After the church's leadership fell vacant in 1941, he was chosen its new head (Major Archbishop of Fagaraş and Alba Iulia) in 1946, a decision approved by the Holy See but not by the Communist-dominated Petru Groza government. Rusu was arrested in October 1948 by the authorities of the new Communist regime which had outlawed the church, and he was held in two monasteries, in Sighet prison, and then in two other monasteries. In 1957, a military tribunal found him guilty of "instigation and high treason". Rusu was sentenced to 25 years of imprisonment and he ended up at Gherla prison, where he died of illness.[1]
On 19 March 2019, Pope Francis approved the beatification of Rusu and six other Greek-Catholic bishops who died while serving as political prisoners under the communist regime in Romania in the mid-20th century.[2] Rusu and the other six Romanian Catholic prelates were beatified personally by Pope Francis at Liberty Field in Blaj, Romania by Pope Francis on 2 June 2019.[3][4]
References
^(in Romanian)PS Alexandru Rusu at the Romanian Church United with Rome, Greek-Catholic site; accessed 26 April 2012
