In the footsteps of those who loved to the end

Some journeys are made with our feet and others with our hearts. In July, the MSC Martyrs’ Way of Canet de Mar was both: an experience of faith, communion, and living memory, organized by the movement ‘Hágase – Life as an MSC Vocation’. The said movement is part of the Youth Ministry and Vocation Promotion work of the Spanish Province of the Missionaries of the Sacred Heart. Twenty-eight young people from Madrid, Valladolid, Barcelona, London, and Manchester took part.

It was not about hiking or visiting historic sites, but about encountering lives given for Christ: people who remained faithful to the Gospel to the point of shedding their blood. On Friday, July 10, at the Shrine of Our Lady of the Sacred Heart in Barcelona, where their relics are kept, silence, prayer, song, and the Word prepared our hearts to be challenged by God.

On Saturday, from Santa Pau, we followed the route of the martyrs’ final days: the house in Begudà where they were reported to the authorities; Les Tres Creus, where they were arrested; and Sant Joan les Fonts Town Hall, where they spent their final night. The experience helped us understand that the martyrdom took place in specific locations and was endured by people with fears, hopes, and questions like our own. After walking some 20 kilometres through La Garrotxa and swimming in the River Fluvià, we reached Sant Joan, where the mayor, the Town Council, and local people welcomed us with extraordinary hospitality, making the experience even more human and fraternal.

On Sunday, we visited Sant Joan les Fonts, its Romanesque monastery and the cemetery in Serinyà, where the bodies had been taken. Amid song, prayer, and joy, we arrived at the site of the martyrdom and celebrated the Eucharist as a memorial of the Love that conquered death. Their story has ceased to be a memory and has become a call: to follow Christ with a heart that is free, willing, and capable of loving to the very end.

We also came to know one another. Young people of different ages, cultures, languages, and backgrounds discovered that the charism of the Sacred Heart creates a true family. Spanish, Catalan, English, and Italian intertwined, showing that the Gospel speaks the universal language of fraternity.

‘Hágase’ continues to grow as a space where young people can encounter Christ, discern their vocation and discover life as a response to God’s love. The Blessed MSC Martyrs of Canet de Mar have inspired us to look to the future with hope: their blood remains a seed and their fidelity lights the way. We returned convinced that the Lord is still calling young people who are prepared to say with their whole lives: “Let it be done”.

Gianluca Pitzolu, MSC. Spanish Province