Arts month highlights life of martyred priest

CATARMAN, Northern Samar – The life of a martyred Spanish friar who served in at least six municipalities in Northern Samar for over two decades is featured in an exhibit as part of the National Arts Month celebration in Lavezares town.

Artworks featuring the life of Franciscan priest Blessed Angel Ranera de Diego are presently mounted at the Nuestra Señora de Salvacion Historical and Ecclesiastical Museum in Lavezares until 28 February 2026.

The exhibit draws inspiration from this year’s theme, “Ani ng Sining: Katotohanan at Giting” (“Harvest of Arts: Truth and Bravery”). Ranera served as administrator of Lavezares Parish from 1915 to 1917.

Lavezares Parish Museum curator Ann-Jill Dineros said the works by local artists explore themes of truth and valor, reconnecting the community with the life and service of Ranera, whose ministry forms part of the town’s ecclesiastical history.

Historian and cultural worker Carl Bordeos said Ranera served in what is now the Diocese of Catarman from 1906 to 1929, with assignments in the parishes of Allen, Lavezares, Catarman, Catubig, Palapag, and Laoang.

At that time, Bordeos said, the parish in Allen covered the towns of Allen, Rosario, and San Isidro, while the parish in Palapag had jurisdiction over Palapag, Mapanas, Gamay, and Lapinig.

In 1929, Fr. Ranera returned to Spain, which a few years later descended into turmoil during the Spanish Civil War (1936–1939). This period saw intense persecution of clergy and religious.

In August 1936, Ranera was arrested because he was a priest and was executed by anti-clerical forces, along with thousands of priests, religious, and lay faithful who were martyred during the conflict.

On 28 October 2007, Pope Benedict XVI beatified Fr. Ranera along with 20 other Franciscan martyrs of the Spanish Civil War.