John Paine, Priest
Also known as John Payne
Feast day: April 2
Born in Peterborough, England;
Died at Chelmsford, England, April 2, 1582;
Beatified in 1886;
canonized in 1970 by Pope Paul VI as one of the Forty Martyrs of England and Wales.
It seems that Saint John was a convert to Catholicism. He went to Douai in 1574, was ordained two years later, and immediately sent on the English mission with Saint Cuthbert Mayne. Payne was so successful in bringing back many to the Church that he was arrested a year after his arrival in England. He was released and left England, but returned in 1579.
Again he was arrested--this time in Warwickshire, where he was acting as steward for Lady Petre at Ingatestone Hall, which Lady Petre used as a hiding place for priests. He was accused of plotting to murder the Queen by one John Eliot, a seasoned criminal and murderer who denounced dozens of priests for money.
Payne was imprisoned and tortured in the Tower for nine months before being condemned to death. He was hanged, drawn, and quartered--the usual punishment for being a Catholic priest in Protestant England. This meant he was hanged on a gallows, but cut down before losing consciousness. While still alive and aware, his body was ripped open, eviscerated, and the hangman groped about among the entrails until he found the heart--which he tore out and showed to the people before throwing it on a fire
Also known as John Payne
Feast day: April 2
Born in Peterborough, England;
Died at Chelmsford, England, April 2, 1582;
Beatified in 1886;
canonized in 1970 by Pope Paul VI as one of the Forty Martyrs of England and Wales.
It seems that Saint John was a convert to Catholicism. He went to Douai in 1574, was ordained two years later, and immediately sent on the English mission with Saint Cuthbert Mayne. Payne was so successful in bringing back many to the Church that he was arrested a year after his arrival in England. He was released and left England, but returned in 1579.
Again he was arrested--this time in Warwickshire, where he was acting as steward for Lady Petre at Ingatestone Hall, which Lady Petre used as a hiding place for priests. He was accused of plotting to murder the Queen by one John Eliot, a seasoned criminal and murderer who denounced dozens of priests for money.
Payne was imprisoned and tortured in the Tower for nine months before being condemned to death. He was hanged, drawn, and quartered--the usual punishment for being a Catholic priest in Protestant England. This meant he was hanged on a gallows, but cut down before losing consciousness. While still alive and aware, his body was ripped open, eviscerated, and the hangman groped about among the entrails until he found the heart--which he tore out and showed to the people before throwing it on a fire
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