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Cardinal Ernest Simoni: a "Living Martyr"
As a result of the Communist persecution of the Church in Albania , Cardinal Simoni was arrested while celebrating Mass on Christmas Eve 1963 and sentenced to death by firing squad. He was beaten, placed for three months in solitary confinement under inhumane conditions, then tortured because he refused to denounce the church.He was eventually freed, but later arrested again and sent to a prison camp, where he was forced to work in a mine for 18 years and then 10 more years in sewage canals, a total of 28 years.
While in prison, he continued his priestly ministry in secret. He celebrated Mass, even using crushed grapes for wine, and he preached and performed exorcisms, emphasizing the centrality of Christ's love and the power of prayer in fighting demonic influence.
After his release from prison in the 1990s, Cardinal Simoni forgave his jailers, and resumed his service as a priest, with a special focus on promoting reconciliation in post-Communist Albania. He has emphasized forgiveness and love, even towards his persecutors, stating that "only love conquers".
Now 97 years old, Cardinal Simoni continues to work for the Church and is in a worldwide mission to fight the demonic influences through the light of Christ. He was recently the main speaker at the John Leaps Evaneglizing Conference, "Shielding God's Children" where he perfomed a worldwide exorcism. (Video below).
Karen Japzon, founder of John Leaps Evangelization—who invited Cardinal Simoni to the United States following a prompting she received in her heart—will be accompanying the Cardinal on a mission tour across several U.S. cities in the coming weeks.
The first stop is right here at St Antoninus in Newark NJ!
How did Cardinal Simoni become a cardinal, when he was a simple priest and not a bishop?
The following is from an article National Catholic Register:
In the consistory of November 2016, among the 17 prelates Pope Francis elevated to the rank of cardinal, one was a simple 88-year-old priest who is neither a bishop nor of the eligible age to vote in a conclave.
Why, then, did Pope Francis name Father Ernest Troshani Simoni of the Archdiocese of Shkodrë-Pult in Albania to the College of Cardinals?
In a highly symbolic appointment, the Holy Father desired to honor the suffering of Albanian Catholics under communism and to better promote their courageous witness outside the small Balkan country of 2.7 million people.
The red that cardinals wear symbolizes the blood they are willing to shed for the Church. For most cardinals, it is a pious thought. For Cardinal Simoni, it is a reality.
(More: https://www.ncregister.com/news/cardinal-ernest-simoni-the-living-martyr-of-albania )
Below are video clips from the recently concluded John Leaps Evangelization conference ( July 11-12, 2025) . The first is the actual worldwide exorcism given by Cardinal Simoni, followed by one of the Q&A sessions at the conference . For video links of the recent conference, go to www.johnleaps.com.
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