ST MARY DU ZHAO, MARTYR

ST MARY DU ZHAO, MARTYR - 28 JUNE

SAINT MARY DU ZHAO, MARTYR

Born into a Catholic family in the Chinese village of Qifengzhuang, Hebei Province, in 1849, Mary Zhao was devout from her earliest years.

REACHING FOR HER ROSARY BEADS MANY TIMES A DAY

At eighteen she married Du Taiyuan. Settling in the village of Dujiatun, the couple had several children, one of whom went on to become a priest. Diligently attending her duties as a wife and mother, Mary filled her spare moments with prayer, reaching for her rosary beads many times a day.

On June 28, 1900, Mary had gone to Wangjiatan to see her cousin and his wife when she and they were confronted by partisans of a quasi-religious, anti-Christian faction known as the “Boxers”.

"ARE YOU CATHOLICS?" - "THANK GOD WE ARE"

Upon being asked whether she was from Dujiatun, Mary replied in the affirmative. The Boxers then asked, “Are you Catholics?” Mary boldly replied, “Thank God, we are.”

"WE WOULD RATHER DIE THAN DENY OUR FAITH"

The Boxers then began to demand that she apostatise, but before they could finish speaking she answered, “We would rather die than deny our faith. All I want is to give our lives to God.” Mary, her cousin, and her cousin’s wife were all slain.

“With joy you will draw water from the wells of salvation.”

📷 Church of the Holy Chinese Martyrs in Beijing, photo taken in 1931. The church was destroyed during the "Cultural Revolution".

PRAYER:

Grant, we beseech you, almighty God, that we who know how courageously your holy martyr Mary confessed the faith, may experience her goodness as she intercedes for us with you. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, for ever and ever. Amen.

➡️ Martyr Saints of China

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