Marianna Biernacka

Marianna Biernacka
File:Marianna Biernacka.jpg Picture of Bl. Marianna Biernacka in the 1930s
Born	1888
Died	July 13, 1943(1943-07-13) Naumowicze (Naumovichi), Belarus
Nationality	Polish

Blessed Marianna Biernacka
Martyr
Venerated in	Roman Catholic Church
Beatified	13 June 1999, Warsaw, Poland by Pope John Paul II

Marianna Biernacka, née Czokało (1888 – 13 July 1943) was a Roman Catholic citizen of Poland, and a victim of Nazi Germany in the Second World War. She is one of the beatified 108 Martyrs of World War II, a group also known as the 108 Blessed Polish Martyrs (Polish: 108 błogosławionych męczenników).

Biography

Marianna married a farmer and had six children, but only two of them survived infancy. In 1943, during the Second World War, her son Stanislaw and his wife were arrested by German soldiers. In retaliation for the death of other German soldiers that had been killed in a nearby village, the husband and wife were singled out to be shot. Marianna offered to take the place of her pregnant daughter in-law, and the soldiers agreed. After two weeks of imprisonment, Marianna was shot and killed on July 13, 1943 in Naumowicze (Naumovichi), Belarus.

Beatification

On 13 June 1999, Marianna was beatified and recognized as a martyr, along with 107 other victims, by Pope John Paul II in Warsaw, Poland.

There are two parishes in Poland named for the 108 Martyrs of World War II, one in Powiercie in Koło County, and another in Malbork.

References

Additional sources