Fr. Jan Swierc and Salesian Companions to Be Beatified on June 6, 2026

Salesian Martyrs Fr. Jan Swierc and 8 Companions Will Be Beatified on June 6, 2026

(ANS - Vatican City – December 9, 2025) - On November 18, Archbishop Edgar Peña Parra, substitute of the Vatican Secretariat of State, informed Fr. Pierluigi Cameroni, postulator general of the causes of the saints of the Salesian Family, the rite of beatification of the Venerable Servants of God Jan Swierc and 8 Companions will take place on June 6, 2026, in Krakow. Pope Leo XIV’s representative will be Card. Marcello Semeraro, prefect of the Dicastery for the Causes of Saints.

Fr. Jan Swierc and 8 priest companions of the Salesian Society were victims of the Nazi persecution which, after the German occupation of Poland during World War II was unleashed with particular vehemence also against the Catholic Church. Religious engaged in pastoral and educational activities, uninvolved in the political tensions of the time, were arrested and killed simply for being Catholic priests. They are:

1) Jan Swierc was born in Krolewska (today Chorzow) on April 29, 1877. After completing his higher and theological studies among the Salesians in Italy, he was ordained in Turin in 1903. Later, he directed several Salesian houses in Poland, also carrying out the ministry of pastor. On July 8, 1938, he took over as director and pastor of the Krakow house and became a popular preacher. On May 23, 1941, he was arrested with other confreres by the Gestapo and taken to Montelupich Prison, where he was beaten and tortured. On June 26, 1941, he was transferred to the Auschwitz concentration camp and killed the following day.

2) Ignacy Antonowicz, born in Wieslawice on July 14, 1890, was ordained in Rome in 1916. A teacher of theology in the Salesian studentate in Foglizzo, he was a military chaplain in the Polish army during World War I. Sent to Krakow as director of the theological studentate, he held this post until his arrest on May 23, 1941. Taken to Auschwitz, he was mistreated and beaten. He fell seriously ill and died on July 21, 1941.

3) Ignacy Dobiasz, born in Ciochowice, on January 14, 1880, was trained in Salesian studentates in Italy and was ordained in 1908. Back in Poland, he carried out pastoral and educational ministry in various localities. From 1931 he was sent as parish collaborator to Krakow. On May 23, 1941, he was arrested and deported to Auschwitz, where he died on June 27 following exhaustion and beatings.

4) Karol Golda, born in Tychy on December 23, 1914, studied in Salesian houses in Poland before being sent to Rome, where he was ordained in 1938. Returning to his country to teach theology in the Oswiecim studentate, he was arrested by the Gestapo on December 31, 1941. In February 1942, he was deported to Auschwitz, where he was shot on  May 14, 1942.

5) Franciszek Harazim, born in Osiny on August 22, 1885, was educated in Salesian studentates in Poland and at Ivrea, where he was ordained in 1915. He returned to his country to teach in Salesian schools and in the Salesian major seminary in Krakow. He was arrested on May 23, 1941, and taken to the Montelupich prison and later to the Auschwitz concentration camp, where, due to beatings and ill-treatment, he died on June 27,  1941.

6) Ludwik Mroczek, born in Kety on August 11, 1905, carried out his preparation for the priesthood in Poland, being ordained in 1933 and serving as a pastor in Oswięcim, Lviv, Czestochowa, and other places. Arrested on May 22, 1941, he was taken to Montelupich Prison and then to Auschwitz, where he died on January 5, 1942.

7) Wlodzmierz Szembek, born on April 22, 1883 in Poreba Zegoty, was a member of a noble family. He graduated in engineering, looking after the family estates until 1928, when he entered the Salesian aspirantate in Oswięcim. He was ordained in Kracow in 1934 and became secretary of the Salesian province. Arrested on July 9, 1942, he was imprisoned in Nowy Targ and then taken to Auschwitz, where he died on September 7, 1942.

8) Kazimierz Wojciechowski, born in Jaslo on August 16, 1904, was formed in Salesian studentates in Poland and was ordained in 1935 in Krakow. He carried out pastoral work in Daszawa and Krakow, where he was arrested on May 23, 1941. Deported to Auschwitz, he was killed on June 27, 1941.

9) Franciszek Miska, born in Swierczyniek on December 5, 1898, completed his theological studies in Turin, where he was ordained in 1927. He carried out his ministry in Salesian institutes and parishes in various localities in Poland, until he was put in charge of the Salesian institute in Lad. Arrested and taken to various prison camps, on  October 30, 1941, he was deported to Dachau, where he died on  May 30, 1942.

9 Salesians Recognized as Martyrs

Salesians Fr. Jan Swierc and 8 Companions Recognized as Martyrs

(ANS – Rome – October 24, 2025) — On October 24, 2025, Pope Leo XIV received in audience Cardinal Marcello Semeraro, prefect of the Dicastery for the Causes of Saints. During the audience, the Holy Father authorized the dicastery to promulgate the decree concerning:

- the martyrdom of the Servants of God Jan Swierc and eight companions, professed priests of the Salesian Society of St. John Bosco, killed between 1941 and 1942, in hatred of the faith, in the concentration camps of Auschwitz (Poland) and Dachau (Germany).

This represents the recognition of the martyrdom of 9 Servants of God, Polish priests of the Society of St. Francis de Sales (Salesians), who died between June 27, 1941, and September 7, 1942. During the Nazi period, all carried out their ministry in Poland, devoted to pastoral or teaching activities. Eight of them belonged to the Salesian Krakow Province and were arrested, tortured, and killed in Auschwitz; Fr. Franciszek Miska belonged to the Pila Province and died in Dachau.

They are listed in the order proposed by the Positio:

1. Fr. Ignacy Antonowicz, aged 51, professor and rector of the Salesian Theological Studentate in Krakow, died in Auschwitz on July 21, 1941, following ill-treatment.
2. Fr. Karol Golda, 27, the youngest of the group, theology teacher at the Salesian Institute of Oswiecim, shot on May 14, 1942, in Auschwitz for having heard the confessions of two German soldiers.
3. Fr. Wlodzimierz Szembek, 59, who entered religious life as a mature man and was ordained at 51, assistant parish priest in Skawa, died in Auschwitz on September 7, 1942, after being tortured.
4. Fr. Franciszek Harazim, 56, principal of the high school in Oswiecim and theology professor at the Salesian major seminary in Krakow, killed in Auschwitz on June 27, 1941.
5. Fr. Ludwig Mroczek, 36, who worked in various parishes, the last being Czestochowa, died in Auschwitz on January 5, 1942, after suffering torture.
6. Fr. Jan Swierc, 64, the oldest and leader of the group, director of the Salesian Theological Studentate and pastor in Krakow, killed on July 21, 1941, in Auschwitz.
7. Fr. Ignacy Dobiasz, 61, confessor and parish collaborator in Krakow, died in Auschwitz on June 27, 1941, due to abuse and inhuman labor.
8. Fr. Kazimierz Wojciechowski, 37, music and mathematics teacher, director of the oratory and of the Catholic Youth Association in Krakow, killed on June 27, 1941, in Auschwitz.
9. Fr. Franciszek Miska, 43, native of Upper Silesia, parish priest and director of the Salesian Institute of Lad, which the Gestapo transformed into a prison for priests from the dioceses of Wloclawek and Gniezno-Poznan, died of exhaustion on May 30, 1941, in the Dachau concentration camp.

For all the Servants of God, the evidence of their heroic acceptance of martyrdom is clear. Amid persecution against the Church, they were aware of the danger they faced. Other priests had already been arrested and killed. Despite being urged by relatives and friends to flee the country, they remained with the faithful—especially the young—whom they continued to guide with prudence and serenity. During imprisonment and even at the hour of death, after enduring all sorts of abuse, they preserved their faith, entrusting themselves to the Lord. None showed bitterness toward their tormentors, and in some cases, words of forgiveness were uttered in their regard. Their martyrdom was the culmination of virtuous lives lived in service to God and in fidelity to the Salesian charism.

“For the Salesian Congregation, for the whole Salesian Family, for the Church of God in Poland, this is news that fills hearts with joy in this Holy Year of Hope,” recalled the postulator general for the causes of the saints of the Salesian Family, Fr. Cameroni. “These Servants of God are shining examples of deep and compelling faith, to the point of shedding their blood, capable of inspiring today’s faithful toward an authentic Christian life.”

[Blogger's note: The Krakow Salesians were Karol Wojtyla's parish priests at St. Stanislaus Kostka Church.]

Historical Consultors Affirm Fr. Swierc and Companions as Martyrs

Historical Consultors of Saints Dicastery Affirm the Positio super martyrio of Servants of God Jan Swierc and 8 Companions

(ANS – Vatican City – March 29, 2023) – On Tuesday, March 28, the Historical Consultors of the Dicastery for the Causes of Saints cast affirmative votes on the Positio super martyrio of the Servants of God Jan Swierc and 8 Companions, Salesian priests, who were killed out of hatred for the Catholic faith in the Nazi death camps in 1941-1942.

The Positio was delivered on July 21, 2022, and had Fr. Szczepan Tadeusz Praskiewicz OCD as its relator, Fr. Pierluigi Cameroni as postulator, and Dr. Mariafrancesca Oggianu as collaborator. The vote of the aforementioned Historical Consultants concerns the scientific value and sufficiency of the documents, collected during the diocesan inquiry, as well as the ascertainment that the reputation of martyrdom is sufficient and constant. Based on this preliminary but essential judgment, the theological consultors and subsequently the cardinal and bishop members of the dicastery will be able to make their judgment on the martyrdom of the Servants of God.

The 9 Polish Salesian priests alleged to have been martyrs of Nazism Frs. Jan Swierc,  Ignacy Antonowicz, Karol Golda, Wlodzimierz Szembek, Franciszek Harazim, Ludwik Mroczek, Ignacy Dobiasz, Kazimierz Wojciechowski, and Franciszek Miska. As priests, these Servants of God were engaged in Poland in various pastoral and governmental activities and in teaching. They were completely uninvolved with respect to the political tensions that agitated Poland during the wartime occupation. Nevertheless, they were arrested and martyred for the very fact of being Catholic priests.

The fortitude and serene perseverance preserved by the Servants of God in the performance of their priestly ministry even during their imprisonment represented a real act of defiance for the Nazis: although exhausted by humiliation and torture, in defiance of prohibitions, the Servants of God were guardians to the end of the souls entrusted to them and showed themselves ready, despite human weakness, to accept death with God and for God.

The Auschwitz concentration camp, known to all as the death camp, and the Dachau concentration camp for Fr. Miska, thus became the site of these Salesian priests’ priestly commitment: to the denial of human dignity and life, Fr. Swierc and 8 companions responded by offering, through the sacraments, the power of grace and the hope of eternity. They welcomed, sustained through the Eucharist and confession, and prepared a great many fellow prisoners for a peaceful death. Such service, not infrequently, was rendered in hiding, taking advantage of the darkness of night and under the constant and pressing threat of severe punishment or, more often, death.

The Servants of God, as true disciples of Jesus, never uttered words of outrage or hatred toward their persecutors. Arrested, beaten, and humiliated in their human and priestly dignity, they offered their suffering to God and remained faithful to the end, certain that he who places everything in the Divine Will, will not be disappointed. Their inner serenity and demeanor manifested even at the hour of death were so extraordinary as to leave their torturers themselves amazed and, in some cases, outraged.