Blessed Aurelio da Vinalesa
Blessed Aurelio María Villalba Zapater, O.F.M. Cap. ("Aurelio da Vinalesa") (born 1880 AD in Vinalesa, Valencia, Spain; died September 14, 1936 AD in Valencia, Spain) was a Spanish Franciscan Capuchin friar martyred during the Spanish Civil War. Born in Vinalesa (a small town in the l'Horta Nord comarca north of Valencia), he took the religious name "Aurelio de Vinalesa" after his hometown. He was killed during the anticlerical violence of the "red terror" in Republican-controlled Valencia in September 1936. He was beatified by Pope John Paul II as part of one of the large groups of Spanish Civil War martyrs. His feast day is September 14.
Stored in Cargo: Blessed Aurelio da Vinalesa
| Blessed Aurelio da Vinalesa | |
|---|---|
| Feast Day | September 14 |
| Profession | Franciscan Capuchin friar; martyr of the Spanish Civil War; Valencian Capuchin |
| Rel. Affiliation | Catholic Church; Order of Friars Minor Capuchin; Spanish Capuchin Province of Valencia; Spanish Civil War martyrs; Valencian Catholic tradition |
| Patronage | Vinalesa, Valencia; Spain; Capuchin friars; martyrs of the Spanish Civil War; Valencia region |
| Attributes | Capuchin habit (brown robe, pointed hood, beard); palm frond of martyrdom; cross; the Valencian huerta landscape; feast of the Holy Cross (September 14) |
| Birthplace | Vinalesa, l'Horta Nord, Valencia, Spain |
| Death Place | Valencia, Spain |
| Cause of Death | Martyrdom; killed September 14, 1936, in Valencia, Spain, during the anticlerical violence of the Spanish Civil War (1936–1939); he was a Franciscan Capuchin friar murdered by Republican anticlerical militias during the "red terror" that swept Republican-controlled Spain in the summer and autumn of 1936; approximately 6,800 Catholic clergy, religious, and laypeople were killed in this period of anticlerical violence; Aurelio de Vinalesa is venerated as a martyr for the faith; he was beatified as part of a group of Spanish Civil War martyrs |
| Primary Shrine | Vinalesa, Valencia, Spain — local veneration; September 14 feast |
| Liturgical Class | Not in universal Roman calendar; September 14 feast in Spain and among the Capuchins |
| Historic Class | Not in 1962 calendar |
Biography
Aurelio María Villalba Zapater was born in 1880 in Vinalesa, a town north of Valencia in Spain. He entered the Franciscan Capuchin Order and took the religious name "Aurelio de Vinalesa" in honor of his hometown.
When the Spanish Civil War broke out in July 1936 and anticlerical violence swept Republican-controlled Valencia, he was among the thousands of Catholic clergy and religious targeted for their faith. He was killed on September 14, 1936 — the feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross — in Valencia.
He was beatified by Pope John Paul II as part of one of the large groups of Spanish Civil War martyrs.
Significant locations
Legend
Birth location: Vinalesa, l'Horta Nord, Valencia, Spain
Death location: Valencia, Spain
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Feast day
September 14
Veneration
Blessed Aurelio de Vinalesa (1880–1936) was a Spanish Franciscan Capuchin friar from the town of Vinalesa north of Valencia who was martyred on September 14, 1936 — the feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross — during the anticlerical violence of the Spanish Civil War. Beatified John Paul II. Feast September 14.
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