00:03 Spain is a land of castles.
00:07 From the mountains of central Spain
00:09 to the Mediterranean coast, castles dominate the landscape.
00:15 But there is one castle —the Castle of Santa Catalina—
00:20 that played a unique part in the history of Jehovah’s Witnesses in Spain.
00:25 This castle that guards the entrance
00:29 to the harbor of Cádiz, in southern Spain,
00:31 became a military prison over two centuries ago.
00:35 And this fortress
00:37 tested the faith of around 300 Spanish Witnesses.
00:43 The battle began in the 1960’s when Spain was ruled
00:48 by General Franco, a military dictator.
00:51 Franco wanted all Spanish men to serve the fatherland,
00:56 and this meant military service.
01:00 But in Spain, there were Jehovah’s Witnesses
01:03 whose conscience said no.
01:05 So this castle became a battleground
01:08 where Franco’s military regime fought
01:11 to stamp out the Christian consciences of those young Witnesses.
01:18 But times have changed in Spain.
01:22 The city of Cádiz has organized an exhibition
01:25 to salute the sacrifice made by those valiant Witnesses.
01:30 Over 40 years after their release,
01:34 some of those conscientious objectors have returned to Cádiz
01:37 to attend this exhibition.
01:41 At the inauguration,
01:43 the mayor described them as citizens who spoke up
01:46 and who presented arguments against the injustice
01:49 —arguments based on peace, freedom,
01:52 and, above all, their conscience.
01:56 Those who spent years of their lives behind bars
01:59 have vivid memories
02:01 of the times when this castle was their prison.
02:07 I think one of the greatest challenges
02:09 was never knowing
02:11 if we would be granted our freedom.
02:15 Our first sentence
02:17 was for three years.
02:19 And since we still refused to enlist in the military,
02:23 we were then sentenced again for another lengthy period.
02:26 So it seemed as if we had a life sentence.
02:31 We organized daily activities
02:33 to keep us busy.
02:36 Mornings, we worked at our trades
02:40 to earn a little money.
02:42 Afternoons, we set aside for spiritual activities.
02:47 Our preaching was done mainly by writing letters.
02:53 And in this way, some of us could even pioneer.
02:57 A few people did reply to our letters,
03:00 and we were thrilled to hear that some of them accepted the truth.
03:06 Of course, we also preached to other prisoners,
03:10 and a few of them became baptized Witnesses.
03:14 We also studied the Bible thoroughly,
03:16 both individually and as a group,
03:18 which proved vital in building us up spiritually.
03:23 At first, we had to study our literature secretly,
03:26 but later the guards
03:29 allowed us to have the Bible and other publications.
03:33 As our numbers grew,
03:35 all the Witnesses were kept together
03:38 in the same place —in the same barracks—
03:40 so we could organize meetings.
03:45 We even held assemblies, including the Biblical dramas.
03:50 And we loved
03:52 singing Kingdom songs.
03:55 These songs really lifted up our spirits.
04:02 We really felt Jehovah’s loving care when the brothers came to visit us.
04:07 We even had a special visit from Brother Grant Suiter
04:10 of the Governing Body,
04:15 but there were also other visits that we really looked forward to.
04:19 Many of the brothers endured years of separation from their families
04:23 and fiancées.
04:25 This was a real test.
04:28 But these faithful sisters
04:29 wholeheartedly supported their neutral stand.
04:33 Those were years that molded me spiritually.
04:37 I studied the Bible as I had never done before.
04:41 I developed skills as a public speaker and as an overseer.
04:46 Above all, it was a time in my life
04:49 when I learned to rely totally on Jehovah.
04:53 Thanks to my fervent prayers, he became my closest friend
04:59 and he never let me down.
05:01 That was priceless.
05:04 The firm stand of those Witnesses
05:07 gave a powerful testimony in Cádiz and throughout Spain.
05:11 The run-down military prison
05:14 that once tested their faith
05:16 has been restored.
05:18 It is now a tourist attraction
05:20 and a cultural center.
05:23 But while the castle has changed,
05:25 the faith of those valiant Witnesses has not.
05:30 The castle certainly tested them,
05:32 but they fought a fine fight for the faith.
05:36 And with Jehovah’s help, they won the battle.
05:40 Forty years later,
05:42 their victory is still giving a witness
05:45 to Jehovah’s name.
