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Baptism by Fire (St Anna Wang)

St Anna Wang was born in Hebei Province, China, in 1886 to a Catholic family. After her mother passed away, she dedicated herself to studying the catechism and continually devoted herself to pious exercises. At the age of 10, she dedicated herself to God. She firmly refused an arranged marriage, declaring that she wanted to belong entirely to Jesus and to remain pure for Him. When she was 14 years old, Christians in China were persecuted by the Boxers. As this group approached her village, Anna took refuge in a Catholic school with a group of Catholic women. Young Anna led the women in prayers and encouraged them to persevere in their faith. When the Boxers arrived, the women were commanded to renounce God or die. Anna and other Catholics from her area were seized and locked together in rooms, awaiting their fate. One account describes how some Christians were shut in an “East Room” while others were placed elsewhere, and throughout this time, the Boxers tried to break the prisoners’ resolve by terror, hunger and fear. Even in such dire conditions, Anna encouraged those around her, reminding them that the sufferings of this life are nothing compared to the glory of heaven promised to the faithful.​ During their imprisonment, Anna’s own stepmother—terrified by the threats—chose to save her life by denying Christ. This was a severe test for Anna, who loved her family, but she refused to follow the example of apostasy even when it meant losing the support of those closest to her. Standing before her elders, she declared that she would rather die than abandon her faith, choosing the “narrow way” of the Gospel with a maturity beyond her years.​ Eventually, the Christians were led out to be killed, including mothers with their children and even infants. The atrocities committed were horrifying: some victims were mutilated, others were slain before the eyes of their loved ones, all to force the survivors to deny the faith. In the midst of this horror, Anna knelt and continued to pray, strengthening the others and fixing her gaze on Christ rather than on the cruelty unfolding around her.​ One Boxer approached Anna and offered her life if she would deny Christ and abandon the Church. She refused firmly, proclaiming variations of the words remembered by multiple sources: “I am a Catholic. I will never deny God. It is better for me to die” or “I am a Christian, and I shall die a Christian.” Enraged by her courage, the executioner began to torture her, cutting flesh from her shoulder and then severing her left arm, yet Anna remained kneeling and continued to confess her faith.​ According to eyewitness accounts, she spoke of heaven as if the doors were open before her, saying words like “The door of heaven is open,” while softly repeating the Holy Name of Jesus. At last, she bowed her head and extended her neck to receive the fatal blow; in one swift movement, she was beheaded and thus entered the glory she had contemplated. She was only fourteen years old.​ ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Lyrics by: Milites Ecclesiae #symphonicmetal, #epicmusic, #history, #catholicmetal, #catholicmartyrs, #chinesecatholic, #chinesesaint, #boxerrebellion, #stannawang, #china