Martyr

The martyrdom of Saint Andrew by Bartolomé Esteban Murillo, centuryXVII. Museo del Prado, Madrid.

A martyr (from the Greek «μάρτυς, -υρος», «witness») is a person who suffers persecution and death for defending a cause, generally religious, but also beliefs or convictions, with which which bears "testimony" of his adherence to it.

In Christianity

In the Western world of Christian tradition, the word historically has religious connotations, as a martyr has been considered to be a person who died for their religious faith and, in many cases, was tortured to the point of death. death.

Christian martyrs of the first three centuries after Christ were killed for their religious convictions (sometimes crucified like Christ) in the same way as Roman political prisoners or thrown to the lions in a circus show. However, some Church historians, such as John Fletcher and Alfonso Ropero, claim that there have been more Christian martyrs in the 20th century than in the whole of the previous nineteen centuries.

Currently, the Catholic Church initiates the process of beatification, to later give way to that of canonization, when a faithful Catholic who enjoys a reputation for martyrdom because, following Jesus Christ more closely, he sacrificed his life in the act of martyrdom. The fame of martyrdom is the widespread opinion among the faithful about the death suffered by the servant of God, be it for faith or for a virtue related to faith.

This process usually lasts several years, among other reasons, due to the deep and exhaustive study that is carried out of life and historical context and writings (if any). Numerous experts in all matters usually intervene in this process and both favorable testimonies and those who are against are usually heard. The Holy See usually takes special care and dedication in the study of causes related to controversial characters.