Young Slovak martyr of communism reaches global audience

ROME — A martyr of communist persecution in Czechoslovakia and the most recently beatified Slovak, Blessed Ján Havlík, is reaching an international audience through new books, a multilingual documentary, and other initiatives.

Bishop Viliam Judák of Nitra, Slovakia, who is also a historian, co-authored a book titled “Our Saints: Lexicon of Saints and Beatified Connected With the Soil of Slovakia” featuring the young martyr. Though Slovakia does not have many proclaimed saints, it has many real saints “according to the understanding of the Gospel,” the bishop wrote, lamenting that the faithful lack “spiritual binoculars and a healthy historical memory” if they do not see them.

The book came out at the beginning of 2026, shortly after the bishop blessed a commemorative plaque on the house in Nitra where Havlík lived.

Havlík was born on Feb. 12, 1928, in what was then Czechoslovakia and became a seminarian of the Congregation of the Mission (Vincentians). When the communist regime began its persecution of the Church, he continued to study secretly but was arrested, accused of treason, tortured, sentenced to 14 years — later reduced to 10 — and transported to labor camps. For evangelizing his fellow prisoners, he received an additional year behind bars.

After his release, Havlík spent his final years “preparing children for their first holy Communion, visiting the sick, and translating religious texts.” He died on Dec. 27, 1965, at the age of 37 as a consequence of torture and hard labor. Testimonies recounted that he never complained nor blamed his persecutors.

Havlík was beatified on Aug. 31, 2024, at the national shrine in Šaštín — the same site where Pope Francis celebrated Mass during his apostolic visit to Slovakia in 2021. Cardinal Marcello Semeraro, prefect of the Dicastery for the Causes of Saints, presided over the beatification rite and described Havlík as a model of faithfulness to Christ.

“In many cases and even in different contexts it is difficult, sometimes heroic, to remain faithful to Christ,” Semeraro said at the ceremony.

A new book on the beatification, “Three Days with the Unbreakable,” has also been published. Co-writer Silvia Lehutová said the beatification “was not just a one-time event or a technical gesture.”

She added: “In silence and prayer, we were touching something sacred,” stressing that Havlíkʼs heroism is not “reserved for the past, but a challenge for us today.”

The English, French, Spanish, and Italian dubbing of the 2024 documentary “On the Way to Perfection” was released in 2026. Director Branislav Valko said the dubbing was done “to bring his life and testimony of faith to an international audience,” adding that Havlík’s story must “also inspire today’s generation and show that faith and courage have timeless value.”

A new reliquary containing part of Havlík’s bone was also presented this year, along with a portrait by artist Terézia Sedláková, who said she was inspired by St. Carlo Acutis. “I tried to capture youth, purity, and deep faith that transcend suffering,” the painter said.

Semeraro noted at the beatification that Havlík had met Blessed Titus Zeman, a Salesian priest who was also persecuted under the communist regime and beatified in 2017, while both were imprisoned.