Teofilius Matulionis

Teofilius Matulionis (22 June 1873 – 20 August 1962) was a Lithuanian prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He was consecrated a bishop in secret and spent most of his years as bishop in prison. His death was likely due to poisoning by officials of the USSR.

Pope Francis approved his beatification on 1 December 2016 and it was celebrated in Vilnius at the cathedral square on 25 June 2017.

Life Teofilius Matulionis was born on 22 June 1873 in Molėtai, a town then in the Russian Empire, now in Lithuania. He was the second of three children to Jurgis Matulionis (1833–1911) and Ona Juočepytė (1851-9 May 1877); his two brothers were Jonas (1871–1920) and Juozas (1875–1955). After his mother died, his father remarried, and he and his second wife had seven children.

Matulionis studied at Antalieptė from 1887 to 1892 and then at Daugpilis from 1892 to 1900. He graduated from high school in Latvia and began his theological studies for the priesthood in Saint Petersburg, Russia, where he was ordained on 17 March 1900. He was assigned to a small parish in Latgalia, Latvia, beginning on 26 June 1900 and transferred in 1910 to the parish of the Immaculate Heart of Jesus in Saint Petersburg, where Catholicism was a minority religion. He led a campaign to construct a new parish church, and he was awarded the title Monsignor. In 1934 he met Pius XI in a private audience and the pope said to him: "It is an honor to the Lithuanian nation to have such a hero". In 1943, during World War II, Pope Pius XII made him bishop of Kaišiadorys, Lithuania. He was arrested a third time for releasing a pastoral letter in 1946 and was sentenced to another decade in prison.

Posthumous honors In 2003 he was granted the Life Saving Cross and in 2006 awarded the Grand Cross of the Order of the Cross of Vytis for his heroism and sacrifices. Cardinal Angelo Amato, Prefect of the CSS, presided at the beatification ceremony on 25 June 2017 in Vilnius.

The current postulator for the cause of canonization is Fr. Mindaugas Sabonis.