Today we read about a remarkable man and saint in the book In Caelo et in Terra. His name was Nikolaus Gross. He worked in a coal mine for years, and was a devoted husband and father to seven children in Germany at the beginning of the 20th century.
As the Nazis rose to power, he criticized them in the newspaper that he had become editor of, due to his hard work and education and his involvement with the Coal Miner's Union. The Nazis didn't like that, and they arrested him, tortured him, and then hung him. They denied him a Christian burial, but instead cremated him and scattered his ashes over a sewer. Sounds like a terrible ending, right? You can read more about him here.
But now he's a saint in the church. He refused to go along with the enemy on this earth, and he fearlessly spoke out against evil. When we have the courage to do that, we will face consequences. We are not to the point yet that the government of the US is taking action against its people as drastic as Germany did against St Nikolaus Gross. But around the world millions of Christians have died for their faith. And soon that ultimate test might come home. Pray that we will have the courage that St Nikolaus had, and will speak out against evil even if it costs us our lives.
God, thanks for the courageous example of this saint. St Nikolaus Gross, pray for us.
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