The seven monks from Atlas – 13th Anniversary of the martyrs of Tibhirine, May 21, 2009.
On May 21, 1996, seven monks of the Cistercian-Trappist monastery of Our Lady of Atlas in Algeria died by assassination at the hands of terrorists: Fr. Christian de Chergé, Br. Luc Dochier, Fr. Christophe Lebreton, Br. Paul Favre-Miville, Br. Michel Fleury, Fr. Bruno Lemarchand, and Fr. Célestin Ringeard.
As we prepare for the Abbatial election at Nunraw we direct our prayers urgently to the Atlas Brothers to help our future.
At the Trappist General Chapter Assisi 2008 there was a Report of the Activities of Postulator 2005-2008. The Postultrix, M. Augusta explains that the number of causes for Beatification are mostly under the responsibility of various dioceses. She says:
In regard to the seven monks from Atlas and for the other twelve martyrs of Algeria the diocesan process began at Algiers on October s" 2007 under the responsibility of the diocese.
There have already been several sessions to question witnesses there. Since it is a question of a cause related to 19 martyrs killed in seven different circumstances, the process will take a long time. There are numerous witnesses, a difficult political situation and a new Archbishop. But what the postulators and the persons responsible in the 8 Congregations wanted was to begin the work so as not to lose the witnesses. There is no hurry to have a Beatification. We are working to classify everything about the lives of our brothers and sisters: witnesses, letters that can be found etc. because we think that it is our duty to keep and spread the remembrance of the martyrs of Algeria with the certainty that in so doing we are remembering all the other innocent victims of this terrible page of Algerian history. In regard to the death of our brothers the Congregation for the Saints is well informed and it follows closely everything that is published in the press.
