Martyrs of Damascus

Beaitifed by Pope Pius XI in 1926, these 8 Franciscan friars as well as three Maronite laypersons were offered the selection of changing to Islam or sustaining death in Damascus on July 9, 1860. Hundreds of Maronite Religious had already been actually extinguished by Druz in Southern Lebanon in that year as well as the Druz, a spin-off sect of Shiite Islam, had actually switched their interest to Damascus where they extinguished nearly two many thousand more. When they had actually reached the Franciscan convent there, the exceptional, a spaniard called Fr. Emmanuel Ruiz, who had protected the Christians that lived around the convent inside the church, was actually intimidated along with death if he did not change immediately. He refused as well as they trimmed him towards items as well as killed the rest of his society and the 3 Maronites which, rejecting to get away with the various other Christians, preferred to die as opposed to reject their faith.