Aloysius Stepinac
Croatian Roman Catholic cardinal, archbishop of Zagreb (1898-1960) and blessed
Feast: 10 February (not on the universal Roman calendar; kept in the Roman Martyrology or local calendars)
Who they were
Alojzije Stepinac was born on 8 May 1898 at Brezarić in Croatia to a family of well-off farmers. He was ordained in Rome in 1930 and in 1934 consecrated coadjutor Archbishop of Zagreb.
During the Second World War he condemned every injustice and the killing of the innocent. Imprisoned from October 1946 to 1951 and then confined to his home village of Krašić, he died there on 10 February 1960, worn out by illness and privation. The Church honours him as a martyr.
The miracles
Recognised as a martyr, he was beatified without a miracle.
Why that counted as sanctity
A bishop who stood against doctrines that denied both faith and human dignity, and paid for his fidelity to the Church with prison and death.
Connected on this site
- Pius XII Venerable“In 1953 he was elevated to the rank of cardinal by Pope Pius XII.” — Wikipedia
- Dicastery for the Causes of Saints - biography: Alojzije Stepinac
- Wikidata Q310505 — dates, feast day and identifiers (CC0)
- English Wikipedia — Aloysius Stepinac (CC BY-SA)
Checked against the sources listed on 21 September 2026. Corrections welcome.