Dangers for the apostolate in times of persecution

In many countries political instability is almost endemic, and leaves them exposed to constant anti-Catholic persecution. In these circumstances, it is in no way desirable that the Church’s enemies could harvest detailed information from published data or even from documents of the diocesan offices that could serve to destroy Catholic organisations. One must not forget how urgently persecutors want to get hold of ecclesiastical archives.

Neither before nor after 1936 have I intervened either directly or indirectly in politics: it is true that I have had to hide, pursued like a criminal, only because I confessed the faith, though the Lord has not considered me deserving of the palm of martyrdom. Nevertheless, three times I was on the point of death as a martyr: on one of these occasions, they hanged a person they thought was me, outside the house where we lived.