Many years ago I met Fr. Conrad Harkins OFM. Conrad was a friar of Holy Name Province (my province before the recent merger of the United States Franciscan OFM provinces and taught at Franciscan University in Steubenville, Ohio. When he learned I was from the south, he was eager to share that was the postulator for the five Franciscans that were martyred in 1597 near modern-day Eulonia, Georgia. The postulator is the person assigned to begin the cause of sainthood. They are responsible for gathering evidence and presenting a case to the Congregation for the Causes of Saints at the Vatican to initiate the process of beatification and canonization.

Conrad slowly developed cognitive impairment (Alzheimer’s perhaps) requiring him to leave active ministry and turn over the cause of the “Georgia Martyrs” to another. This was about 2010 and represented about 20 years of Conrad’s efforts.

Those efforts were rewarded when on January 27th, Pope Francis formally recognized the five Franciscan missionaries as martyrs for the faith. By signing the decree in the sainthood cause of the Georgia martyrs, the pope cleared the way for their beatification at a date to be set later.

Catholic News Service reported: “The Spanish Franciscans Pedro de Corpa, Blas Rodríguez de Cuacos, Miguel de Añón, Antonio de Badajoz and Francisco de Veráscola were killed between Sept. 14 and Sept. 17, 1597, after Father de Corpa told a young Indigenous man, Juanillo, who was heir to a Guale chiefdom, that as a baptized Christian he could not take a second wife.

“Juanillo and a band of his men killed the priest with a stone hatchet at the Mission of Our Lady of Guadalupe in Tolomato, which is near modern-day Eulonia, Georgia. They then went after the other Franciscan missionaries living and ministering along the Georgia coast.

“Recounting the story of the Georgia martyrs on its website, the Dicastery for the Causes of Saints, said Father de Corpa not only “reprimanded” Juanillo for taking a second wife, but also “told him that he would oppose his succession as village chief if he persisted in his polygamous choice.”

“Bishop Stephen D. Parkes of Savannah, the diocese that includes the missions where the five friars were martyred, thanked all the people who worked to promote their sainthood cause for more than 40 years.

“May Venerable Friar Pedro de Corpa and Companions intercede for families everywhere, and inspire husbands and wives around the world to live out the sacrament of marriage with love, truth, and fidelity,” the bishop wrote in a statement Jan. 27.

“The first proof of the five Franciscans’ readiness to give their lives for the Lord was their choice “to leave Spain and set out as missionaries to a land and among peoples still partly unknown. The five were aware of the risks and dangers associated with their apostolate also in relation to their safety,” the dicastery said.

“Moved by a genuine spirit of love for Christ and service to the church, they accepted to be sent on mission to the North American territory,” it said.