Valentin Berrio Otxoa
Saint of Elorrio and sub Saint of Bizkaia
He was born on 14 February 1827 in the Biscayan town of Elorrio. At the age of 15 he told his father that he wanted to be a priest, but the family economy was not at all good and he had to stay and work in the carpentry shop. He remained in this position for three years, until he entered the Logroño Seminary in the autumn of 1845.
For two years he carried out apostolic tasks in the seminary, as spiritual director and in various parishes in the city. As he was very cheerful and exercised body and soul with others, his faithful began to appreciate and fully appreciate him.
They travelled to Cadiz to take the ship to Manila and, after six months learning the Annamese language, they moved to Tonkin to make their faith, now Vietnam, understood.
He wrote letters to his mother, in Basque, explaining what was happening. He was denounced and arrested, the result was also known: the death penalty. He was canonised in 1988 along with 116 other Vietnamese martyrs.
Today, on 4 July, Berrio Otxoa Day is celebrated in Elorrio in his honour and he has a museum in the convent of Santa Ana.
Antzeko Artikuluak
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