozco Mortera, Eugenio 1880 births 1936 deaths Capuchins 20th-century Filipino Roman Catholic priests Martyrs of the Spanish Civil War Filipino beatified people People from Intramuros Spanish people of Filipino descent University of Santo Tomas alumni Ateneo de Manila University alumni Colegio de San Juan de Letran alumni Executed Roman Catholic priests Filipino people executed abroad

Biography

Beatification

See also

References

External links