Saint Lang

Saint Lang Yang (Chinese: 郎楊) (born 1871 in Lu, Hebei, China; died July 16, 1900, in Lujiapo, Hebei) was a saint of the Catholic Church and a martyr. Lang Yang was born in the village of Lu in Hebei province. She had one son, Paul Lang Fu. During the Boxer Rebellion in China, Christians were persecuted. On July 16, 1900, after insurgents occupied the village where Lang Yang lived, she was captured and tied to a tree. The attackers began questioning her about her faith. Paul Lang Fu, returning home, saw his mother bound and began to cry. She told him, "Do not cry, my son, come here." The Boxers set fire to their house, pierced her body with a spear, and cut off the boy's hand. They then threw both of them into the fire. Her feast day is July 9 (as part of the group of 120 Chinese Martyrs). She was beatified along with her son on April 17, 1955, by Pius XII as part of the group of Léon-Ignace Mangin and 55 companions. She was canonized as one of the 120 Chinese Martyrs on October 1, 2000, by John Paul II.