Our Lady of Lourdes

In the year 1858, in the folds of the east-central Pyrenees, Lourdes was a little township with a total population of around four thousand people. An ancient story relates that a Saracen emir named Mirat occupied the fortress overlooking the city in the year 778. [...]
Tags: Spanish Civil War, History, Crossing the Pyrenees, Our Lady

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St Josemaría Escrivá and Nazism

This is a letter from Domingo Diaz-Ambrona, a civil engineer and lawyer, to Bishop Alvaro del Portillo, Prelate of Opus Dei, dated 9 January 1992. It ispublished in Immersed in God. I met the future Saint, Josemaría Escrivá, during the Spanish Civil War. At that time [...]
Tags: Spanish Civil War, History

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I shall never forget that Mass

During the Spanish Civil War, when Saint Josemaría could not minister as a priest and was in constant danger of death because of the violent religious persecution, he had no option but to escape from Spain over the Pyrenees and go through Andorra to re-enter [...]
Tags: Eucharist, Spanish Civil War, Piety

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The Rose of Rialp: November 21/22, 1937

In 1936, with the outbreak of the Spanish Civil War, religious persecution reached new depths of violence, and Fr Josemaria Escriva was obliged to go into hiding, finding refuge in several successive places in Madrid. For the time being he had to lay aside his [...]
Tags: Spanish Civil War, Crossing the Pyrenees, Our Lady

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August 31, 1937

Bishop Javier Echevarría recalled this date in St Josemaría’s life, in the context of his apostolic zeal even in times of religious persecution and great hardship. “The Master told us: euntes docete omnes gentes (Mt 28:19)—go throughout the whole world, teaching the Gospel to every creature. [...]
Tags: Spanish Civil War

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The Civil War

The Spanish Civil War has broken out, together with one of the most violent periods of religious persecution in the history of the Church August 30, 1936. For a bit more than a month Spain has been split into two factions, increasingly squaring off in a [...]
Tags: Faith, Spanish Civil War, Crossing the Pyrenees

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Beginning Again

After escaping to the other side of Spain and staying briefly in Pamplona, St Josemaria settled in Burgos. From there, in conditions of great deprivation, in a country devastated by war, he carried out an intense apostolate. The so-called “Nationalist” zone of Spain during the [...]
Tags: The Way, Hope, Spanish Civil War

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Pallerols commemorates the Rose of Rialp

About 200 people took part in the Holy Mass celebrated in the church at Pallerols on 21 November 2004 to commemorate the day when Saint Josemaría Escrivá found a rose at Rialp. The Association of Friends of the Pallerols-Andorra Way organised a celebration for the second [...]
Tags: Spanish Civil War, Crossing the Pyrenees

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Association of Friends of the Pallerolls-de-Rialp to Andorra Way

During the Spanish Civil War (1936-1939) one of the ways of getting from the Republican to the Nationalist zone of Spain was to get across the Pyrenees to France, and then enter Spain again via Hendaye. Saint Josemaria was one of many people who followed [...]
Tags: Spanish Civil War, Crossing the Pyrenees

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Second “Paths to Freedom across the Pyrenees” Day Celebrated in Andorra

On December 2, 1937, St Josemaria arrived in Andorra after crossing the Pyrenees mountain range from Spain. To commemorate the anniversary of this expedition, Saturday November 22, the second “Paths to Freedom across the Pyrenees” day was held in the Auditori Rocafort at the Centre [...]
Tags: Spanish Civil War, Crossing the Pyrenees