“I am completely dedicated to my faith, the only one for me, zealous to defend it and determined to die loyal to my faith.”

Marko Stjepan Krizevcanin was born in 1588, in Križevci, a town in the Kingdom of Croatia, to a prominent and noble Catholic family.

The predominately Catholic region was plagued with the lingering effects of the Ottoman incursions and the spread of Calvinism.

He began his studies in the Jesuit college in Vienna, and later transferred to the University of Graz where he joined the Congregation of Mary and became a Doctor of Philosophy. His Marian devotion deepened his spiritual life and commitment to the Church.

He was sent to Rome as a candidate for Holy Orders where he studied at the Pontifical Gregorian University preparing him for a life of service in a region fraught with religious tension.

After his ordination, he returned to his diocese and his talents caught the attention of Cardinal Péter Pázmány. Marko was summoned to Nagyszombat where he was appointed Rector of the Seminary and Canon of the cathedral chapter of Esztergom. It placed him at the heart of the Catholic Counter-Reformation, as he trained future priests and supported efforts against the rising of Calvinism.

When he was 31, he was sent to administer the estate of the former Benedictine Abbey of Széplak, near Košice, Hungary, placing him in a volatile region. It was a stronghold of Calvinism under the influence of the Prince of Transylvania, who led a nationalist uprising against the Catholic Habsburgs.

Marko supported the Catholic minority, a dangerous endeavor in a city dominated by violent Protestant authorities and sentiments. The Catholic governor of Košice, a key city in the Kingdom of Hungary, sent 2 Jesuit priests, István Pongrácz and Melchior Grodziecki, to minister alongside Marko and they stayed at the Jesuit Church of the Holy Trinity. The presence of the 3 priests caused unrest among the Calvinist majority.

In July of 1619, the Catholics were falsely accused of arson and of having incited a rebellion and the city came under siege by the Calvinist. The city fell to the rebels and Marko, along with his 2 associates, were arrested.

The head of the City Council, Reyner, demanded the execution of all the Catholics in the city.

The 3 were subjected to intense pressure to renounce their Catholic faith and convert to Calvinism. Marko, with his status, was particularly targeted, and they demanded he abandon his loyalty to the Pope with the promise of a church estate. He responded with absolute faith in the True Church and his companions echoed his conviction.

For several days they endured severe torture of starvation, beatings, and mock executions.

On September 7, 1619, Marko was beheaded, and the Jesuits were hanged. Their bodies were cast into the sewer, but later recovered by the Catholics and enshrined.

His feast day is September 7.

For God’s Glory.