The Photograph above depicts my Great, Great Uncle, Beatified Jose Maria Reig Ortiz, martyred for his Faith during the Spanish Civil War in 1936.

“Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. … Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven” Matthew 5:10-12

Why Holy Martyr’s Press?

Several years ago now, I learned that one of my great, great uncles on my mother’s side, a Catholic priest, Jose Maria Reig Ortiz, was martyred during the Spanish Civil War in 1936. His cause for canonization, along with many other Spanish Civil War Martyrs is currently in process. While I have always known about the early Church Martyrs including 10 of the original 12 apostles (excluding Saint John the Evangelist who died a natural death on the island of Patmos and Judas who died by his own hand), and many of the early Christians, I did not realize that the persecution of the Church had grown, not diminished, since the early days of Christianity. Having been blessed to live in a country where religious freedom is a right under the constitution, I had been sheltered from the realities of the sacrifices that many Catholic Christians and Christian brethren face throughout the world. In the years since learning of my own family’s story of martyrdom, I have come to realize that Christians, especially Catholic Christians, represent the most persecuted religious group in the world resulting in the continuous growth of the army of Holy Martyrs.

Who is a Martyr?

According to the Catechism of the Catholic Church:

Martyrdom is the supreme witness given to the truth of the Faith: it means bearing witness even unto death. The martyr bears witness to Christ who died and rose, to whom he is united by charity. He bears witness to the truth of the Faith and of Christian doctrine. He endures death through an act of fortitude. “Let me become the food of the beasts, through whom it will be given me to reach God.” (CCC 2473)

Martyrs are ordinary people living out their final days with extraordinary faith and devotion to our Lord, Jesus Christ. Martyrs include people from all walks of life and all ages. In more recent history such martyrs have included those from China, those in parts of India, in many South American Countries throughout the 19^th and early 20^th century, and those in several countries of Africa, most recently in Nigeria. But martyrdom is not unique to any particular epoch or country, and has occurred throughout the history of the Church to some extent in all cultures at different times. In the early Church, witness to the faith was profound, but such witness to faith has continued throughout the Church’s history.

Why the Martyrs?

The martyrs paid the ultimate price for their love of our Lord Jesus Christ, and in so doing, they serve as the ultimate witness of true love for Christ, His Teachings, and His Church. As Jesus himself stated, “No one has greater love than this, to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.” (John 15:13) As such, it is important to remember their sacrifice, and pray that we are not called to offer such sacrifice; but that even if we are not called to offer the ultimate sacrifice of our own lives, we can live with that same love and service for our Lord and Savior as the martyrs who offered their very life for their love.

As the body of Christ, the Church Militant, those of us who continue to struggle against the temptations of the devil in this life, are persecuted not just for our Faith but precisely because we belong to Christ. We are a part of His body. As Bishop Barron so eloquently records in his book, “What do Their Deaths Demand?” which I plan to review in an upcoming Blog Post:

              “To understand this principle in its full radicality, we have to consult once more Saul’s strange conversation with the risen Lord. In identifying Himself, He says, “I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting” (Acts 9:4-5), implying that the tiny Christian community in Damascus that Saul was intending to attack was, in some sense, identical [emphasis by Bishop Robert Barron] to Jesus. It was not simply a collectivity of like-minded people, all dedicated to preserving the memory of the Messiah; it was, instead, his body, his flesh and blood, his eyes and hands. And Saul/Paul came to understand, through the power of the Holy Spirit, that Jesus was actively living his life in the members of his mystical body.” (Barron, 2026, p. 37)

As members of Christ’s body, we will continue to be persecuted as He was persecuted, not only because we believe, but because we are part of His body – His Church. In this sense, even if we are not asked to pay the ultimate price, we are all asked to sacrifice and endure our daily sufferings as members of Christ’s body in union with Him on the Cross at Calvary.

It is also important to recognize that the martyr’s remind us that God calls us to give up all our attachments to earthly goods, and while that does not mean that we must all live like hermits in the desert, or that we cannot own personal property or belongings, a false belief of some, it does mean that we have to be willing to “give it all up,” if called to do so, in order to attain eternal life with our Creator in Heaven; for it is our spiritual life that will endure, not our earthly one, no matter how hard we try to prolong it. Martyrdom, by its very nature, is the ultimate demonstration of a sincere detachment from all earthly possessions.

What is the mission of Holy Martyr’s Press?

The mission of Holy Martyr’s Press is to promote a deeper understanding and appreciation for individuals who have made the ultimate sacrifice for our Lord Jesus Christ, that of martyrdom, through brief blog posts, reviews of books and media content that discuss Catholic and Orthodox Martyrs, and production/distribution of unique publications that profess the faith by elucidating the lives of specific Martyrs who endured tremendous trials to attain their ultimate reward – a place at the table with our Lord Jesus Christ.

The martyrs provide an example of the greatest charity for those who follow Christ for they paid the ultimate price for their witness; through that sacrifice, they bear witness to the power of true love to overcome immense hardships. To this end, I will endeavor to write a book review on a manuscript that discusses the topic of martyrdom, specific Church martyrs, or on the theology of martyrdom; or post a blog about a specific Catholic Martyr or the topic of martyrdom at least one time per month. I will also be publishing my first book in the fourth quarter of 2026 honoring the life of a martyr with special meaning for me in my own vocation as a physician specializing in addiction medicine – a martyr from the last century who was canonized by Pope Saint John Paul II in the year 2000. More to come on this project soon.

I pray that this site will inspire Faith, Hope, and Charity in those who choose to visit the site and read the incredible stories of the Holy Martyrs.

May God Bless You This Day and Every Day!

References:

Barron, Robert. What Do Their Death’s Demand? Christian persecution today. 2026. Word on Fire Catholic Ministry. ISBN: 978-1-68578-375-4. Page 37.

Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC), Second Edition. 1994 (English Translation). Translated from the original Latin published by Libreria Editrice Vaticana by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB). Paragraph 2473. Accessed online at: https://usccb.cld.bz/Catechism-of-the-Catholic-Church2 on 6/25/2026.