Marcel Callo
Marcel Callo was born in France in 1921. Marcel grew up as a typical boy, enjoying games and
sports and being in the scouts. However, Marcel was special because of his deep love for the
Lord and his deep desire to serve him. Marcel left the scouts and joined the Young Christian
Worker’s , a group that served the poor .
Marcel’s life was peaceful until the outbreak of World War II. He left his family and fiancée
behind when he was forced to serve in the army. His family would be arrested if he resisted,
which would have been especially horrible since his older brother was about to be ordained a
priest. So he went. He told his family that he was going as a missionary, because there was an
urgent apostolate waiting for him in the barracks. Unfortunately, the reality of forced labor was
harder than he had anticipated, but this last round of suffering was what made him a saint. He
was sent to a town without a single Catholic Church and forced to help make rockets that were
used against his countrymen. He went three months without his family, his fiance, or the
Eucharist, all the while living on starvation rations and recreating the weapons that had killed
his own sister. In other words, legalistic lip-service Christianity wasn’t going to work. He
developed infected teeth, boils, and headaches from the deplorable conditions. He sunk into a
deep depression. And then, just when everything seemed hopeless, he encountered Christ.
Marcel discovered that Sunday Mass was offered in an obscure room of the barracks. He
received the Eucharist for the first time in months and appreciated it like never before. He
wrote to Marguerite, “Finally Christ reacted. He made me to understand that the depression
was not good. I had to keep busy with my friends and then joy and relief would come back to
me.” And that’s exactly what he did. He rededicated himself to the prayer life he and
Marguerite had established before the war. He also began to organize JOC-inspired activities for
his friends in the barracks. They would play sports and cards, perform plays, and pray together.
He found a French priest to say Mass for them once a month. In short, he stopped looking at his
awful life and instead focused on choosing to love his God and his community. His hope and joy
came back and spread to his fellow prisoners. However, the Nazis became suspicious of Marcel
and his Christian activities. He was sentenced to a concentration camp in Austria. He
experienced exhausting work with little rest. He was also frequently beaten.
Marcel eventually died in the concentration camp in 1945 due to illnesses for which he could
not receive treatment. However, those who saw him before he died said he looked holy and
peaceful. Despite his suffering, Marcel was always cheerful and trusting of God. He never
stopped telling people about God, even in the darkest of places. Marcel is an example of
complete trust in and surrender to God, even when times are difficult.
