Josef Beran

Josef Beran (29 December 1888 – 17 May 1969) was a Czech Catholic prelate who served as Archbishop of Prague from 1946 until his death. He was elevated to the cardinalate in 1965.

Adam Beran was imprisoned in the Dachau concentration camp during World War II after the Nazis had targeted him for "subversive and dangerous" behavior where he almost died in 1943 due to disease. He was freed in 1945 upon Allied liberation and Pope Pius XII nominated him to head the Prague archdiocese.

Life Education and priesthood Josef Beran was born in Plzeň on 29 December 1888 as the eldest of four children to the schoolteacher Josef Beran and Marie Lindauerová (b. 16 May 1866; the niece of famous painter Gottfried Lindauer). Father Josef Jaroslav baptized Beran whose godparents were Josef Beneš and Rozálie Benešová. ) and in public protested the seizure of land that belonged to the Prague archdiocese. as well as the infringement of religious freedom. He declared: "The Catholic Church should enjoy the absolute freedom to which it has a right, both God-given and guaranteed by the existing Constitution". He condemned as schismatic the Communist government-approved Czech Catholic Action. On 19 June 1949 he was placed under house arrest and complained of being "deprived of all personal freedom and all rights as the archbishop".

He was convicted in a show trial and his house arrest - confining him to the archiepiscopal residence - ended on 7 March 1951. On 10 March he was taken from Prague with few knowing his precise location. In that period he was first taken to a villa near Liberec before being sent to Mištěves and Hořice. He was then sent to Paběnice and Mukařov near Prague. On 4 October 1963 before going to Radvanov. His release came in 1963 and he was forbidden to perform his ecclesial duties; this lasted until his relocation to Rome in 1965.

Pope Paul VI elevated him into the cardinalate and made him the Cardinal-Priest of Santa Croce in Via Flaminia on 22 February 1965; he received his red hat and title on 25 February. In 1966 he made a trip to the United States of America where he received several honorary academic citations. In 1968 the pope sent him a letter in Latin to commemorate his 80th birthday. In 1969 he gave an address on Vatican Radio in response to the suicide of Jan Palach. Beran disapproved of his suicide but highlighted Palach's ideals. His address drew some criticism.

Beatification process The beatification process for Beran was introduced on 9 February 1998 after the Congregation for the Causes of Saints titled the late cardinal as a Servant of God and issued the official "nihil obstat" edict opening the cause; this came after the forum for the cause was moved on 14 February 1997 from Rome to Prague. On 2 April 1998 the beatification process was launched in Prague in a diocesan process tasked with the collection of both documentation and witness testimonies in relation to his life and reputation for holiness. Cardinal Miloslav Vlk presided over the launch of the process with the apostolic nuncio Giovanni Coppa present. The diocesan process was later closed on 17 May 2018.