Saint Nicholas Tavelic and Companions

Their story:

+ Nicholas Tavelic was born in Šibenik, Croatia. He became a Franciscan friar in 1365 and was among 60 friars from various Franciscan provinces to establish missions in Bosnia. He spent 12 years serving there before beginning a new mission.

+ In 1384, Nicholas went to serve with other Franciscan friars in the Holy Land. There, with Deodatus Aribert, Peter of Narbonne, and Stephen of Cuneo, he lived in the Friary of Mount Zion, an ancient religious house the Franciscans maintained in Jerusalem. There, the four friars studied Arabic and served in the holy shrines associated with the life of Jesus.

+ Nicholas and companions decided to begin openly preaching Christianity among the largely Muslim community. They were subsequently arrested and refused to deny their Christian Faith. After spending considerable time in prison, the four friars were martyred near the Jaffa Gate in Jerusalem on November 14, 1391.

+ The four friars were canonized in 1970 and Saint Nicholas Tavelic is honored as the first Croatian saint.

For prayer and reflection:

“These are they who come out of the great ordeal and have washed their robes in the blood of the Lamb. For God’s sake they handed their bodies over for punishment, and they have earned unfading crowns.”—Entrance Antiphon for the Mass for Several Missionary-Martyrs

Spiritual bonus:

On this day, the Church also remembers Blessed Ursula Nishi and her husband, Blessed Gaspar Nishi Genka, and her son, Blessed Ioannes Nishi Mataishi. The family were killed for their Christian faith on November 14, 1609, in Ikitsuki, Nagasaki, Japan, and were beatified with other Japanese martyrs in 2008.

Prayer

Almighty God,
you glorified Saint Nicholas and companions
by their zeal in spreading the faith and their crown of martyrdom.
Through their prayers and example
help us to run the way of your commandments
and to receive the crown of eternal life.
We ask this 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.

(from The Franciscan Supplement to the Liturgy of the Hours)

Saint profiles prepared by Father Silas Henderson, S.D.S.