Anno Brandsma was born to Tjitsje and Titus Brandsma on February 23, 1881, in Friesland,
Netherlands. The Brandsma family consisted of four girls and two boys, of whom five of the
siblings entered religious life. His upbringing was stable; this was the way of life he
experienced both in his family and in the Church.
Having developed a strong interest in Carmelite spirituality, Anno Brandsma joined the
Carmelite order on September 15, 1898. He was powerfully drawn to the mystical side of life in
the monastery at Boxmeer, after he became a Dutch Carmelite priest, took Titus as his religious
name in honour of his father.
He helped found the Catholic University of Nijmegen, and worked there as a lecturer,
administrator, and professor of philosophy, journalism. Conscience often creates
martyrs. That was the case for Titus Brandsma. Many people “go along to get
along,” not realizing that by doing so, they are destroying themselves internally.
Consequently, Brandsma’s outspoken opposition to the Nazi ideology came to the attention of
the Nazis, his refusal to place ads in the Catholic papers as directed by the government in 1941
led to his arrest and detention. Finally, Fr. Brandsma was arrested while hand delivering the
letter in January 1942 and was taken to the Dachau camp in Germany.
Despite the harsh treatment he faced in the concentration camp, he remained steadfast in his
faith and commitment to justice. He entered a cell in which the hours no longer held sway over
the person, where there is a timeless silence and where God’s world enveloped him. The
experience of those with him at Dachau was that Brandsma’s serene inner peace came from a
deep source: Your nearness makes all things well within me, enabling him to be so serene amid
so much activity and so many concerns. During his brief time at Dachau, Fr. Brandsma was
well-known for his kindness and spiritual support of other prisoners.
His death on July 26, 1942, was a result of the Reich’s program of medical experimentation on
prisoners. He gave a wooden rosary to the nurse who administered the fatal injection; she later
became Catholic and testified to his holiness. In recent years, Brandsma has been honoured by
both the cities of Nijmegen and Dachau. Titus Brandsma was canonised as a saint by Pope
Francis on May 15th in 2022.
Brandsma was an eclectic philosopher, but the mystical life was his strong suit. He immersed
himself in the experiences of the mystical authors. He was conscious of the inexhaustible
mystery of life’s connectedness. He says: To believe in God is to live in God, because God is
the deepest ground of our being.
Brandma’s motto: Take the days as they come.
