St. John Almond on the Son Rise Morning Show

I'll be on the Son Rise Morning Show today at about 7:45 a.m. Eastern/6:45 a.m. Central to talk about today's English Martyr, St. John Almond. Last year was the 400th anniversary of his execution and the Archdiocese of Liverpool remembered the martyr with a special Mass at a parish in his hometown:

St John Almond was born in Allerton, and so the people of St Bernadette’s can rightfully call him one of their own. He was educated in Much Woolton before moving to Ireland, later travelling to Rheims and then on to Rome where he trained for the sacred priesthood. St John was ordained in 1598, returning to the ‘English Mission’ in 1602. The full weight of the penal legislation against Catholics was in place by this time and so according to the 1585 Act ‘Against Jesuits, Seminary Priests and other such like disobedient persons’, as a Catholic priest come from abroad specifically with the intention of preaching and teaching the Catholic faith, celebrating the Mass and other sacraments and reconciling others to the Catholic faith (‘persuading to popery’, as it was known) St John and his fellow priests, were liable to be charged with high treason. Usually after a period of harsh imprisonment for the purposes of interrogation, which was often accompanied by torture, Catholic priests, after sentence, would be hung (briefly in order that choking may occur), drawn (disembowelled whilst remaining conscious), and quartered (beheaded and dismembered).

St John was a distinguished student, gaining a Doctorate in Divinity, and at a relatively early age he was noted for his theological knowledge and his ability as an apologist and defender of the faith. During his trial he debated points of faith with the protestant Bishop of London, Dr King, and even on the scaffold prior to execution he dealt adeptly with attempts by two protestant ministers to humiliate him and rubbish his arguments. He dealt so eloquently with his three opponents that they had to admit that although they disagreed with him, nevertheless, he was indeed skilful in debate. Dr King said of him that he was, ‘one of the learnedness and insolentest of the Popish priests [sic]’. Before his death St John prayed, distributed alms to the poor, and gave his final oration, concluding with these words: ‘To use this life well is the pathway through death to everlasting life’.  . . .

St. John Almond was arrested in 1608 and then again in 1612; he was condemned to death because he was a Catholic priest in England under the Elizabethan statute of 1585 that made his presence in country an act of treason. Several priests had escaped from prison and St. John Almond was chosen to suffer the consequences. In 1612, both the Archbishop of Canterbury George Abbott and the Bishop of London John King were more strident in their anti-Catholicism and more zealous to prosecute Catholic priests. Nonetheless, St. John Almond is one of only three priests executed in 1612 (the others were Blessed Maurus Scott, OSB and Blessed Richard Newport on May 30) and it's interesting to note that he had escaped execution in 1608 when England and James I were still in the thrall of the Gunpowder Plot.

James I believed that persecution was the sign of a false church (which also shows he knew this persecution to be on religious grounds, not merely for state security). Also, the diplomatic positions that James took emphasized peace and conciliation with Catholic Spain or even France, so persecution would be suspended during when it was the diplomatic thing to do--when he was negotiating for the Spanish or French matches, for example. The ambassadors of Spain actively campaigned for priests to be freed and exiled. On the side of enforcing the Elizabethan statutes against Catholic priests were his Archbishop of Canterbury and Parliament, so a few sacrificial lambs would be offered up from time to time, and St. John Almond was definitely one, suffering not only for his priesthood but for the escape of fellow priests. He is one of the Forty Martyrs of England and Wales canonized by Pope Paul VI in 1970.

St. John Almond, One of Forty

St. John Almond is one of the Forty Martyrs of England and Wales, executed during the reign of King James I:

Saint John Almond was born in Allerton in the year 1576 into a Catholic family in a time when being a Catholic was against the law. John spent much of his childhood in Allerton, near Liverpool, and at Much Woolton in Lancashire for his school years, before moving to Ireland with his parents where he was to finish his education and stay until reaching adulthood.

He then went on to study in Reims, France, where he pursued his vocation into the priesthood.

At the age of 20 he went to the English College in Rome where he would be ordained into the priesthood in1598 and then returned to the dangers of England as a missionary priest in 1602. It was during the end of his time in Rome that he gave a public defence of theses that cover the whole course of philosophy and theology, and known as the "Grand Act" which was warmly congratulated by Cardinal Caesar Baronius and Cardinal Francesco Maria Tarugi.

John’s love for his homeland and his fellow English Catholics made him eager to return and once there he travelled from house to house, village to village and town to town ministering to Catholics and sternly defending the Catholic Faith to those that opposed or questioned him. Saint John Almond never tired of trying to win back [P]rotestants to the [C]atholic creed through his discussion and modesty. . . .

It was during the November of 1612 that seven priests made good their escape from prison. The successful escape was considered to infuriate the Catholic persecutors and it was the Protestant bishop of London, Dr. [John] King, who was most [irritated] at John Almond. Thus it was on the 5th December 1612 that Saint John Almond was taken to Tyburn to be hung, drawn and quartered.

He was known as a 'reprover of sin' and many considered him as a good example to follow because of his ingenious and acute understanding, sharp and apprehensive in his conceits and answers, yet complete with modesty. Saint John Almond was full of courage and was ready to 'suffer for Jesus Christ, who had suffered for him'. He courageously displayed modesty and humbleness and died with the name of Jesus upon his lips.

The illustration above left is for a book written by Reverend Kenneth Alfred Almond and available from Amazon.com. I presume there's some family relationship, although I cannot verify it. Book description:

Perhaps one of the lesser-known Forty Martyrs of England and Wales, Saint John Almond lived in precarious times, when your religion was not just a matter of choice, but a matter of life and death. This was the time of the Spanish Armada, the Gunpowder Plot, the Golden Age of Elizabeth I - a world where Shakespeare's words filled the theatres and many traitors swung at Tyburn. This broad historical study explores the key events of John Almond's life and looks at them in a historical context alongside key events of the sixteenth and early seventeenth centuries. As well as providing a sound basis for any study of these times, this study contains a thorough examination of the events leading up to John Almond's martyrdom - his imprisonment in Newgate, judgment in front of a biased bench and final public execution at Tyburn - and offers a starting point for anyone interested in this era or the saints that lived through it.