Saint José Sánchez Del Río - Catholic Saint

Saint José Sánchez Del Río

Saint

Post-Congregation

Feast Day

10-Feb

Born

28 March 1913 in Sahuayo, Michoacán de Ocampo, Mexico

Died

Hacked with machetes, stabbed with bayonets and finally shot on 10 February 1928 in Sahuayo, Michoacán de Ocampo, Mexico; interred in the Church of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, Sahuayo; a bone fragment relic enshrined in the church of the Immaculate Conception, Taft, Texas

Canonized

16 October 2016 by Pope Francis; canonization celebrated at Saint Peter’s Square, Vatican City, Rome, Italy; the canonization miracle involved the healing of a little girl from “pulmonary tuberculosis with secondary bilateral intracerebral infarction localizations, epileptogenic (refractory epilepticus)” through the intercession of Saint José

Beatified

20 November 2005 by Pope Benedict XVI; beatification celebrated in the Jalisco Stadium, Guadalajara, Mexico presided by Cardinal José Saraiva Martins

Venerated

22 June 2004 by Pope John Paul II (decree of martyrdom)

Biography

Saint José Sánchez Del Río, born in the early 20th century in Mexico, is venerated as a martyr of the Cristero War. His early life was marked by deep faith and a profound connection to the Catholic Church. A childhood friend of the future founder of the Legionaries of Christ, Father Marcial Maciel, José’s devotion was further solidified during the tumultuous period when the Mexican government enacted severe anti-religious decrees, threatening the Church’s very existence. At the tender age of thirteen, driven by a fervent desire to defend his faith