00:00"I die innocent, forgiving."
00:06These are the last words of Saint Oliver Plunkett, Archbishop of Ireland, executed in 1681 in London.
00:15Born in 1625 into a noble Catholic family, Oliver Plunkett grew up in a divided Ireland marked by religious persecution.
00:26He went to Rome to study, then taught theology there for more than 20 years.
00:33In 1669 he was appointed Archbishop of Armague and Primate of Ireland.
00:40Despite the anti-Catholic laws, he returned to his country at his own risk,
00:46to serve a persecuted, clandestine, weakened, but living church.
00:52For twelve years he traveled Ireland on foot, ordaining priests in secret,
00:59confirms the faithful, founds schools, preaches peace,
01:05and even tries to reconcile Irish Catholics among themselves.
01:09But in 1679, the wind changed.
01:12England is in the grip of a wave of anticlerical hatred.
01:19He is falsely accused of treason.
01:21He was arrested, imprisoned in the Tower of London, tried without evidence and sentenced to death.
01:28On July 1, 1681, Oliver Plunkett was hanged, disemboweled, and dismembered in Tiberias.
01:36He died with the calm of the saints, praying for his executioners and affirming
01:42"I am innocent, I die in peace with all men."
01:47He was canonized in 1975 by Pope Paul VI.
01:53He became the last Catholic martyr to be executed in England.
01:58and the patron of peace and reconciliation in Ireland.
02:03Saint Oliver Plunkett, faithful archbishop and witness of Christ to the end,
02:10intercede for persecuted Christians and for peace in divided nations.
02:33Subtitling Canadian Broadcasting Corporation
02:42Subtitling Canadian Broadcasting Corporation
02:43Subtitling Canadian Broadcasting Corporation
Commentaires