On 23 October, the Vincentian Family celebrates the memory of Father José María Fernández Sánchez, a priest of the Congregation of the Mission, a man of profound culture and luminous faith, who was killed in Madrid in 1936 along with other confreres during the religious persecution in Spain.
His serene face, his firm words, and his gentle heart tell the story of a life consumed by love for God and dedication to his neighbour.
Educated in Oviedo and Rome, where he obtained a doctorate in theology from the Collegio Leoniano, Father Fernández was a teacher and formator of generations of seminarians and Daughters of Charity. He was a man of prayer and study, but above all of presence: close to those who suffered, attentive to the spiritual growth of those entrusted to him.
In 1921, he left for India, where he helped found the mission in Cuttack (Orissa). Years of hard work and sowing seeds left a deep mark. Returning to Spain, he devoted himself to the spiritual formation of the Daughters of Charity, transmitting to them the heart of the Vincentian vocation: interior freedom, concrete charity, and the joy of service. For this reason, he was considered a true father, a master of the interior life.
In July 1936, in the midst of the Spanish Civil War, he was arrested along with Fr. Roque Guillén and Brothers Cesáreo Elexgaray and Cristóbal González. Their only crime was being priests, men of God.
Detained in the ‘House of Chaplains’ and then transferred to the prison in Via Fomento, they were subjected to interrogation, threats and torture. But his faith did not waver. In a meeting with some Daughters of Charity, Fr. Fernández uttered words that remain engraved as a spiritual testament:
‘Let us not be sad because we see ourselves in prison… Let us rejoice in the spiritual good that this state brings us.’
He died on 23 October 1936, shot in the Vallecas cemetery along with two priests and five Vincentian coadjutor brothers. His last hours were spent in prayerful silence and forgiveness.
Father José María Fernández was a man who combined the wisdom of a theologian with the simplicity of a missionary. His strength did not come from words, but from the quiet joy of one who knows he is in God’s hands.
His sacrifice reflects the fidelity of the disciple and the Vincentian intuition that ‘love is infinitely inventive’: he lived this by inventing ways of consolation even in the darkness of persecution.
Today, his memory invites us not to let fear overcome us, but to live our faith as luminous trust, even when the night seems darkest. His serene smile and firm voice remain an invitation to the Vincentian Family to persevere in hope and charity.
Almighty and eternal God,
who granted your martyrs the grace to die for Christ,
make us strong in trials and serene in faith.
Through the intercession of Father José María Fernández,
grant us the grace to live our Christian vocation with joy
and to bear witness to your mercy with humility and love.
Through Christ our Lord.
Amen.
