Roman basilica honours modern martyrs

Fr Jerzy Popieluszko on day of his ordination

Archbishop Oscar Romero of El Salvador; Solidarity chaplain, Father Jerzy Popieluszko; and Pakistani Catholic political leader Shahbaz Bhatti all feature in a new exhibition in the ancient basilica of St Bartholomew on the Island in Rome dedicated to modern Christian martyrs.

Responding to the challenge issued by Pope John Paul II in 1993 to honour the martyrs of our own days, the basilica has collected personal items to keep alive the memories of those who died for the faith. The building has sections honouring the victims of Communism, Nazism, and civil wars in Mexico and Spain.

Catholic, Orthodox, and Protestant pilgrims have visited St Bartholomew to pray and to see Bibles, vestments, and religious objects that belonged to Christian witnesses killed in Iraq, Somalia, and Algeria.

For more information or to book a tour, see: www.sanbartolomeo.org/index.aspx?ln=en