"I have lived for Christ; I want to die for Christ."
her last words
her last words
Blessed Mary Restituta Kafka was the 6th daughter of a shoemaker born on May 1, 1894 in Brno, Czechoslovakia (modern day Czech Republic) as Helena. She grew up in Vienna, Austria. She worked as a sales clerk and then a nurse.
She joined the Franciscan Sisters of Christian Charity in 1914 and took the name Restituta who was a martyr of the early Church. Beginning in 1919, she worked as a surgical nurse for 20 years. She was known as a protector of the poor and oppressed. She was a vocal opponent of the Nazis. Sister Restituta hung a crucifix in every room of the new hospital wing. The Nazis ordered them to be removed and she refused. She was arrested by the Gestapo in 1942 and was sentenced to death on October 28, 1942 for "aiding and abetting the enemy in the betrayal of the fatherland and for plotting high treason." However, Martin Bormann decided that her execution would provide "effective intimidation" for other Nazi opponents. Therefore she spend the rest of her life in prison caring for other prisoners, even Communist prisoners spoke well of her. She was offered freedom if she would abandon her religious community; she declined and died a martyr. She was beheaded on March 30, 1943 in Vienna, Austria. She was beatified on June 21, 1998 and awaits canonization.
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