19th century
Feast: October 24
A weaver's son who survived fifteen assassination attempts as Archbishop of Cuba, published over two hundred books, and founded a missionary order while on the run.
Anthony Mary Claret learned early that preaching the Gospel could get you killed. A Catalan weaver's son turned priest, he spent his early career preaching parish missions across Spain before being appointed Archbishop of Santiago de Cuba in 1850. Cuba was a colonial powder keg — slavery was legal, corruption was rampant, and the wealthy plantation class did not want a reforming archbishop. Claret pushed for the emancipation of slaves, reformed the clergy, built schools, and preached constantly. He survived fifteen assassination attempts, including one where a man slashed his face with a razor. Rather than retaliate, Claret publicly forgave the attacker and helped pay for his defense. He also understood media in a way ahead of his time — he founded a publishing house, wrote over two hundred books and pamphlets, and saw the printing press as a tool for evangelization equal to the pulpit. He founded the Missionary Sons of the Immaculate Heart of Mary (the Claretians) to carry on this dual mission of preaching and publishing. Recalled to Spain as Queen Isabella II's confessor, he was caught up in the political turmoil of her reign and died in exile in a French Cistercian monastery in 1870.