Homily for 8 May 2026 – Feast of the Blessed Martyrs Christian de Chergé and his companions.
Today we commemorate our brothers of Tibhirine, who died as martyrs in Algeria in 1995.
In their circular letter sent to their families and friends at Christmas 1994 – just a few months before their death – they explained how, two years earlier, given the deteriorating security situation, they had discussed whether to leave and how they had finally decided to remain in Tibhirine, together. In this beautiful text, they explained how this choice had been shaped by all their previous renunciations (of their families, their original monastic communities, their countries). And they added that the possible death of one of them or all of them together would be merely a consequence of their choice to follow Christ.