Recusant Catholics who were Martyred for the Catholic Faith in England, English Martyrs

In the history of England and Wales, recusancy was the state of those who refused to attend Anglican services. The individuals were known as "recusants". The term, which derives ultimately from the Latin recusare (to refuse or make an objection), was first used to refer to those who remained within the Roman Catholic Church and did not attend services of the Church of England, with a 1593 statute determining the penalties against "Popish recusants". 



Distribution of English Recusant Catholics, 1715-1720

This image is licensed under the

Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported License

The "Recusancy Acts", which began during the reign of Elizabeth I and which were repealed in 1650, imposed a number of punishments on those who did not participate in Anglican religious activity, including fines, property confiscation, and imprisonment. Despite their repeal, restrictions against Roman Catholics were still in place until full Catholic Emancipation in 1829. In some cases those adhering to Catholicism faced capital punishment, and a number of English and Welsh Catholics executed in the 16th and 17th centuries have been canonised by the Catholic Church as Christian Martyrs.

Elizabeth I's government had passed a number of anti-Catholic decrees in 1571, including the following: forbidding anyone from maintaining the jurisdiction of the pope by word, deed or act; compulsory use of the Book of Common Prayer in all cathedrals, churches and chapels, as well as the forbiddance of criticism of it; forbidding the publication of any bull, writing or instrument of the Holy See (the death penalty was assigned to this); the importing of Agnus Dei images, crosses, pictures, beads or other things from the Bishop of Rome was forbidden. Later laws: to draw anyone away from the state religion was forbidden; non-attendance at a Church of England church was legally forbidden; raising children with teachers that were not licensed by an Anglican diocesan bishop was not allowed; the Catholic Mass was forbidden.

Catholic lay women such as Saint Margaret Ward helped to keep the Catholic Faith alive in England by risking their lives to assist the hunted Catholic priests or provide secret Masses and devotions.  St. Margaret Ward was a young woman who planned the escape of a priest from Bridewell prison and when she was caught she was tortured for many days and eventually executed by order of Queen Elizabeth I for refusing to attend the Anglican services or deny the Catholic Faith.

Elizabethan layman St. Swithun Wells provided a secret room at the top of his house in Gray's Inn Lane, London where he organised for the illegal Holy Sacrifice of the Mass to be offered by missionary priests.  He sheltered priest Martyrs such as St. Eustace White, St. Polydore Plasden and St. Edmund Gennings, the latter of whom was hanged with him outside his home by the infamous priest-hunter Richard Topcliffe.

Saint Richard Gwyn, a Welsh schoolmaster with a love for folklore, the Welsh Bards, history and his family converted to the Catholic Faith during the Elizabethan persecutions in Wales  He was hunted for over a year and finally arrested and tried for Treason.  His arguments, defence and his Catholic devotions are recognised as important to Catholic history especially in Great Britain.

The Martyrs of England and Wales are especially loved by British Catholics and American Catholics.  An easy way to learn about the accounts of their lives, their historical settings, words, prayers and heroic witnesses is through film on DVD as well as the few writings/pamphlets available on them.

Films of recusant Catholic Martyrs such as

St. Anne Line

St. Margaret Ward

St. Richard Gwyn

St. Margaret Ward

St. Philip Howard

and other English Martyrs and Saints are available on DVD through www.marysdowryproductions.org/shop/

Among the recusants were some high profile aristocratic supporters, such as the Howards and for a time the Plantagenet descended Beauforts, amongst others. 

www.marysdowryproductions.org

St. John Fisher, English Martyr, Feast day, his life in film in a Catholic DVD

Photograph of St. John Fisher preaching at Rochester taken by
Fr. Lawrence Lew OP and used with his permission in a
film of the life of St. John Fisher by Mary's Dowry Productions.

Saint John Fisher, an English Martyr, shares a feast day with St. Thomas More.

Almost everyone has seen "A Man For All Seasons" which focuses upon St. Thomas More, but the only other leading figure in Catholic Tudor England who placed God before the King was St. John Fisher, the Bishop of Rochester who was made Cardinal of England in the Tower of London.  Beginning with his early life as a young boy, we follow St. John Fisher through the Tudor Courts, his assassination attempts on his life and his writings and holy family life.

In 2007 Mary’s Dowry productions created a new form of film media to present the lives of the saints. Mary’s Dowry Productions recreates stunning silent visuals, informative, devotional narration, and original contemplative music that touches your spirit to draw you into a spiritual encounter with the saint. Watch with your spiritual eye, listen with your spiritual ear. Our films seek to offer a window into the lives of our saints. Using your spiritual senses we invite you to shut out the world, sit prayerfully and peacefully and go on a journey of faith, history and prayer with Saint John Fisher.

www.marysdowryproductions.org/shop/

Available worldwide on DVD.  Produced in England.
 

St. Thomas More, three films, English Martyr, biographical information and devotions

In 2007 Mary's Dowry Productions created a new form of film media in which to present the lives of the Saints on DVD. We invite you to watch our film prayerfully and quietly and to engage your spiritual senses. Watch with your spiritual eye, listen with your spiritual ear. Mary's Dowry Productions loves to recreate key moments, silently and with no dialogue, from a Saint's life, using historical costume and beautiful backdrops. Original contemplative music runs beneath a detailed narrative that seeks to engage the viewer with the Saint. Our films offer a window into the life of each Saint.

 

A thorough detailed account with lots of information and covering all aspects of St. Thomas More's life.

Runs for 1 hour and 6 minutes.

Available through www.marysdowryproductions.org/shop/

Well Known Saints: Volume Three.

A short detailed biography of St. Thomas More on this volume from a series of DVDs.  Runs for five minutes and includes six other biographies of well known and popular Catholic Saints.

The Martyrs Walk. 

A 35 minute documentary tracing the route that many English Martyrs took from Tower Hill to the Tyburn Gallows.  Beginning at Tower Hill, the site of St. Thomas More's Martyrdom, with a short biography of the Saint included.

 



St. Thomas More, English Martyr, Catholic Saint, account of his life in film, Catholic DVD

Saint Thomas More (7 February 1478 – 6 July 1535), was an English Martyr, lawyer, social philosopher, author, statesman, and noted Renaissance humanist. He was an important councillor to Henry VIII of England and was Lord Chancellor from October 1529 to 16 May 1532.  He was an opponent of the Protestant Reformation and in particular of Martin Luther and William Tyndale. 

A detailed and thorough account of his whole life and Martyrdom available in a new film through AMAZON UK and AMAZON COM and

www.marysdowryproductions.org/shop/

An easy but clear way to study a simple but detailed, accurate and devotional account of St. Thomas More: St. Thomas More - the King's Good Servant and God's First.

St. Thomas More coined the word "utopia" – a name he gave to the ideal and imaginary island nation, the political system of which he described in Utopia published in 1516. He opposed the King's separation from the Catholic Church and refused to accept the King as Supreme Head of the Church of England, a title which had been given by parliament through the Act of Supremacy of 1534. He was imprisoned in 1534 for his refusal to take the oath required by the First Succession Act, because the act disparaged papal power and Henry’s marriage to Catherine of Aragon. In 1535, he was tried for treason, convicted on perjured testimony and beheaded.  Intellectuals and statesmen across Europe were stunned by St. Thomas More's execution. Erasmus saluted him as one "whose soul was more pure than any snow, whose genius was such that England never had and never again will have its like". Two centuries later Jonathan Swift said he was "the person of the greatest virtue this kingdom ever produced" (Prose Works of Jonathan Swift, v. 13, Oxford UP, 1959, p. 123), a sentiment with which Samuel Johnson agreed. Historian Hugh Trevor-Roper said in 1977 that More was "the first great Englishman whom we feel that we know, the most saintly of humanists, the most human of saints, the universal man of our cool northern renaissance."

St. Edmund Arrowsmith, English Martyr from the North of England, film of his life, executed Catholic priest

St. Edmund Arrowsmith was the son of Margery Gerard, a member of an important Lancashire Catholic family. Among his mother's relations was Father John Gerard, who wrote The Diary of an Elizabethan Priest, as well as another martyr, the Blessed Miles Gerard.

Edmund was born at Haydock, England in 1585, the eldest child. He was baptized Brian, but always used his confirmation name of Edmund. The family was constantly harassed for its adherence to Roman Catholicism and after an intense life of heroic sacrifice, danger and devotion for the Catholic Faith in England St. Edmund Arrowsmith earned a Martyrs crown.

A new and detailed account of the life of this English Martyr, St. Edmund Arrowsmith in a DVD available through AMAZON UK and AMAZON COM and

www.marysdowryproductions.org/shop/

Saint Edmund Arrowsmith's life contains many important details of his mission for 15 years among the people of Lancashire, his betrayal, arrest, imprisonment, his link to fellow Martyr St. John Southworth, his final words, his bravery, his Catholic Faith and devotions, his witness and beliefs and his understanding of the Catholic Faith in England and English history, all covered clearly in this new 45 minute account of his whole life, mission and Martyrdom.

He is one of the Forty Martyrs of England and Wales.

St. Padre Pio, new short film, DVD Well Known Saints Volume Two, Catholic movies on DVD

Saint Pio (Pius) of Pietrelcina, O.F.M. Cap. (25 May 1887 – 23 September 1968) was a Capuchin Catholic priest from Italy who is a Saint in the Catholic Church. He was born Francesco Forgione, and given the name Pius (Italian: Pio) when he joined the Capuchins, thus he was popularly known as Padre Pio. He became famous for his bearing the stigmata, his suffering for the conversion of sinners and the salvation of souls and his spiritual letters. On 16 June 2002, he was canonized by Pope John Paul II. 

A new short film on Saint Padre Pio makes up part of this Well Known Saints DVD series in Volume Two available through AMAZON UK and AMAZON COM

and

www.marysdowryproductions.org/shop/

A detailed and accurate account of Saint Padre Pio's life is presented in this short film with historical images and photographs giving a simple, easy, informative and devotional Catholic biography.

Other Saints on the DVD include:

St. Clare of Assisi

St. Ignatius of Loyola

St. Augustine

St. Maximilian Kolbe

St. Luke

and

St. Elizabeth.

This series is useful for Confirmation classes, schools, libraries and families and is available worldwide on DVD.  A great way to get to know the lives of the Saints through film.

St Joan of Arc, a new short film, biography on DVD, Well Known Saints Volume Three, Catholic

A fresh, detailed account of the life of Saint Joan of Arc in a short film on a popular DVD that is part of a Well Known Saints series.

Saint Joan of Arc's life is looked at in clear detail giving a useful, devotional and historical account in this short movie.

St. Joan of Arc is one of seven Saints film biographies in Volume Three that also include:

St. Matthew

St. Thomas More

St. Lucy

St. Martin de Porres

St. Bernadette

and

St. Peter

Available on DVD through AMAZON UK and AMAZON COM

and

www.marysdowryproductions.org/shop/

Priced at £9.99 each these are very good value Catholic DVDs useful in Confirmation classes, schools and libraries.



Saint Swithun Wells, a film of the life of this English Martyr, recusant Catholic, hanged in England

Saint Swithun Wells was named after an ancient Catholic Saint usually invoked for the weather.

After travelling the continent, Saint Swithun returned to England and married a devoutly Catholic woman named Alice. During the difficult time of Elizabethan England, Saint Swithun Wells loved to share the Catholic Faith with his friends and family. He built a secret room in his home in London where his friends were able to attend the outlawed Mass. When it was eventually discovered, Saint Swithun gave s a beautiful witness to love, joy and hope that shines as a lovely witness to the faith today. With beautiful scenery and contemplative music, Saint Swithun Wells tells his own story.

In 2007 Mary’s Dowry productions created a new form of film media to present the lives of the saints. Mary’s Dowry Productions recreates stunning silent visuals, informative, devotional narration, and original contemplative music that touches your spirit to draw you into a spiritual encounter with the saint. Watch with your spiritual eye, listen with your spiritual ear. Our films seek to offer a window into the lives of our saints. Using your spiritual senses we invite you to shut out the world, sit prayerfully and peacefully and go on a journey of faith, history and prayer with Saint Swithun Wells.

This film available on DVD through

 

www.marysdowryproductions.org/shop/

English Martyr keywords:

The English Martyrs, the Tyburn Tree, Tyburn gallows, Tower of London, recusant Catholic, Old Bailey, Saint Anne Line, Saint Edmund Campion, Ten Reasons, recusants, hurdle, rack, Popish plot, Society of Jesus, English Mission, Catholic Martyrs, Tyborn, Marian priests, Henry VIII, trial, Westminster, fines, rosary, devotional candles, St. Margaret Clitherow, Act of Supremacy, Act of Succession, execution, Jesuits, birettas, Treason, Plots, noose, the Gunpowder Plot, the counter-reformation, Catholic England, hanged, drawn and quartered, priest at the gallows, medieval torture, The English Reformation, Catholics until the Emancipation, English Martyrs, the Forty Martyrs of England and Wales, Protestant Reformation, Bridewell, Dissolution of the Monasteries, London bridge, Scavenger’s Daughter, Judas Chair, thumbscrews, martyrdom, Bell Tower, Eucharist, Catholic Sacraments, hangman, priest holes, safe houses, John Gerard, Medieval taverns, secret Mass, relics, medieval prison, Little Ease, Beast Market, stocks, beheading, Parliament, Queen Elizabeth I, manacles, Faith, fleas, rats, Topcliffe, ravens, chopping block, beheading axe, vestments, hidden room, Samuel Pepys, the plague, Henry Morse, city gates, castle walls, 40 Martyrs, traitor’s gate, persecution, Tudor Monarchy, Douai, Rheims, heroic sacrifice, Queen Elizabeth I, Cranmer, Book of Common Prayer, cauldron, pikes, betrayal, priest hunters, heretics, priest catchers, Papal Bull, Statue 27 Elizabeth.

Saint Bernadette of Lourdes, new short movie, biographical DVD, Well Known Saints Series volume Three

For a detailed, informative account of the life of St. Bernadette of Lourdes, here is a short film that makes up part of a series of films in Volume Three of our Well Known Saints DVDs.

Available through AMAZON UK and AMAZON COM and

www.marysdowryproductions.org/shop/

The series is excellent for Confirmation classes, schools and libraries.

The DVD includes additional biographies of:

St. Matthew

St. Joan of Arc

St. Thomas More

St. Lucy

St. Martine de Porres

and

St . Peter

St Gertrude the Great, film, Catholic mini movie - Well Known Saints Volume Four

For a detailed and interesting account of SAINT GERTRUDE THE GREAT here is a new mini-movie as part of our Volume Four of our Well Known Saints DVD series.

The DVD also includes six other biographies in short films on:

Saint John Fisher

Saint Teresa of Avila

Saint John Eudes

Saint Catherine of Siena

Saint Francis de Sales and Saint John the Evangelist.

Available through AMAZON UK and AMAZON COM and

www.marysdowryproductions.org/shop/

A popular series especially useful for Conformation classes, schools and libraries.

Gertrude the Great (or Saint Gertrude of Helfta) (Italian: Santa Gertrude) (January 6, 1256 – ca. 1302) was a German Benedictine, mystic, and theologian.  She is recognized as a saint by the Roman Catholic Church, and is inscribed in the General Roman Calendar, for celebration throughout the Latin Rite on November 16.  Gertrude was born January 6, 1256, in Eisleben, Thuringia (within the Holy Roman Empire). Nothing is known of her parents, so she was probably an orphan. As a young girl, she joined the Benedictine monastery of St. Mary at Helfta, under the direction of its abbess, Gertrude of Hackeborn. She is sometimes confused with her abbess, which is why she is often incorrectly depicted in art holding a crosier. Some scholars refer to the monastery as Cistercian, since it was founded by seven sisters from the Cistercian community of Halberstadt. However, it could not have had this status officially since it was founded in 1229, the year after the Cistercian men decided they would sponsor no more convents. She dedicated herself to her studies, becoming an expert in literature and philosophy. She later experienced a conversion to God and began to strive for perfection in her religious life, turning her scholarly talents to scripture and theology. Gertrude produced numerous writings, but only the Herald of God's Loving-Kindness, partly written by other nuns and formerly known as her Life and Revelations, and the Spiritual Exercises remain today. She had various mystical experiences, including a vision of Jesus, who invited her to rest her head on his breast to hear the beating of his heart, and the piercing of her heart with divine love.

Gertrude died at Helfta, near Eisleben, Saxony, around 1302. Her feas tday is celebrated on November 16, but the exact date of her death is unknown; the November date stems from a confusion with Abbess Gertrude of Hackeborn.  Though Gertrude was never formally canonized, nevertheless she received equipotent canonization, and a universal feast day was declared in the year 1677 by Pope Clement XII.  Gertrude showed "tender sympathy towards the souls in purgatory" and urged prayers for them. She is therefore invoked for souls in purgatory.

Eternal Father, I offer Thee the most Precious Blood of Thy Divine Son, Jesus Christ, in union with the Masses said throughout the world today, for all the Holy Souls in Purgatory, for sinners everywhere, for sinners in the Universal Church, for those in my own home and within my family. Amen.

Catholic Martyrs DVDs, Jesuits, priests, laywomen, English Reformation, priest holes and Catholic recusants

English Martyrs such as St. Nicholas Owen feature in a selection of films from Mary's Dowry Productions.
In 2007 Mary’s Dowry productions created a new form of film media to present the lives of the saints. Mary’s Dowry Productions recreates stunning silent visuals, informative, devotional narration, and original contemplative music that touches your spirit to draw you into a spiritual encounter with the saint. Watch with your spiritual eye, listen with your spiritual ear. Our films seek to offer a window into the lives of our saints. Using your spiritual senses we invite you to shut out the world, sit prayerfully and peacefully and go on a journey of faith, history and prayer with the Saints.

Martyrs such as St. Anne Line, St. Edmund Campion, Saint Polydore Plasden and St. Edmund Arrowsmith are available on DVD through

www.marysdowryproductions.org/shop/

 

Key words:

The English Martyrs, the Tyburn Tree, Tyburn gallows, Tower of London, recusant Catholic, Old Bailey, Saint Anne Line, Saint Edmund Campion, Ten Reasons, recusants, hurdle, rack, Popish plot, Society of Jesus, English Mission, Catholic Martyrs, Tyborn, Marian priests, Henry VIII, trial, Westminster, fines, rosary, devotional candles, St. Margaret Clitherow, Act of Supremacy, Act of Succession, execution, Jesuits, birettas, Treason, Plots, noose, the Gunpowder Plot, the counter-reformation, Catholic England, hanged, drawn and quartered, priest at the gallows, medieval torture, The English Reformation, Catholics until the Emancipation, English Martyrs, the Forty Martyrs of England and Wales, Protestant Reformation, Bridewell, Dissolution of the Monasteries, London bridge, Scavenger’s Daughter, Judas Chair, thumbscrews, martyrdom, Bell Tower, Eucharist, Catholic Sacraments, hangman, priest holes, safe houses, John Gerard, Medieval taverns, secret Mass, relics, medieval prison, Little Ease, Beast Market, stocks, beheading, Parliament, Queen Elizabeth I, manacles, Faith, fleas, rats, Topcliffe, ravens, chopping block, beheading axe, vestments, hidden room, Samuel Pepys, the plague, Henry Morse, city gates, castle walls, 40 Martyrs, traitor’s gate, persecution, Tudor Monarchy, Douai, Rheims, heroic sacrifice, Queen Elizabeth I, Cranmer, Book of Common Prayer, cauldron, pikes, betrayal, priest hunters, heretics, priest catchers, Papal Bull, Statue 27 Elizabeth.



St. Francis of Assisi, his life and spirituality on DVD

In 2007 Mary's Dowry Productions created a new form of film media in which to present the lives of the Saints on DVD. We invite you to watch our film prayerfully and quietly and to engage your spiritual senses. Watch with your spiritual eye, listen with your spiritual ear. Mary's Dowry Productions loves to recreate key moments, silently and with no dialogue, from a Saint's life, using historical costume and beautiful backdrops. Original contemplative music runs beneath a detailed narrative that seeks to engage the viewer with the Saint. Our films offer a window into the life of each Saint.

 

www.marysdowryproductions.org/shop/

Keywords:

St. Francis, Franciscan, Clare, Saints, Assisi, Franciscan spirituality, Third Order, Saint Francis, King of Feasts, Patron Saints of Ecology, Wolf, habit, stigmata, animals, Dr. Dolittle, Radical, Giovanni Francesco di Bernardone, from the cross in the neglected field-chapel of San Damiano, Christ told him, "Francis, go out and build up my house, for it is nearly falling down." Francis became the totally poor and humble workman, Seraphic Order, Seraphim, Visions, Catholic Saint, brown habit, coarse habit, movie, saint Clare, Brother Juniper, patron saints of animals and ecology, poor clares, brother Leo, Friary, Church, Shrine, Saint Anthony, Pope Innocent III, beggar at St. Peter’s, Poor man, wounds of Christ’s Passion, Mystic, Confessor, Founder, Pax et Bonam, Tau Cross, Italy, Merchants, Stowaways, Poor Franciscan Habit, Brother Sun and Sister Moon, Lady Poverty, DVD, 12^th Century Italy, 13^th Century Italy, tonsure, San Rufino, Primitive Rule, St. Francis of Assisi prayer, Psalm 141, 40 day fast, Michaelmas, October 3^rd 1226, Praise of Creatures, Canticle of the Sun, St. Francis Film, Little Flowers of St. Francis, Patron of Italy, Francesco.

The Forty Martyrs of England and Wales, films of their lives on DVD

The Forty Martyrs of England and Wales is a group of men and women who were executed for Treason and related offences in the Kingdom of England between 1535 and 1679.
Even amidst such troubling times each one gives an example of love, joy and hope in the context of our timeless Catholic Faith.
Forty of our English Martyrs were Canonized on 25 October 1970 by Pope Paul VI.

In 2007 Mary’s Dowry productions created a new form of film media to present the lives of the saints. Mary’s Dowry Productions recreates stunning silent visuals, informative, devotional narration, and original contemplative music that touches your spirit to draw you into a spiritual encounter with the saint. Watch with your spiritual eye, listen with your spiritual ear. Our films seek to offer a window into the lives of our saints. Using your spiritual senses we invite you to shut out the world, sit prayerfully and peacefully and go on a journey of faith, history and prayer with our Saints.

Out of the Forty Martyrs of England and Wales, Mary's Dowry Productions has produced DVDs of the lives of the many of our Martyrs:

 

Each of these are available on DVD through our online shop:

www.marysdowryproductions.org/shop/

The Forty Martyrs of England and Wales:

Saint John Almond Saint Edmund Arrowsmith Saint Ambrose Barlow Saint John Boste Saint Alexander Briant Saint Edmund Campion Saint Margaret Clitherow Saint Philip Evans Saint Thomas Garnet Saint Edmund Gennings

Saint Richard Gwyn Saint John Houghton Saint Philip Howard, 20th Earl of Arundel Saint John Jones Saint John Kemble Saint Luke Kirby Saint Robert Lawrence Saint David Lewis Saint Anne Line Saint John Lloyd

Saint Cuthbert Mayne Saint Henry Morse Saint Nicholas Owen Saint John Payne Saint Polydore Plasden Saint John Plessington Saint Richard Reynolds Saint John Rigby Saint John Roberts Saint Alban Roe

Saint Ralph Sherwin Saint John Southworth Saint Robert Southwell Saint John Stone Saint John Wall Saint Henry Walpole Saint Margaret Ward Saint Augustine Webster Saint Swithun Wells Saint Eustace White

St Richard Gwyn, Catholic Martyr, film on DVD of his life

In 2007 Mary’s Dowry productions created a new form of film media to present the lives of the saints. Mary’s Dowry Productions recreates stunning silent visuals, informative, devotional narration, and original contemplative music that touches your spirit to draw you into a spiritual encounter with the saint. Watch with your spiritual eye, listen with your spiritual ear. Our films seek to offer a window into the lives of our saints. Using your spiritual senses we invite you to shut out the world, sit prayerfully and peacefully and go on a journey of faith, history and prayer with Saint Richard Gwyn. Closing the distance of time between Elizabethan England and the present day, encounter this inspiring husband, father and Saint. 

Length and Format: 

The film runs for 45 minutes and is available on Region Free DVD worldwide.

 

www.marysdowryproductions.org/shop/



St Thomas More, St. John Fisher, new films of their lives, English Martyrs on film by English film production company

Almost everyone has seen "A Man For All Seasons" which focuses upon St. Thomas More, but the only other leading figure in Catholic Tudor England who placed God before the King was St. John Fisher, the Bishop of Rochester who was made Cardinal of England in the Tower of London.  Beginning with his early life as a young boy, we follow St. John Fisher through the Tudor Courts, his assassination attempts on his life and his writings and holy family life.

In 2007 Mary’s Dowry productions created a new form of film media to present the lives of the saints. Mary’s Dowry Productions recreates stunning silent visuals, informative, devotional narration, and original contemplative music that touches your spirit to draw you into a spiritual encounter with the saint. Watch with your spiritual eye, listen with your spiritual ear. Our films seek to offer a window into the lives of our saints. Using your spiritual senses we invite you to shut out the world, sit prayerfully and peacefully and go on a journey of faith, history and prayer with Saint John Fisher and Saint Thomas More on two new DVDs.

Available on DVD through:

www.marysdowryproductions.org/shop/

 



St. Edmund Gennings, film, English Martyr, Elizabethan England and Catholic history on DVD

The account of the life and mission of English Martyr St. Edmund Gennings.

This film presents in detail the account of a 24 year old priest in Elizabethan England.

With historical details, facts, information and imagery the faith and understanding of St. Edmund Gennings is presented in a film that is useful in schools, families, parishes and for information.

Treason, torture, plots.  Interesting information on the Catholic Faith in Elizabethan England.

The Elizabethen government and monarchy is also looked at.

London, the Tower of London and the priestly formation when it was illegal to train for the priesthood in England.

Using a specific approach for a thorough and informative look at the life of a little known English Martyr.

The film is available on DVD through:

www.marysdowryproductions.org/shop/

and

AMAZON

St. Polydore Plasden, English Martyr, Catholic priest, Elizabethan England and Reformation in film

The account of an Elizabethan priest's life and mission during the Reformation in England.

St. Polydore Plasden was a Catholic priest from Fleet Street in London.

His account is detailed in a film wholly centered on this specific English Martyr.

The account presents the facts and details of his life while marking clearly the historical, political and Catholic setting in England at this pivitol time in the history of the Faith.

Other figures from history are linked to St. Polydore Plasden's account.

Details and imagery of London, the Tower of London etc...

The actor who portrays selected imagery of the priest captures St. Polydore's serenity and determination as well as Catholic piety.

The film is available on DVD through:

www.marysdowryproductions.org/shop/

and

AMAZON

Blessed Francisco, Franciso Marto, new Fatima film on DVD

In 2007 Mary's Dowry Productions created a new form of film media in which to present the lives of the Saints on DVD. We invite you to watch our film prayerfully and quietly and to engage your spiritual senses. Watch with your spiritual eye, listen with your spiritual ear. Mary's Dowry Productions loves to recreate key moments, silently and with no dialogue, from a Saint's life, using historical costume and beautiful backdrops. Original contemplative music runs beneath a detailed narrative that seeks to engage the viewer with the Saint. Our films offer a window into the life of each Saint.

 

A special presentation in film that develops and draws the viewer into the account of Fatima seen especially through the ten year old shepherd boy's account and reactions.

Details, facts, photographs, documentation and film.
Blessed Franciso Marto's life is covered carefully.

The Catholic Faith is presented in a simple, direct way.

The life of Blessed Francisco is presented clearly, factually and capturing the depth of his Faith and devotion.

Useful for schools but highly recommended for devotional uses, prayer groups, reflection and information.

The film is available on DVD through:

www.marysdowryproductions.org/shop/

 

St. Simon Stock, the Brown Scapular, the whole story in a film on DVD, Carmelite, Saint, England, Our Lady of Carmel

Saint Simon Stock was a humble, kind and deeply devout Catholic Carmelite friar who was visited by Our Lady in 13th Century England. Our Lady gave Saint Simon Stock the Brown Scapular, a sacramental that is recommended by Pope's and Saints for all children of God to wear. 
This inspiring journey on DVD unfolds in the context of history and faith, complimented by original contemplative and uplifting music.

A young Saint Simon Stock prays against temptations
© 2012 Mary's Dowry Productions
Screenshot from 'Saint Simon Stock and the Brown Scapular'

In 2007 Mary’s Dowry productions created a new form of film media to present the lives of the saints. Mary’s Dowry Productions recreates stunning silent visuals, informative, devotional narration, and original contemplative music that touches your spirit to draw you into a spiritual encounter with the saint. Watch with your spiritual eye, listen with your spiritual ear. Our films seek to offer a window into the lives of our saints. Using your spiritual senses we invite you to shut out the world, sit prayerfully and peacefully and go on a journey of faith, history and prayer with Saint Simon Stock. Closing the distance of time between Elizabethan England and the present day, encounter this inspiring young wife and mother. 

Length and Format: 

The film runs for one hour and is available on Region Free DVD worldwide.
 

Including quotes from Blessed John Paul II and the Little Flower.
 

Available through:

www.marysdowryproductions.org/shop/

 



St. Margaret Clitherow, the shining Pearl of York, her life presented on DVD

One of our great English Martyrs, Saint Margaret Clitherow, has been known in history since her death, as the Shining Pearl of York. She was a Catholic convert at a time when it was illegal to be a member of the outlawed Catholic Church in Elizabethan England, yet she showed no fear for standing close to the Pope, the Church and the Truths of the Faith even at the risk of her own life. She worked in her husband's butcher shop in York down a popular street called 'The Shambles'. It was here that she shone as an example of kindness, piety and devotion, taking the opportunities of her contact with customers, neighbours and friends to defend the persecuted Catholic Church as well as encourage those who were terrorized by the anti-Catholic government to hold firm to the Faith.

Not only did Saint Margaret Clitherow live and breath the Catholic Faith, devotions and piety in her daily life, but she determinedly organised and kept secret rooms, holes and safe locations, even in her own home, for hunted Catholic missionary priests. She hid sacred vessels used in the celebration of the illegal Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, educated her beloved children and the children of her neighbours in the Catechism of the Catholic Church, lit devotional candles, prayed the rosary and other illegal activities, which saw her arrested numerous times.

Saint Margaret Clitherow also adamantly refused to attend the Protestant Services which were legally required by the State Church and Protestant Government. Her husband, although he never converted himself, allowed his beloved wife to remain loyal to the True Church and many times paid her fines.

Eventually, the law caught up with Saint Margaret who was betrayed by one of her little students into revealing the location of sacred Mass vessels and the hiding place of a priest. She was arrested, imprisoned and subjected to a trial where she refused to defend herself so as to protect her family and friends. She was sentenced to death and suffered a rare and unusual execution by law. It is believed that she was expecting a child when she was crushed to death for her Catholic Faith in Elizabethan York.



The English poet and Jesuit priest Gerard Manley Hopkins wrote a poem honouring "God's daughter Margaret Clitheroe." The poem, entitled "Margaret Clitheroe" was among fragments and unfinished poems of Hopkins discovered after his death and is a tribute to the woman, to her faith and courage, and to the manner of her death.

Saint Margaret Clitherow before the authorities
© 2009 Mary's Dowry Productions

Screenshot from 'The Shining Pearl of York'

In 2007 Mary’s Dowry productions created a new form of film media to present the lives of the saints. Mary’s Dowry Productions recreates visuals, informative, devotional narration, and original contemplative music that touches your spirit to draw you into a spiritual encounter with the saint. Watch with your spiritual eye, listen with your spiritual ear. Our films seek to offer a window into the lives of our saints. Using your spiritual senses we invite you to shut out the world, sit prayerfully and peacefully and go on a journey of faith, history and prayer with Saint Margaret Clitherow. Closing the distance of time between Elizabethan England and the present day, encounter this inspiring young wife and mother. 

Length and Format: 

The film runs for 30 minutes and is available on Region Free DVD worldwide.

www.marysdowryproductions.org/shop/

Saint Etheldreda film, abbess of Ely, DVD, Saxon Saint

In 2007 Mary’s Dowry productions created a new form of film media to present the lives of the saints. Mary’s Dowry Productions recreates stunning silent visuals, informative, devotional narration, and original contemplative music that touches your spirit to draw you into a spiritual encounter with the saint. Watch with your spiritual eye, listen with your spiritual ear. Our films seek to offer a window into the lives of our saints. Using your spiritual senses we invite you to shut out the world, sit prayerfully and peacefully and go on a journey of faith, history and prayer with Saint Etheldreda. Closing the distance of time between Elizabethan England and the present day, encounter this inspiring princess, Queen and Abbess of Ely. 

Length and Format: 

The film runs for 45 and is available on Region Free DVD worldwide.

 

The film is available on DVD worldwide through:

www.marysdowryproductions.org/shop/

 

St Alexander Briant, English Martyr, companion of St. Edmund Campion at Tyburn Gallows, London, a film on DVD

 

A young man from Somerset in England who loved God so much that he wished to bring Him to the people of England during the troubled days of the Elizabethan Era. Although he us linked to Saint Edmund Campion, Saint Alexander Briant stands alone as an inspiring figure. His love for God and his fellow man often attracted beautiful and mysterious events. Contemplative, moving original music and recreated scenes from his life run beneath an absorbing narrative.

In 2007 Mary’s Dowry productions created a new form of film media to present the lives of the saints. Mary’s Dowry Productions recreates stunning silent visuals, informative, devotional narration, and original contemplative music that touches your spirit to draw you into a spiritual encounter with the saint. Watch with your spiritual eye, listen with your spiritual ear. Our films seek to offer a window into the lives of our saints. Using your spiritual senses we invite you to shut out the world, sit prayerfully and peacefully and go on a journey of faith, history and prayer with Saint Margaret Clitherow. Closing the distance of time between Elizabethan England and the present day, encounter this inspiring young priest. 

Length and Format: 

The film runs for 30 minutes and is available now on all region formats and available worldwide through:

www.marysdowryproductions.org/shop/

 

Check our website for updates and release dates of our films:

www.marysdowryproductions.org 

Blesseds DVD: JPII, Mother Teresa, John Henry Newman, Alexandrina, Pier Giorgio Frassati, Dominic Barberi and Francis Xavier Seelos

Coming soon - a new DVD series - Well-Known Blesseds of the Church.

A chance to focus on these Beatified men and women of the Church.

7 mini-movies between 5-10 minutes each with informations and details of the life and Faith of each Blessed.

Useful for devotion, Confirmation classes etc...

An easy and interesting way to learn the biographies of these Blesseds.

Volume One:

Pope John Paul II

Mother Teresa

John Henry Newman

Alexandrina

Francis Xavior Seelos

Pier Giorgio Frassati

Dominic Barberi

COMING SOON to DVD

Visit www.marysdowryproductions.org for updates and links.

Well Known Saints Volume Four, film series on the Saints

New for 2012 is volume four of our popular DVD series on the well-known Saints of the Church.

7 more mini-movies of Saints are presented.

An interactive menu lists the seven Saints who are each presented in detailed five minute films..

This series is useful for schools and Confirmation classes, families and devotional use.

The new volumes and the rest of the series are available through:

www.marysdowryproductions.org/shop/

and

Amazon UK and Amazon COM

St Edmund Arrowsmith, film, DVD, Martyr of Northern England

In 2007 Mary’s Dowry productions created a new form of film media to present the lives of the saints. Mary’s Dowry Productions recreates stunning silent visuals, informative, devotional narration, and original contemplative music that touches your spirit to draw you into a spiritual encounter with the saint. Watch with your spiritual eye, listen with your spiritual ear. Our films seek to offer a window into the lives of our saints. Using your spiritual senses we invite you to shut out the world, sit prayerfully and peacefully and go on a journey of faith, history and prayer with Saint Edmund Arrosmith. Closing the distance of time between Elizabethan England and the present day, encounter this inspiring priest. 

Length and Format: 

The film runs for 40 minutes and is available on Region Free DVD worldwide.
 

The DVD is available worldwide through:

www.marysdowryproductions.org/shop/