Enrique Ernesto Shaw

In 1945, Enrique Shaw decided to leave the Argentine Navy. Feeling a deep call to serve God in the world of work, he initially considered becoming a simple laborer. However, on the advice of a priest, he understood that his true mission was to bring the Gospel into the heart of the business world and to transform the company from within. He joined the family business and became the managing director of the glassworks Cristalerías Rigolleau S.A. In his management, he applied the principles of the Church's social doctrine in a concrete and innovative way. Convinced that a company must be a true human community and not a mere profit machine, he introduced pioneering measures in Argentina, such as the family wage (taking into account the family burdens of the workers) and a medical and social aid fund for employees. Enrique Shaw was also actively involved in ecclesial life. In 1952, he co-founded the Christian Association of Business Executives (Asociación Cristiana de Dirigentes de Empresa - ACDE) to promote Christian ethics in business. He also participated in the founding of the Christian Family Movement (Movimiento Familiar Cristiano) and became national president of the Men of Argentine Catholic Action (Acción Católica Argentina). In 1955, under the regime of President Juan Perón, he was briefly arrested due to his public Catholic commitment, taking advantage of his detention to share his food with his fellow prisoners. In 1961, when the Rigolleau glassworks was sold to an American fund that planned to lay off more than 1,200 workers, Enrique Shaw firmly opposed this decision, going so far as to threaten to resign despite the financial risks to his own large family. He finally succeeded in saving the jobs.

Afflicted with skin cancer diagnosed in 1957, Enrique Shaw faced his illness with heroic serenity and faith, continuing his lectures and writings. In 1962, as his health severely deteriorated and he was in urgent need of blood transfusions, approximately 260 people—mainly workers from his factory—spontaneously rushed to the hospital in Buenos Aires to donate their blood. Deeply moved by this gesture of love, he uttered this memorable phrase: "I am happy now, for worker blood flows in my veins" ("Ahora soy feliz, ya que por mis venas corre sangre obrera"). He passed away on August 27, 1962, in Buenos Aires, at the age of 41.

The cause for the beatification of Enrique Ernesto Shaw was opened in the Archdiocese of Buenos Aires under the impetus of the then-Archbishop, Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio (future Pope Francis). The diocesan inquiry took place from 2005 to 2013.

On April 24, 2021, Pope Francis authorized the promulgation of the decree recognizing his heroic virtues, thereby declaring him Venerable.

On December 18, 2025, Pope Leo XIV authorized the Dicastery for the Causes of Saints to promulgate the decree recognizing a miracle attributed to his intercession, thus officially opening the way for his upcoming beatification.

The approved miracle: The miracle concerns the scientifically inexplicable healing of a child under five years old named Matias. On June 21, 2015, on a farm near Buenos Aires, the little boy was seriously injured in the neck by a horse's kick, suffering severe cranial and brain injuries (severe diffuse brain damage and intracranial hypertension). His parents, who were close to the ACDE, invoked the intercession of Enrique Shaw. On July 15, 2015, to the surprise of the doctors, examinations revealed that his cerebral ventricular system had returned to a completely normal size. In 2019, in-depth examinations conducted by experts confirmed the child's total and lasting recovery, without any neurological sequelae. In January 2025, the medical board of the Dicastery confirmed the scientifically inexplicable nature of this healing, paving the way for the signing of the decree by Pope Leo XIV in December of the same year.

Enrique Shaw's spirituality was based on the unity of life: he refused to separate his Christian faith from his family and professional responsibilities. For him, the role of a business leader constituted a true ecclesial vocation and a path to sanctification. He demonstrated that it was possible to reconcile economic success with social justice, fraternal charity, and absolute respect for the dignity of workers. His legacy endures today through the ACDE, which annually awards a prize in his name to recognize the social commitment of companies, and his example continues to inspire laypeople around the world to live the Gospel at the heart of temporal realities.