Gospel in Art: The Blessed Martyrs of Douai College

View of the English College in Douai, by Filippo Ferrari, 1660 © Alamy

Source: Christian Art

Gospel of 29 October 2025
Matthew 10:28-33

At that time: Jesus instructed his Apostles: 'Do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather fear him who can destroy both soul and body in hell. Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? And not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father knowing. But even the hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear not, therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows. So everyone who acknowledges me before men, I also will acknowledge before my Father who is in heaven, but whoever denies me before men, I also will deny before my Father who is in heaven.'

Reflection on the engraving

Today, we commemorate the Blessed Martyrs of Douai College, 158 courageous men, including saints such as Robert Southwell and Edmund Campion, who gave their lives for the Catholic faith during one of the darkest chapters of English history. Founded in 1568 in the Flemish town of Douai (then part of Spanish Flanders, now northern France), the college became a vital centre for English Catholicism after the Reformation. While Catholic seminaries were outlawed in England, Douai - under the guidance of Cardinal William Allen - trained generations of young Englishmen for the priesthood, forming them not only intellectually but spiritually, preparing them to minister in secret upon their return home.

After ordination, these priests crossed the Channel in disguise, fully aware that to celebrate Mass or administer the sacraments in England was to risk arrest, torture, and execution for treason. Yet they went willingly, sustained by faith and love for their people. Between 1577 and 1680, 158 priests formed at Douai were martyred, hanged, drawn, and quartered. These martyrs gave their lives to defend and preserve the sacraments, including the Eucharist, which we so often take for granted today. Their sacrifice is a powerful reminder of the cost of faith. In recognition of their devotion, eighty of these martyrs were beatified by Pope Pius XI in 1929.

These martyrs really embody the spirit of today's gospel reading, where Jesus tells us " 'Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul"

But the story of Douai does not end there. In 1793, during the turmoil of the French Revolution, the college's property was confiscated, its priests and seminarians imprisoned, and its mission seemingly extinguished. Yet, Douai endured. After more than a year in captivity, the seminarians were released in November 1794 and permitted to return to England. There, they found refuge at Old Hall Green Academy in Ware, Hertfordshire, where they re-established their community under the patronage of St Edmund of Canterbury. This marked the birth of St Edmund's College, the direct heir to Douai's legacy.

From these humble and perilous beginnings grew the seeds of a new era. The resilience of Douai's sons ensured that the training of priests, once driven underground, could take root again on English soil. Their courage and perseverance paved the way for the Catholic Restoration of 1850, when Pope Pius IX re-established the Catholic hierarchy in England and Wales after centuries of suppression. This year, as we celebrate the 175th anniversary of that restoration, we give thanks for the faithfulness of the Douai martyrs and their successors: people whose steadfast witness transformed exile into renewal!

LINKS

Gospel in Art: https://christian.art/
Today's Reflection: https://christian.art/daily-gospel-reading/matthew-10-28-33-2025/