Saint Augustine Zhao Rong was a Chinese diocesan priest who was martyred in 1815. A Chinese soldier, he was attracted to and baptized in the Catholic faith because of Bishop John Gabriel Taurin Dufresse’s heroic example of patience and serenity in martyrdom. Bishop Dufresse was a missionary from the Paris Foreign Mission Society whom Augustine had been escorting as a soldier. Not long after his baptism, Augustine was ordained a diocesan priest, and soon followed to his own martyrdom.Augustine was beatified on October 1, 2000 along with 119 other martyrs during this time period (1648-1930). Most of these martyrs (87) were born in China and included children, parents, catechist, laborers and four diocesan priest. The 33 foreign born martyrs were mainly priest and women religious from various orders. Among their number was an eighteen-year-old boy, Chi Zhuzi, who cried out to those who had just cut off his right arm and were preparing to flay him alive: "Every piece of my flesh, every drop of my blood will tell you that I am Christian."
July 9 is an optional memorial for Saint Augustine Zhao Rong and his companions.
