Advertisement
The famed drawing, once presented to Pope Benedict XVI, of Anabaptist martyr Dirk Willems rescuing his Catholic pursuer who fell through a thin sheet of ice. Willems was recaptured and later killed for being rebaptized.
Wikipedia
January 16, 2026
Share this article:
Two upcoming talks in Saskatchewan will explore, first, how martyrdom has, time and again, served as a resource for ecumenism, and then how the history of Christians killing Christians can be reckoned with to engender reconciliation and greater unity in the future.
Dr. Jeremy Bergen is the keynote lecturer for the 2026 De Margerie Series on Christian Reconciliation and Unity, with 7 p.m. local time presentations on Jan. 21 at Regina’s Campion College, and Jan. 22 at Saskatoon’s St. Thomas More College.
Bergen is a professor of religious and theological studies at Conrad Grebel University College, affiliated with both the University of Waterloo and the Mennonite Church of Canada. His talks will be available both live and via YouTube.
The author and former president of the Canadian Theological Society drew attention to how one of Pope Leo XIV’s first prominent ecumenical initiatives was a Sept. 14 service at St. Paul Outside the Walls Basilica commemorating the martyrs and witnesses of the faith during the 21st century. Pope Francis, Pope Benedict XVI and Pope John Paul hosted similar celebrations during their papacies.
“In some ways, the popes have really been at the forefront of highlighting the fact that there is suffering around the world,” said Bergen. "This is a present reality, not only a past reality. And that the Christian tradition of understanding certain sorts of victims of violence as martyrs is something that can be drawn on to transcend the other divisions that exist among churches.”
On multiple occasions, Pope John Paul II spoke about the “ecumenism of martyrs.” Pope Francis popularized the phrase “ecumenism of blood” to signify the harmony that arises among believers of different denominations during periods of persecution and martyrdom. All that ends up mattering is their shared love of Christ.
Bergen will highlights the legacies of specific contemporary martyrs to illustrate this conviction, including the beheadings of 21 Egyptian Coptic Christians on Feb. 15, 2015, by ISIS in Libya.
Pope Francis reacted to the killings by stating, “they only said, 'Jesus help me.’ The blood of our Christian brothers is testimony that cries out. Be they Catholic, Orthodox, Copts, Lutherans, it doesn’t matter: They’re Christian!”
Eight years later, in 2023, Francis made a significant ecumenical decision by declaring the 21 men would be commemorated by the Catholic Church and listed within the Roman Martyrology.
“There is this idea we can recognize martyrs across barriers,” said Bergen. “Solidarity in suffering is part of why the story of martyrs can be so powerful.”
The academic will caution spectators that martyrdom accounts have also sown disunity throughout history. For example, the story of the late 19th-century Ugandan Martyrs — 22 Catholics and 23 Anglicans — killed in the Kingdom of Buganda “has often been used in very complex and divisive ways around debates about human sexuality, but also about colonialism and post-colonialism.”
Bergen also noted how the “Eucharist ought to be a sacrament of unity, but it is pretty much the most divisive thing among Christians.” His second lecture delves into the differences that have led to Christians killing other Christians, and how this is a history “we have to face squarely.”
Drawing from his Mennonite background, Bergen will tell the story of Dirk Willems, a Dutch Anabaptist martyr who had escaped from prison but turned back to save his pursuer, who had fallen through thin ice while chasing Willems on foot. Willems’ rescue efforts were successful, but he was recaptured, tortured and killed on May 16, 1569, for his beliefs. Catholic authorities killed Willems for being rebaptized because this rejection of his infant baptism was deemed heretical to the Church.
Bergen will share an image of Pope Benedict XVI being presented with an image of Willems by the then-president of the Mennonite World Conference, Nancy Heisey, in 2007.
“I'll use that as a way to unpack why Dirk Willems has sort of risen to the top as an Anabaptist martyr and why (this moment) offers some keys to reconciliation,” said Bergen.
The De Margerie lectures are a tribute to the late Fr. Bernard De Margerie, a priest of the Diocese of Saskatoon and ecumenical pioneer who co-founded the Prairie Centre for Ecumenism.
Visit the Campion College and St. Thomas More College YouTube accounts to view Bergen’s presentations.
(Amundson is a staff writer for The Catholic Register.)
A version of this story appeared in the January 18, 2026, issue of The Catholic Register with the headline "Martyrdom, reconciliation and unity".
Share this article:
Join the conversation and have your say: submit a letter to the Editor. Letters should be brief and must include full name, address and phone number (street and phone number will not be published). Letters may be edited for length and clarity.
Special to The B.C. Catholic
