Br Lukasz from the Bootle SDB community and the Savio Salesian College Chaplaincy team, reflects on this week's memorial of the five Polish Salesian martyrs, who were executed in 1942. The oldest was 23, and the youngest just 19.

"My dearest parents, brothers and sisters, the time has come to say goodbye to you on August 24, the day of Mary Help of Christians ... May the Good Lord take me to himself. Don't have regrets that I am leaving this world so young. I am now in a state of grace. ... I am going to heaven. There I shall pray to God ... Pray sometimes for me ... I'™m going now."

After writing these words in the letter to his mother, Franciszek Kesy and his other four companions: Czeslaw Jozwiak, Edward Klinik, Edward Kazimierski and Jarogniew Wojciechowski, were taken into the prison yard in Dresden and beheaded. It was the 24th of August 1942, the monthly feast of Mary Help of Christians in all Salesian communities. This Wednesday in our Family, we celebrated the commemoration of these blessed martyrs.

These five friends grew up in Poznan (central-west Poland) and were brought up in the Salesian Oratory. They were involved in various activities with the Salesians, from music and choir (Edward Klinik was a promising composer) through sport and theatre, to praying. The Salesians talked about them as ordinary young men with their plans, dreams and sometimes troubles. Only one of them, Franciszek Kesy, wanted to become a Salesian of Don Bosco. His companions were dreaming about being musicians, engineers or doctors. They were taking on their responsibilities, doing animation work with younger children during Salesian trips and camps, supporting each other in human and faith development, and facing the normal problems of the young. Edward Kazmierski, for example, confessed in his diary that he fell in love with two different girls and couldn't decide which one to choose. All this was suddenly stopped by the war.

In 1939 Poland was invaded by Nazi Germany. Boys immediately got involved in the various religious and patriotic organisations of the resistance movement, some of them undercover. In 1940 the Five were arrested and taken together to the German prison in Poznan. Their way of the cross, which lasted for the following two years, started here. They were moved from prison to prison, almost always together, suffering because of their patriotic activity and faith which they were openly expressing in front of other prisoners and guards. "God alone knows what we are suffering. Prayer was our only support in the darkest nights and days ... God has given us this cross, and he is giving us the strength to carry it." (from the letter of blessed Czeslaw Jozwiak).

Their companion prisoners kept repeating that these boys were different. In diaries and written memories, we can find stories about carol services organised by the Five during Christmas in prison, or their evening prayers led in the same way as they had been taught in the Oratory. They made jokes and celebrated birthdays, trying to remain "good Christians" and do "all the possible good" they could even in the toughest prisons.

They were condemned to death for treason on August 1, 1942. The verdict was followed by a long silence until one of the five exclaimed: "Thy will be done." They were condemned simply for belonging to Catholic organisations, which, it was suspected, might give rise to resistance movements and confirm Polish and Catholic identity among people.

Nowadays they remain for our pupils a great example: how normal, ordinary people can become saints. As well as becoming a sign of hope for us, Salesians, that the simple things we do or say in schools or youth clubs, may later on give young people strength and inspiration to make heroic decisions and become significant, in other words - to become saints.

The Blessed Five from Poznan .. pray for us!

Br Lukasz Wojcik SDB