Bienheureux JÓZEF CEBULA, prêtre de la Congrégation des Missionnaires Oblats de Marie Immaculée et martyr

Bienheureux Joseph Cebula

Prêtre et martyr en Autriche (+1941)

Prêtre polonais de la Congrégation des Missionnaires Oblats de Marie Immaculée et martyr. Déporté de son pays en haine de la foi, il subit de cruelles tortures et mourut fusillé au camp de concentration de Mauthausen en Autriche.

Béatifié le 13 juin 1999 par Jean-Paul II.

A lire: Lettre du Supérieur général pour la béatification du Père Joseph Cebula, o.m.i. - (traduction en français)

"Le père Cebula a été un homme de paix au milieu du camp d'extermination. Il y a partagé la douleur des autres et le peu de nourriture qu'il avait; il y a fait entendre sa voix prophétique, il y a vaincu la méchanceté des hommes avec les mêmes moyens que le Christ durant sa passion."

Au camp de concentration de Mauthausen en Autriche, l'an 1941, le bienheureux Joseph Cebula, prêtre polonais de la Congrégation des Missionnaires Oblats de Marie Immaculée et martyr. Déporté de son pays en haine de la foi, il subit de cruelles tortures et mourut fusillé.

Martyrologe romain

SOURCE : https://nominis.cef.fr/contenus/saint/10867/Bienheureux-Joseph-Cebula.html

Bienheureux Jozéf Cebula, (1902-1941) 

Missionnaire Oblats de Marie Immaculée. Martyr. 

Fête : le 12 juin

Brève biographie

Le père JOZÉF CEBULA est né dans une famille modeste d’origine polonaise, le 23 mars 1902, à Malnia, dans le sud de la Pologne. Jeune, il souffrait de tuberculeuse. Après une guérison inattendue, il visita un sanctuaire oblat où il raconta son histoire à un prêtre oblat, qui lui conseilla d’étudier au petit séminaire oblat qui venait d’être fondé.

À l’âge de 19 ans, il entra dans la Congrégation des Missionnaires Oblats de Marie Immaculée. Après son ordination au sacerdoce oblat, en 1927, le père Cebula consacra une bonne partie de son ministère à enseigner aux séminaristes oblats (1927-1937). À partir de 1931, il fut directeur du petit séminaire de Lubliniec. En 1937, il devint maître des novices à Markowice (1937-1941), où il se distingua par son humilité et sa douceur. Au cours de cette période, il fut aussi actif dans le ministère de la prédication et, par la suite, très recherché comme confesseur.

Quand la Pologne fut occupée par les nazis pendant la Seconde Guerre mondiale, toutes les associations ecclésiales furent interdites et de nombreux prêtres, qui avaient déclaré leur fidélité à l’Église clandestine, furent arrêtés. Le 4 mai 1940, les novices oblats à Markowice furent arrêtés par les nazis et envoyés dans le camp de concentration à Dachau, en Allemagne. Le père Cebula, à qui il fut interdit d’exercer son ministère sacerdotal, fut obligé de travailler dans les champs, mais le soir, ce prêtre zélé célébrait l’Eucharistie et administrait les sacrements dans les villages environnants. Puis, le 2 avril 1941, il fut arrêté. Il fut déporté dans le camp de concentration de Mauthausen, en Autriche.

Renommé pour son humilité, le père Cebula était un homme d’oraison avec une vie spirituelle profonde. Il irradiait la paix au milieu du camp d’extermination, même quand les nazis le tourmentaient. À Mauthausen, il fut harcelé et forcé à travailler durement, du simple fait que c’était un prêtre catholique romain. Le père Cebula fut forcé à casser des pierres dans la carrière et à porter des blocs de 30 kilos jusqu’au camp en parcourant 3 kilomètres. Il devait monter 144 marches, appelées l’Escalier de la Mort, sous les coups et les insultes de ses bourreaux. Les gardes l’humiliaient et le raillaient en l’obligeant à chanter les textes de la Messe pendant qu’il travaillait. Trois semaines plus tard, le père Cebula trouva brusquement la force de leur crier : « Ce n’est pas vous qui commandez. Dieu vous jugera. » Les nazis lui ordonnèrent de courir vers les barbelés du camp, puis un garde tira sur lui avec une mitraillette et déclara que le père Cebula « a été tué lors d’une tentative de fuite ». Il est mort en martyr, sous cette rafale de balles, le 9 mai 1941. Son corps fut incinéré dans un four crématoire.

Historique de la cause

Le bienheureux père Józef Cebula fait partie du groupe des “108 bienheureux martyrs polonais”, tués durant la Seconde Guerre mondiale par les nazis, de 1939 à 1945.

Le groupe compte trois évêques : Antoni Julian Nowowiejski, (1858-1941), Leon Wetmański, (1886-1941) et Władysław Goral, (1898-1945).

Parmi les 180 martyrs, le groupe le plus nombreux est constitué de 150 prêtres: Adam Bargielski (1903-1942), Aleksy Sobaszek (1895-1942), Alfons Maria Mazurek,OCD (1891-1944), Alojzy Liguda, SVD (1898-1942), Anastazy Jakub Pankiewicz, OFM (1882-1942), Anicet Kopliński, OFM Cap (1875-1941), Antoni Beszta-Borowski (1880-1943), Antoni Leszczewic, MIC (1890-1943), Antoni Rewera (1869-1942), Antoni Świadek (1909-1945), Antoni Zawistowski (1882-1942), Bolesław Strzelecki (1896-1941), Bronisław Komorowski (1889-1940), Dominik Jędrzejewski (1886-1942),Edward Detkens (1885-1942), Edward Grzymała (1906-1942), Emil Szramek (1887-1942), Fidelis Chojnacki, OFM Cap (1906-1942), Florian Stępniak, OFM Cap (1912-1942), Franciszek Dachtera (1910–1942), Franciszek Drzewiecki, FDP (1908-1942), Franciszek Rogaczewski (1892–1940), Franciszek Rosłaniec (1889-1942), Henryk Hlebowicz (1904-1941), Henryk Kaczorowski (1888-1942), Henryk Krzysztofik, OFM Cap (1908-1942), Hilary Paweł Januszewski, OCarm (1907–1945), Jan Antonin Bajewski, OFM Conv (1915-1941), Jan Franciszek Czartoryski, OP (1897-1944), Jan Nepomucen Chrzan (1885-1942), Jerzy Kaszyra, MIC (1910-1943),Józef Achilles Puchała, OFM Conv (1911-1943), Józef Czempiel (1883-1942), Józef Innocenty Guz, OFM Conv (1890-1940), Józef Jankowski, SAC (1910-1941), Józef Kowalski (1911-1942), Józef Kurzawa (1910-1940), Józef Kut (1905-1942), Józef Pawłowski (1890-1942), Józef Stanek, SAC (1916-1944), Józef Straszewski (1885-1942), Karol Herman Stępień, OFM Conv (1910-1943), Kazimierz Gostyński (1884–1942), Kazimierz Grelewski (1907-1942), Kazimierz Sykulski (1882-1942), Krystyn Gondek, OFM (1909-1942), Leon Nowakowski (1913-1939), Ludwik Mzyk, SVD (1905-1940), Ludwik Pius Bartosik, OFM Conv (1909-1941), Ludwik Roch Gietyngier (1904-1941), Maksymilian Binkiewicz (1913-1942), Marian Gorecki (1903-1940), Marian Konopiński, OFM Cap (1907-1943), Marian Skrzypczak (1909-1939), Michał Oziębłowski (1900-1942), Michał Piaszczyński (1885-1940), Michał Woźniak (1875-1942), Mieczysław Bohatkiewicz (1904-1942), Narcyz Putz (1877-1942), Narcyz Turchan (1879-1942), Piotr Edward Dankowski (1908-1942), Roman Archutowski (1882-1943), Roman Sitko (1880-1942), Stanisław Kubista, SVD (1898-1940), Stanisław Kubski (1876-1942), Stanisław Mysakowski (1896-1942), Stanisław Pyrtek (1913-1942), Stefan Grelewski (1899-1941), Wincenty Matuszewski (1869-1940), Władysław Błądziński, CSMA (1908-1944), Władysław Demski, (1884-1940), Władysław Maćkowiak (1910-1942), Władysław Mączkowski (1911-1942), Władysław Miegoń (1892-1942), Włodzimierz Laskowski (1886-1940), Wojciech Nierychlewski, CSMA (1903-1942), Zygmunt Pisarski (1902-1943) et Zygmunt Sajna (1897-1940).

Il y avait parmi eux aussi sept frères religieux qui ont été tués : Brunon Zembol, OFM (1905-1942), Grzegorz Bolesław Frąckowiak, SVD (1911-1943), Józef Zapłata, CFCI (1904-1945), Marcin Oprządek, OFM (1884-1942), Piotr Bonifacy Żukowski, OFM Conv (1913-1942), Stanisław Tymoteusz Trojanowski, OFM Conv (1908-1942), Symforian Ducki, OFM Cap (1888-1942)

À ce groupe appartiennent également huit moniales et religieuses : Alicja Jadwiga Kotowska, CR (1899-1939), Ewa Noiszewska, CSIC (1885-1942), Julia Rodzińska, OP (1899-1945), Katarzyna Celestyna Faron, NMP (1913-1944), Maria Antonina Kratochwil, SSND (1881-1942), Maria Klemensa Staszewska, OSU (1890-1943), Marta Wołowska des Sœurs de l’Immaculée Conception (1879-1942), Mieczysława Kowalska, OSC Cap (1902-1941).

Enfin, le groupe compte aussi onze laïcs, hommes et femmes, catholiques romains:  le séminariste Bronisław Kostkowski (1915-1942), Czesław Jóźwiak (1919-1942), Edward Kaźmierski (1919-1942), Edward Klinik (1919-1942), Franciszek Kęsy (1920-1942), Franciszek Stryjas (1882-1944), Jarogniew Wojciechowski (1922-1942), Marianna Biernacka (1888-1943), Natalia Tułasiewicz (1906-1945), le séminariste Stanisław Starowieyski (1895-1941) et le séminariste Tadeusz Dulny (1914-1942).

L’enquête diocésaine pour la cause du bienheureux Józef  Cebula, dans le cadre des 108 bienheureux martyrs polonais, fut entamée à Varsovie, en Pologne, le 26 janvier 1992. Un bureau de postulation indépendant fut établi par la Conférence des évêques polonais. En 1994, l’enquête diocésaine fut achevée. Le procès romain de la cause commença la même année. La “Positio super martirio” des 108 martyrs a été présentée en 1998. Le décret de la reconnaissance ecclésiastique de leur martyre fut promulgué en mars 1999. La béatification par le pape Jean Paul II eut lieu à Varsovie, le 13 juin 1999. – Pour la canonisation du bienheureux Józef Cebula un miracle est requis.

Prière

Béni sois-tu, ô Christ,

Bon Pasteur, crucifié et glorieux !

Ta force s’est manifestée dans la faiblesse du bienheureux Józef Cebula

qui, par son dévouement à la formation au sacerdoce des jeunes hommes

et à la pastorale de ton peuple,

a mérité de se sacrifier au Père, en union avec Toi.

Nous demandons humblement :

accorde-nous par son intercession la grâce de …

Toi qui vis et qui règnes pour les siècles des siècles.

Amen.

Notre Père – 

Je vous salue, Marie – 

Gloire au Père

Bienheureux Józef Cebula, prie pour nous.

Pour toute grâce reçue, nous vous prions de bien vouloir en informer un Oblat à proximité de chez vous, ou contacter le Postulateur général oblat. Si vous avez des remarques ou des suggestions, nous serons ravis de les recevoir. Veuillez envoyer vos messages à: Postulazione Generale O.M.I., Via Aurelia 290, 00165 Roma, ITALIA, ou un courriel à: postulatore.generale@omigen.org

Bibliographie sélective

LUBOWICKI, K., Po prostu kapłan, Szkic do portretu o. Józef Cebuli OMI, Poznan 1999, 136 pp.

PIELORZ, J., Męczennik za wiarę, Bł. Józef Cebula OMI, Poznan 1999, 154 pp.

PIELORZ, J., Blessed Józef Cebula O.M.I., 1902-1941, Youth educator and martyr because of his priesthood, Biography, Writings, Testimonies, Rome, 2001, 228 pp.

SOURCE : https://www.omiworld.org/our-charism/our-saints/oblate-causes/blessed-jozef-cebula-1902-1941/biography/

Blessed Józef Cebula

Also known as

• Joseph Cebula

Memorial

• 28 April

Profile

Member of the Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate. Priest. Martyred in the Nazi anti–Catholic persecutions.

Born

• 23 March 1902 in Malni, Opolskie, Poland

Died

• tortured to death on 28 April 1941 at the Nazi prison camp at Mauthausen, Upper Austria, Austria

Venerated

• 26 March 1999 by Pope John Paul II (decree of martyrdom)

Beatified

• 13 June 1999 by Pope John Paul II

SOURCE : https://catholicsaints.info/blessed-jozef-cebula/

Blessed Jozef Cebula, O.M.I.

Born: March 23, 1902, Malnia, Poland

Ordination: June 5, 1927

Ministry: Taught in Minor Seminary, Lubliniec, 1923-1931, where he was Superior, 1931-1937; Superior & Novice Master, Markowice 1937-1941.

Death: Arrested by Nazi SS April 2, 1941; shot “while trying to escape” May 9, 1941

Beatification: June 13, 1999, Warsaw, Poland

Unconditional love for God was demonstrated by the life – and death – of Blessed Jozef Cebula, a Polish Oblate killed in the Mauthausen concentration camp near Austria during World War II.

His priestly ministry was his life’s work, even if his final 21 days on Earth were lived in misery. On April 18, 1941, he was taken by the Nazis to the Mauthausen concentration camp, where he was harassed simply because he was a priest.

Fr. Cebula was forced to carry 60-pound rocks from a quarry to a camp two miles away. He had to climb a 144-step staircase called the Death Stairs, while being beaten and insulted by his tormentors. Two arduous trips were all he could make.

Summoning his remaining strength, Fr. Cebula suddenly raised his voice and said: “It is not you who are in charge. God will judge you.” He was ordered to run with the rock on his back, towards the camp’s barbed wire fence. A guard fired with his submachine gun and declared that Jozef “was shot while attempting to escape.” His body was taken to the crematorium and burnt. It was Friday, May 9, 1941.

Blessed Cebula was born into a modest family on March 23, 1902. As a youth, he suffered from tuberculosis and was in fact declared incurable. After an unexpected recovery, he visited an Oblate shrine where he shared his story with Fr. Jan Pawolik, O.M.I., who later died in Auschwitz. Fr. Pawolek advised Jozef to study with the Oblates at a newly established Oblate seminary.

Following ordination to the Oblate priesthood in 1927, Fr. Cebula spent much of his ministry teaching Oblate seminarians. In 1937, he became novice master at Markowice where his humility and gentleness were noteworthy. When the Nazis occupied Poland, they declared loyalty to the Church illegal. All Church associations were forbidden, and many priests were arrested.

On May 4, 1940, the Oblate novices at Markowice were arrested by the Nazis and sent to the concentration camp at Dachau, Bavaria. Fr. Cebula was able to continue his priestly ministries in secrecy, despite the ban on it, for nearly a year before being arrested and detained at the Mauthausen camp.

Known for his humility, Fr. Jozef was a man of quiet prayer with a deep spiritual life. He radiated peace in the very middle of the death camp, even when tormented by the Nazis. In recognition of his heroic life and death, Fr. Cebula was beatified by Pope John Paul II during a ceremony held in Poland on June 13, 1999.

Today, Fr. Cebula’s Oblate Cross and a stone from the quarry at Mauthausen, a testament to his forced labor, rest in the church at Markowice. It is the same church where, near the end of his life, Cebula celebrated the sacraments in secret. It is also the site of the novitiate where he spent the last four years of his life as novice master. We know his spirit rests there, in the place he once called home.

SOURCE : https://web.archive.org/web/20120331150243/http://www.oblatesusa.org/images/oblates/2005/Oblate%20Profileso.htm

Blessed Józef Cebula

Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate Martyr

Biography

Father Józef Cebula was born into a modest family of Polish origin on March 23, 1902, at Malnia in southern Poland. He suffered tuberculosis as a youth. After an unexpected recovery, he visited an Oblate shrine where he shared his story with an Oblate priest. The priest advised Józef to study with the Oblates at the newly-established Oblate minor seminary.

At the age of 19 he entered the Congregation of the Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate. Following ordination to the Oblate priesthood in 1927, Fr. Cebula spent much of his ministry teaching Oblate seminarians (1927-1937). From 1931 on, he was the director of the minor seminary in Lubliniec. In 1937, he became novice master at Markowice (1937-1941), where his humility and gentleness were noteworthy. During this time he was also active in the preaching ministry and was much sought after as a confessor.

When the Nazis occupied Poland during the Second World War, they declared loyalty to the Church illegal. All Church associations were forbidden, and many priests were arrested. On May 4, 1940, the Oblate novices at Markowice were arrested by the Nazis and sent to the concentration camp at Dachau, Germany. Fr. Cebula was forbidden to exercise his priestly ministry and obliged to work in the fields. But at night, the zealous priest celebrated the Eucharist and administered the sacraments in the surrounding villages, until he was arrested on April 2, 1941. He was taken to a concentration camp at Mauthausen in Austria.

Known for his humility, Fr. Cebula was a man of quiet prayer with a deep spiritual life. He radiated peace in the very middle of the death camp, even when tormented by the Nazis. In Mauthausen he was harassed and forced to work hard, to break rocks in the quarry, simply because he was a Roman Catholic priest. Father Cebula was forced to carry 60-pound rocks from the quarry to a camp two miles away. He had to climb a 144-step staircase called the Death Stairs, while being beaten and insulted by his tormentors. The guards humiliated and mocked him by ordering him to sing the texts of the Mass while he worked. Three weeks later, Fr. Cebula suddenly summoned up his strength and said, “It is not you who are in charge. God will judge you.” The Nazis ordered him to run, with a rock on his back, towards the camp’s barbed wire fence, where a guard shot him with a submachine gun and declared that Fr. Cebula “was shot while trying to escape”. He died a martyr on May 9, 1941, in this volley of bullets. His body was taken to a crematorium and burned.

History of the Cause

Blessed Fr. Józef Cebula belongs to the group of “The 108 Blessed Polish Martyrs”, killed during World War II by the Nazis between 1939 and 1945.

The group consists of three Bishops: Antoni Julian Nowowiejski, (1858-1941), Leon Wetmański, (1886-1941) and Władysław Goral, (1898-1945).

The biggest group among the 180 martyrs are the 150 priests: Adam Bargielski (1903-1942), Aleksy Sobaszek (1895-1942), Alfons Maria Mazurek, OCD (1891-1944), Alojzy Liguda, SVD (1898-1942), Anastazy Jakub Pankiewicz, OFM (1882-1942), Anicet Kopliński, OFM Cap (1875-1941), Antoni Beszta-Borowski (1880-1943), Antoni Leszczewic, MIC (1890-1943), Antoni Rewera (1869-1942), Antoni Świadek (1909-1945), Antoni Zawistowski (1882-1942), Bolesław Strzelecki (1896-1941), Bronisław Komorowski (1889-1940), Dominik Jędrzejewski (1886-1942), Edward Detkens (1885-1942), Edward Grzymała (1906-1942), Emil Szramek (1887-1942), Fidelis Chojnacki, OFM Cap (1906-1942), Florian Stępniak, OFM Cap (1912-1942), Franciszek Dachtera (1910–1942), Franciszek Drzewiecki, FDP (1908-1942), Franciszek Rogaczewski (1892–1940), Franciszek Rosłaniec (1889-1942), Henryk Hlebowicz (1904-1941), Henryk Kaczorowski (1888-1942), Henryk Krzysztofik, OFM Cap (1908-1942), Hilary Paweł Januszewski, OCarm (1907–1945), Jan Antonin Bajewski, OFM Conv (1915-1941), Jan Franciszek Czartoryski, OP (1897-1944), Jan Nepomucen Chrzan (1885-1942), Jerzy Kaszyra, MIC (1910-1943), Józef Achilles Puchała, OFM Conv (1911-1943), Józef Czempiel (1883-1942), Józef Innocenty Guz, OFM Conv (1890-1940), Józef Jankowski, SAC (1910-1941), Józef Kowalski (1911-1942), Józef Kurzawa (1910-1940), Józef Kut (1905-1942), Józef Pawłowski (1890-1942), Józef Stanek, SAC (1916-1944), Józef Straszewski (1885-1942), Karol Herman Stępień, OFM Conv (1910-1943), Kazimierz Gostyński (1884–1942), Kazimierz Grelewski (1907-1942), Kazimierz Sykulski (1882-1942), Krystyn Gondek, OFM (1909-1942), Leon Nowakowski (1913-1939), Ludwik Mzyk, SVD (1905-1940), Ludwik Pius Bartosik, OFM Conv (1909-1941), Ludwik Roch Gietyngier (1904-1941), Maksymilian Binkiewicz (1913-1942), Marian Gorecki (1903-1940), Marian Konopiński, OFM Cap (1907-1943), Marian Skrzypczak (1909-1939), Michał Oziębłowski (1900-1942), Michał Piaszczyński (1885-1940), Michał Woźniak (1875-1942), Mieczysław Bohatkiewicz (1904-1942), Narcyz Putz (1877-1942), Narcyz Turchan (1879-1942), Piotr Edward Dankowski (1908-1942), Roman Archutowski (1882-1943), Roman Sitko (1880-1942), Stanisław Kubista, SVD (1898-1940), Stanisław Kubski (1876-1942), Stanisław Mysakowski (1896-1942), Stanisław Pyrtek (1913-1942), Stefan Grelewski (1899-1941), Wincenty Matuszewski (1869-1940), Władysław Błądziński, CSMA (1908-1944), Władysław Demski, (1884-1940), Władysław Maćkowiak (1910-1942), Władysław Mączkowski (1911-1942), Władysław Miegoń (1892-1942), Włodzimierz Laskowski (1886-1940), Wojciech Nierychlewski, CSMA (1903-1942), Zygmunt Pisarski (1902-1943) and Zygmunt Sajna (1897-1940).

There were also seven Religious Brothers killed: Brunon Zembol, OFM (1905-1942), Grzegorz Bolesław Frąckowiak, SVD (1911-1943), Józef Zapłata, CFCI (1904-1945), Marcin Oprządek, OFM (1884-1942), Piotr Bonifacy Żukowski, OFM Conv (1913-1942), Stanisław Tymoteusz Trojanowski, OFM Conv (1908-1942), Symforian Ducki, OFM Cap (1888-1942)

The following eight Nuns and Religious Sisters also belong to this group: Alicja Jadwiga Kotowska, CR (1899-1939), Ewa Noiszewska, CSIC (1885-1942), Julia Rodzińska, OP (1899-1945), Katarzyna Celestyna Faron, NMP (1913-1944), Maria Antonina Kratochwil, SSND (1881-1942), Maria Klemensa Staszewska, OSU (1890-1943), Marta Wołowska of the Sisters of the Immaculate Conception (1879-1942), Mieczysława Kowalska, OSC Cap (1902-1941).

Finally there are eleven Roman Catholic lay men and women in the group:  Seminarian Bronisław Kostkowski (1915-1942), Czesław Jóźwiak (1919-1942), Edward Kaźmierski (1919-1942), Edward Klinik (1919-1942), Franciszek Kęsy (1920-1942), Franciszek Stryjas (1882-1944), Jarogniew Wojciechowski (1922-1942), Marianna Biernacka (1888-1943), Natalia Tułasiewicz (1906-1945), Seminarien Stanisław Starowieyski (1895-1941) and Seminarien Tadeusz Dulny (1914-1942).

The diocesan inquiry for the cause of Blessed Józef Cebula, as part of the 108 Blessed Polish Martyrs, began in Warsaw, Poland, on January 26, 1992. An independent Postulation Office was established by the Polish Bishops’ Conference. In 1994, the diocesan inquiry came to an end. The Roman process of the cause started the same year. The “Positio super martirio” of the 108 Martyrs was presented in 1998. The decree of the ecclesiastical recognition of their Martyrdom was promulgated in March 1999. The Beatification by Pope John Paul II took place in Warsaw on June 13, 1999. – For Blessed Jósef Cebula´s canonization, a miracle is required.

Prayer

Blessed be you, O Christ,

crucified and glorious Good Shepherd!

Your strength was made known in the weakness of Blessed Józef Cebula

Who, by his dedication to the formation of young men for the priesthood

and the pastoral care of your people,

merited to sacrifice himself to the Father in union with You.

We humbly request,

grant us by his intercession the grace of …

You who live and reign for ever and ever.

Amen.

Our Father – Hail Mary – Glory be

Blessed Jozef Cebula, pray for us.

Kindly notify an Oblate in your vicinity, or contact the Postulator General, of any favour obtained. We will be pleased to receive any observation or suggestion. Please, send your messages to: Postulazione Generale O.M.I., Via Aurelia 290, 00165 Roma, ITALIA. Or e-mail to: postulatore.generale@omigen.org

Selected Bibliography

LUBOWICKI, K., Po prostu kapłan, Szkic do portretu o. Józef Cebuli OMI, Poznan 1999, 136 pp.

PIELORZ, J., Męczennik za wiarę, Bł. Józef Cebula OMI, Poznan 1999, 154 pp.

PIELORZ, J., Blessed Józef Cebula O.M.I., 1902-1941, Youth educator and martyr because of his priesthood, Biography, Writings, Testimonies, Rome, 2001, 228 pp.

SOURCE : https://www.omiworld.org/fr/notre-charisme/nos-saints/les-causes-oblates/blessed-jozef-cebula-1902-1941/breve-biographie/

Chapelle Josef-Cebula de Malnia (anciennement Mallnie) 

Fr Joseph Cebula O.M.I. was beatified on Sunday June 13th 1999 by Pope John Paul during his pastoral visit to Poland. Joseph Cebula was born in Poland on March the 23rd 1902. He entered the Oblate Junior Seminary in 1920 and was ordained a priest on June 25th 1927.

In 1937 he was made Novice Master ad Markowice and was recognised by his fellow religious as a man of great kindness and prayer. These were years of great turmoil for Poland, and in October 1939 the 100 strong community at Markowice were placed under house arrest. In October 1940 the community were evicted and the noviciate made into a centre for the Hitler Youth.

Fr. Joseph was called before the authorities on several occasions for refusing to stop saying Mass and hearing confessions. Eventually he was arrested and sent to the concentration camp at Mauthausen. Here he continued his priestly ministry, and as a result was constantly beaten and ridiculed. As a priest he was given the heaviest work and was forced to sing the preface of the Mass out loud. During all this Fr. Joseph was killed on April 28th 1941 by a volley of shots that tore into his head and shoulders. His body was then thrown into the crematorium. Out of 277 Oblates in Poland in 1939, 35 were sent to concentration camps.

SOURCE : http://omiap.org/?page_id=225

Beato Giuseppe Cebula Sacerdote e martire

28 aprile

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Malnia, Polonia, 23 marzo 1902 – Mauthausen, Germania, 28 aprile 1941

Il beato Jozef Cebula, sacerdote della Congregazione dei Missionari Oblati di Maria Immacolata, nacque a Malnia (Opole) il 23 marzo 1902 e morì a Mauthausen, Germania, il 28 aprile 1941. Fu beatificato da Giovanni Paolo II a Varsavia (Polonia) il 13 giugno 1999 con altri 107 martiri polacchi.

Martirologio Romano: Nel campo di prigionia di Mauthausen in Austria, beato Giuseppe Cebula, sacerdote della Congregazione dei Missionari Oblati della Vergine Immacolata e martire, che, di origine polacca, portato dalla sua patria in carcere in odio alla fede, patì crudeli supplizi fino alla morte.

Nacque a Malnia, regione meridionale della Polonia il 23 marzo 1902. Riceve  l’Eucaristia per la prima volta all’età di 12 anni, il 14 maggio 1914. Nel 1916 si iscrive nell’Istituto di Magistero (Königliche Kaholische Präparanden Anstalt) di Opol. Comincia a rivelarsi la sua vocazione di educatore. Due anni dipo, nel dicembre del 1918 a causa forse dello sforzo intellettuale (studia in una lingua che non è la sua), cade gravemente infermo e si vede obbligato a interrompere gli studi. Il medico gli diagnosticò una pleuresia. Forse era tubercolosi. Ritorna in Polonia dove viene operato con successo

Si incammina verso la vita religiosa e il sacerdozio

Nel settembre del 1920 va in pallegrinaggio al santuario mariano di Piekary, dove ha un colloquio con il P. Pawolek che lo orienta verlo gli Oblati. Una volta conseguito il cerdificato di maturità, il 14 agosto 1921 comincia il noviziato a Markowice. Fa la prima professione il 15 agosto, festa dell’Assunzione della Santissima Vergine, l’anno seguente si reca Liegi per proseguire la preparazione al saceerdozio. La sua permanenza nel Belgio dura solo un anno. Terminerà gli studi nel suo paese natale e sarà ordinato sacerdote a Markowice il 5 giugno 1927.

Superiore e animatore del seminario minore

A 29 anni è nominato superiore del Giuniorato di Lublino. Durante sei anno animerà quella scuola postolica e lo fa tanto bene che nel 1936 viene proposto come Superiore Provinciale di Polonia. Proposta inquietante, che la sua timidità e umiltà lo spingono a rifiutare.

Maestro dei novizi

Il primo agosto 1937 viene nominato superiore e maestro dei novizi a Markowice e l’anno seguente viene eletto dai suoi fratelli oblati come delegato  per partecipare al Capitolo generale, al quale tuttavia non potrà assistere per infermità. Il 1 settembre 1939 l’esercito tedesco invade la Polonia. Gli scolastici oblati di Obra e Krobia fuggono dai nazisti. Si rifugiano verso l’est e riparano eventualmente a Markowice, accolti dal P. Cebula. Proseguono la fuga verso Koden e se ne vanno con loro 25 oblati della comunità del noviziato.

Entrano in scena i nazisti

L’otto settembre 1939 un gruppo di paracadutisti tedeschi è stato decimato dalle truppe polacche nella regione di Markowice. Viene la polizia di sicurezza e poco dopo la Gestapo che sequestra il convento, pone sotto arresto nella propria casa tutti gli Oblati e li obbliga a prender parte nei lavori forzati nelle fattorie tedesche della regione. Per aver tentato una fuga, tre padri furono ritenuti in ostaggio. Tra di loro c’era il P. Cebula. Il 1 ottobre  1940 si insediano nel convento i coloni tedeschi e il 1 novembre la gioventù hitleriana occupa tutta la casa. Gli Oblati credevano di essere accolti dalle famiglie dei dintorni. Un mese più tardi viene accordato al P. Cebula, solo a lui, di risiedere nel convento e gli riservano un abitacolo ridotto.

Martire del suo sacerdozio

Da allora, malgrado la proibizione espressa e perentoria, questo apostolo imperturbabile continua a esercitare il ministero sacerdotale nella clandestinità. Una denuncia lo tradisce e sarà la causa formale per inviarlo, il 18 aprile 1941, nel campo di sterminio di Mauthausen. Lo indeboliscono fisicamente e soprattutto moralmente, obbligandolo a trasportare pietre pesanti. I suoi carnefici si burlano di lui, obbligandolo a cantare testi sacri della Messa. Un giorno li fronteggia e dice loro che Dio chiederà loro conto di questi scherni. Furibondi gli dicono di correre (era la strategia seguita per sparare ai prigionieri alle spalle e giusfificarsi  inventando una fuga) e lo crivellano con raffiche di mitraglia. Cade bocconi in un lago di sangue. Ma, secondo alcuni testimoni oculari, il P. Cebula era ancora vivo quando lo misero nel forno crematorio. Così culmina la testimonianza di fede di questo martire del sacerdozio.

Processo di beatificazione

Si apre il 26 gennaio 1992 e si conclude il 13 giugno 1999 con la sua beatificazione insieme ad altri 107 martiri della fede, in una solenne cerimonia presieduta a Varsavia da Giovanni Paolo II.

SOURCE : http://www.santiebeati.it/dettaglio/93065