St. Nicholas Owen was born in Oxford, England, in 1562. His father, Walter Owen, was a carpenter, and Nicholas learned from him the skills that he would later use to build hiding places for priests. Two of his older brothers became priests. He became a Jesuit lay brother in 1580. Nicholas served as a servant to Father Edmund Campion and was briefly arrested in 1582 after speaking out to defend Father Campion's innocence. Nicholas, familiarly known as "Little John," was small in stature but big in the esteem of his fellow Jesuits. He saved the lives of many priests in England during the penal times when a series of statutes punished Catholics for practicing their faith.
He built many secret passages and compartments in homes that were used to hide priests. He was arrested with other Jesuits in 1594 and imprisoned in the London Tower, where he was tortured to make him give up the names and locations of his Catholic friends and Jesuit brothers. He refused, and a wealthy Catholic family ransomed him from prison. Once, when authorities were close to discovering some priests who were in hiding, Nicholas turned himself in to divert their attention. The captors who had taken the person into custody were aware of his identity and tortured him again. Nicholas refused to give up any information and died from those injuries in 1606. Pope Paul VI canonized St. Nicholas of Owen in 1970 as one of the Forty Martyrs of England and Wales.
St. Nicholas Owen, intercede on behalf of persecuted Christian communities and inspire the faithful to foster a stronger sense of solidarity in their spiritual growth.
Prepared and updated by:
Jonathan Fabian Ginunggil,
Penampang, Sabah Malaysia.
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