SAN DIEGO — Aug. 14 is the feast day of St. Maximilian Kolbe.
It’s also the 85th anniversary of the day on which the Franciscan friar was martyred at Auschwitz, the infamous Nazi death camp, where he offered his life in exchange for that of a fellow prisoner who was a husband and father.
St. Maximilian was canonized on Oct. 10, 1982, by Pope St. John Paul II.
Deacon Bobby Ehnow, director of the diocesan Office for Life, Peace and Justice, has long had a devotion to St. Maximilian, whom he describes as “a spiritual ally” and, at times, affectionately refers to as simply “Max.”
“He has been a ‘go-to’ saint of mine since I was incarcerated in 2013,” he said, “and I continue to ask for his intercession to counsel and bless the ministry that I lead at the diocese.”
Recently returned from a visit to the saint’s native Poland, which included a tour of Auschwitz, Deacon Ehnow reflected on his relationship with St. Maximilian and what we can learn from his life and death.
It was in the summer of 2013 that Deacon Ehnow first encountered St. Maximilian. At the time, the future deacon was an inmate at a
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