Anton Muzaj

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Anton Muzaj (born March 19, 1921 in Vrnavokolo / Vërnakolla in what is now Kosovo ; † spring 1948 in Shkodra) was a Roman Catholic priest who was arrested and tortured for his belief in atheistic Albania under the Enver Hoxha regime. He died as a result of torture and is one of the Thirty-Eight Martyrs of Albania .

Life

Anton Muzaj attended school in Shkodra and then studied theology in Rome at the Pontifical Gregorian University . He was ordained a priest on March 19, 1944, his 23rd birthday. In 1946 he returned to his homeland, where he was soon arrested and severely tortured.

Trial, detention and acquittal

Weapons were found in the Franciscan Church of Shkodra on November 17, 1946. A number of clerics were charged with hiding them there. Later it could be clearly proven that the local section of the Sigurimi had deposited the weapons there. Linked to this was the plan to turn the public against the clergy. Even under the torture, the accused clergy remained true to their testimony that they did not bring the weapons into the church. The trial was closed to the public and resulted in the death penalty for Abbot Bishop Msgr. Frano M. Gjini , Father Mati Prendushi , Msgr. Nikollë Deda and Father Çiprian Nikaj ; all four were shot at 5 a.m. on March 11, 1948. Some co-defendants received long prison terms, only Anton Muzaj was released. He died a little later, in the spring of the same year, as a result of torture.

An unnamed witness recalls that Anton Muzaj was arrested in October 1947 together with Fr. Frano Kiri . In prison, according to the witness, Anton Muzaj had to stand on his feet for days and nights without a break, his hands and legs tied together, his nose leaning against a wall. When he got not only more and more pain but also very thirsty, he asked two prisoners who had to clean the prison floor, which was often covered with blood, for some of the cleaning water. Suddenly he was thrown to the ground and asked to lick up any remaining drops from the wet floor. The witness adds that at the time Anton Muzaj could no longer stand, he was beaten even more severely. In winter, according to the witness, Anton Muzaj was trapped in the draft between doors and windows. He got tuberculosis. When the judge later saw the defendant's state of health, he understood - according to the witness - that Anton Muzaj would only stay for a few months and therefore did not impose a death sentence.

According to the witness, Anton Muzaj asked a fellow inmate: "If one day you see my family, tell them that I am innocent and that I will die for my faith in Christ."

memories

Anton Muzaj is remembered in Albania as a polite, humble and always ready priest, his death was deeply mourned.

beatification

The beatification of Anton Muzaj and 37 other martyrs took place on November 5, 2016 in Shkodra. The Prefect of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints , Cardinal Angelo Amato , presided over the celebrations on behalf of Pope Francis .

literature

  • Markus WE Peters: History of the Catholic Church in Albania 1919-1993. Wiesbaden 2003, ISBN 3-447-04784-4 .

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Markus WE Peters: History of the Catholic Church in Albania 1919-1993. Wiesbaden 2003. 150-155
  2. ^ Antonian.tv ( Memento from March 12, 2016 in the Internet Archive ); Retrieved July 25, 2016
  3. ↑ Dom Anton Muzaj ( Memento from July 27, 2016 in the Internet Archive )
personal data
SURNAME Muzaj, Anton
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Roman Catholic clergyman and martyr
DATE OF BIRTH March 19, 1921
PLACE OF BIRTH Vrnavokolo in what is now Kosovo
DATE OF DEATH between January 1948 and May 1948
Place of death Shkodra , Albania