Father Damien
Encyclopedia
Father Damien or Saint Damien of Molokai, SS.CC.
( or ; January 3, 1840 – April 15, 1889), born Jozef De Veuster, was a Roman Catholic priest
from Belgium
and member of the Congregation of the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary
, a missionary
religious order
. He won recognition for his ministry to people with leprosy
(also known as Hansen's disease), who had been placed under a government-sanctioned medical quarantine on the island of Molokai
in the Kingdom of Hawaii
.
After sixteen years caring for the physical, spiritual, and emotional needs of those in the leper colony
, he eventually contracted and died of the disease, and is widely considered a "martyr of charity
". He is the ninth person recognized as a saint by the Catholic Church to have lived, worked, and died in what is now the United States.
In both the Latin Rite and the Eastern Rites of the Catholic Church, Damien is venerated as a saint
, one who is holy and worthy of public veneration and invocation. In the Anglican
communion, as well as other denominations of Christianity
, Damien is considered the spiritual patron for leprosy and outcasts. As the patron saint
of the Diocese of Honolulu
and of Hawaii
, Father Damien Day is celebrated statewide on April 15. Upon his beatification
by Pope John Paul II
in Rome
on June 4, 1995, Blessed Damien was granted a memorial feast day
, which is celebrated on May 10. Father Damien was canonized
by Pope Benedict XVI
on Sunday October 11, 2009. The Catholic Encyclopedia
calls him "the Apostle of the Lepers", and elsewhere he is known as the "leper priest".
corn merchant Joannes Franciscus ("Frans") De Veuster and his wife Anne-Catherine ("Cato") Wouters in the village of Tremelo
in Flemish Brabant
. He attended college at Braine-le-Comte
, then entered the novitiate
of the Congregation of the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary in Leuven
, taking the name of Brother Damianus (Damiaan in Dutch, Damien in French) in his first vows, presumably in reference to the first Saint Damian
.
Following in the footsteps of his sisters Eugénie and Pauline (who became nuns) and brother Auguste (Father Pamphile), Damien became a Picpus Brother on October 7, 1860. His superiors thought that he was not a good candidate for the priesthood because he lacked education. However, he was not considered unintelligent. Because he learned Latin
well from his brother, his superiors decided to allow him to become a priest. During his ecclesiastical studies, he would pray every day before a picture of St. Francis Xavier
, patron of missionaries, to be sent on a mission. Three years later his prayer was answered when, because of illness, Auguste could not travel to Hawaii as a missionary, and Damien was allowed to take his place.
in downtown Honolulu
as a missionary. There, Damien was ordained to the priesthood on May 21, 1864, at the Cathedral of Our Lady of Peace
, a church established by his religious order. In 1865, he was assigned to the Catholic Mission in North Kohala
on the island of Hawaii
.
While Father Damien was serving in several parishes on the island of Oahu
, the Kingdom of Hawaii was facing a public health
crisis. The Native Hawaiians
became afflicted by diseases introduced to their islands
by foreign traders and sailors. Thousands died of influenza
, syphilis
and other ailments which had never before affected them. This included the plight of leprosy (Hansen's disease). At the time, leprosy was thought to be highly contagious (we now know that 95% of the general population has immunity) and was thought to be incurable. In 1865, fearful of its spread, the Hawaii Legislature passed and King Kamehameha V
approved, the "Act to Prevent the Spread of Leprosy" which quarantined the lepers of the kingdom and moved them to settlement colonies known as Kalaupapa
and Kalawao
at the east end of the Kalaupapa peninsula on Molokai. Kalawao County
, where the village is situated, is divided from the rest of the island by a steep mountain ridge, and even today the only land access is by a mule track. Over 8,000 people were sent to the Kalaupapa peninsula from 1866 to 1969. The Royal Board of Health provided the quarantined people with supplies and food but did not yet have the resources to offer proper healthcare. According to documents from the time, the Kingdom of Hawaii did not plan the settlement to be in disarray but did not provide sufficient resources and medical help. They planned on the inhabiting sufferers to grow their own crops, but because of the nature of the environment and their sickness, it was nearly impossible. By 1868, according to the Catholic Encyclopedia (1911), "Drunken and lewd conduct prevailed. The easy-going, good-natured people seemed wholly changed."
While Bishop Louis Désiré Maigret, vicar apostolic
, believed that the lepers at the very least needed a priest to minister to their needs, he realized that this assignment could potentially be a death sentence, and thus did not want to send any one person "in the name of obedience". After prayerful thought, four priests volunteered. The bishop's plan was for the volunteers to take turns assisting the distressed. Father Damien was the first to volunteer and on May 10, 1873, Father Damien arrived at the secluded settlement at Kalaupapa, where Bishop Maigret presented him to the 816 lepers living there. Damien's first course of action was to build a church and establish the Parish of Saint Philomena
. His role was not limited to being a priest: he dressed ulcers, built homes and beds, built coffins and dug graves. Six months after his arrival at Kalawao he wrote his brother, Pamphile, in Europe:
Damien's arrival is seen by some as a turning point for the community. Under his leadership, basic laws were enforced, shacks became painted houses, working farms were organized and schools were erected. At his own request, and that of the lepers, Father Damien remained on Molokai.
Masanao Goto
, a Japanese leprologist, came to Honolulu in 1885 and treated Father Damien. It was his theory that leprosy
was caused by a diminution of the blood, and his treatment consisted of nourishing food, moderate exercise, frequent friction to the benumbed parts, special ointments and medical baths. The treatments did, indeed, relieve some of the symptoms and were very popular with the Hawaiian patients. Father Damien had faith in the treatments and stated that he wished to be treated by no one but Dr. Masanao Goto.
Dr. Goto was one of his best friends and Damien's last trip to Honolulu on July 10, 1886, was made to receive treatment from him.
In his last years Damien engaged in a flurry of activity. While continuing his charitable ministrations, he hastened to complete his many building projects, enlarge his orphanages, and organize his work. Help came from four strangers who came to Kalaupapa to help the ailing missionary: a priest, a soldier, a male nurse, and a nun.
Louis Lambert Conrardy was a Belgian priest. Mother Marianne Cope had been the head of the Franciscan
-run St Joseph's Hospital in Syracuse, New York
. Joseph Dutton was an American Civil War
soldier who left behind a marriage that had been broken by alcoholism
. James Sinnett was a nurse from Chicago
. Conrardy took up pastoral duties; Cope organized a working hospital; Dutton attended to the construction and maintenance of the community's buildings; Sinnett nursed Damien in the last phases of the disease. An arm in a sling, a foot in bandages and his leg dragging, Damien knew death was near. He was bedridden on March 23, 1889, and on March 30 he made a general confession and renewed his vows. On April 1, he received Holy Viaticum
and on April 2, Extreme Unction
.
Father Damien died of leprosy at 8:00 am on April 15, 1889, aged 49. The next day, after Mass
by Father Moellers at St. Philomena's, the whole settlement followed the funeral cortège to the cemetery where Damien was laid to rest under the same Pandanus
tree where he first slept upon his arrival on Molokai.
In January 1936, at the request of the Belgian government
, Damien's body was returned to his native land. It was brought back aboard the Belgian sailing ship Mercator
and now rests in Leuven, an historic university city close to the village where Damien was born. After his beatification in June 1995, the remains of his right hand were returned to Hawaii, and re-interred in his original grave on Molokai.
bestowed on Damien the honor Knight Commander of the Royal Order of Kalākaua. When Princess Lydia Liliuokalani visited the settlement to present the medal, she was reported as having been too distraught and heartbroken to read her speech. The princess shared her experience with the world and publicly acclaimed Damien's efforts. Consequently, Damien's name was spread across the United States
and Europe
. American Protestants
raised large sums of money for the missionary. The Church of England
sent food, medicine, clothing and supplies. It is believed that Damien never wore the medal given to him.
and Presbyterian
churches in Hawaii. It is possible that these church leaders took a stance against Damien largely because of their bias against Catholicism
. The most well-known treatise against Damien was by a Honolulu Presbyterian, Reverend C. M. Hyde, in a letter dated August 2, 1889 to a fellow pastor, Reverend H. B. Gage; in it, Hyde referred to Father Damien as "a coarse, dirty man" whose leprosy should be attributed to his "carelessness".
In 1889 Scottish
author Robert Louis Stevenson
and his family arrived in Hawaii for an extended stay. While there Stevenson, also a Presbyterian, drafted a famous open letter
as a rebuttal in defense of Damien. The Catholic Encyclopedia judges that in this treatise "the memory of the Apostle of the Lepers is brilliantly vindicated". Prior to writing his letter, dated February 25, 1890, Stevenson stayed on Molokai for eight days and seven nights, during which he kept a diary. In the letter Stevenson answered Hyde's criticisms point by point. He sought testimony from critical Protestants who knew the man, which he recorded in his diary. The treatise included some extracts, like the following which upbraided Rev. Hyde for his fault finding:
In writing to Hyde, Stevenson proved prescient:
Stevenson further chided Hyde for nit-picking Damien and failing to acknowledge his heroic virtue
:
Stevenson then comments on his own journal entries:
The Catholic Encyclopedia further states that a correspondence in the "Pacific Commercial Advertiser", June 20, 1905, "completely removes from the character of Father Damien every vestige of suspicion, proving beyond a doubt that Dr. Hyde's insinuations rested merely on misunderstandings".
that led to the freedom of his people and secured aid for those that needed it. Gandhi was quoted in M.S. Mehendale's 1971 account, Gandhi Looks at Leprosy, as saying,
In 1977, Pope Paul VI
declared Father Damien to be venerable
, the first of three steps that lead to sainthood. On June 4, 1995, Pope John Paul II beatified him and gave him his official spiritual title of Blessed. On December 20, 1999, Jorge Medina Estévez
, Prefect of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments
, confirmed the November 1999 decision of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops
to place Blessed Damien on the liturgical calendar
with the rank of optional memorial. Father Damien was canonized on October 11, 2009, by Pope Benedict XVI. His feast Day is celebrated on May 10. In Hawaii, it is celebrated on the day of his death, April 15.
Two miracles have been attributed to Father Damien's posthumous intercession:
On June 13, 1992, Pope John Paul II approved the cure of a nun in France in 1895 as a miracle attributed to Venerable Damien's intercession
. In that case, Sister Simplicia Hue began a novena
to Father Damien as she lay dying of a lingering intestinal illness. It is stated that pain and symptoms of the illness disappeared overnight.
In the second case, Audrey Toguchi, a Hawaiian woman who suffered from cancer, was completely cured after having prayed at the grave of Father Damien on Molokai: In 1997, Toguchi was diagnosed with liposarcoma
, a cancer that arises in fat cells. She underwent surgery a year later. A tumor the size of a fist was removed from the side of her left thigh and buttock. Unfortunately, the cancer spread to her lungs. Her physician, Dr. Walter Chang, told her, 'Nobody has ever survived this cancer. It's going to take you.' The Toguchi case was documented in the Hawaii Medical Journal of October 2000.
In April 2008, the Holy See
accepted the two cures as evidence of Father Damien's sanctity. On June 2, 2008, the Congregation for the Causes of Saints
at the Vatican voted to recommend raising Father Damien of Molokai to sainthood. The decree that officially notes and verifies the miracle needed for canonization was promulgated by Pope Benedict XVI and Cardinal
José Saraiva Martins on Thursday, July 3, 2008, with the ceremony taking place in Rome, with celebrations in Belgium and Hawaii. On February 21, 2009, the Vatican announced that Father Damien would be canonized. The ceremony took place in Rome on Rosary Sunday, October 11, 2009, in the presence of King Albert II of the Belgians
and Queen Paola
as well as the Belgian Prime Minister, Herman Van Rompuy
, and several cabinet ministers, completing the process of canonization. In Washington, D.C., President Barack Obama
affirmed his deep admiration for St. Damien, saying that he gave voice to voiceless and dignity to the sick. Four other individuals were canonized with Father Damien at the same ceremony: Zygmunt Szczęsny Feliński
, Sister Jeanne Jugan
, Father Francisco Coll Guitart
and Rafael Arnáiz Barón
.
Damien's symbols are a tree and a dove.
Damien is honored, together with Marianne Cope, with a feast day on the liturgical calendar of the Episcopal Church (USA)
on April 15.
The Father Damien Statue
on the steps of the State Capitol Building
honors him, and a replica is displayed in the National Statuary Hall Collection
in the United States Capitol
.
Director David Miller
made a short film of Father Damien's life in 1938 entitled The Great Heart
, released by MGM
.
The first full-length
picture on Father Damien was Molokai (1959), a Spanish production directed by Luis Lucia
with Javier Escrivá, Roberto Camardiel and Gerard Tichy
playing the main roles.
The one-man play Damien
tells the story of Damien's life in the first person through a series of flashbacks.
Father Damien was portrayed in 1980 by Ken Howard
in the television film Father Damien: Leper Priest.
Belgian film producer
Tharsi Vanhuysse produced and Paul Cox
directed the 1999 film Molokai: The Story of Father Damien
.
In 2005, Damien was honored with the title of De Grootste Belg
, chosen as "The Greatest Belgian" throughout that country's history
in polling conducted by the Flemish public broadcasting service, VRT
. At the same time he was placed third on Le plus grand Belge
("The Greatest Belgian") by the French-speaking public channel RTBF
.
In both ecumenical
religious and nonsectarian
communities, Damien's ministry to lepers is being cited as an example of how society should minister to HIV/AIDS patients. Many clinics and centers worldwide catering to HIV/AIDS patients, including Damien Centers or Damien Ministries, bear his name. There is a chapel named after him, and dedicated to people with HIV/AIDS, in St. Thomas the Apostle Hollywood
, an Episcopal parish.
The Blessed Damien Society
, and other charities fighting leprosy, have been set up in his name. A centre for "peace for families and individuals affected by bereavement, stress, violence, and other difficulties with particular attention to Northern Ireland
".
Damien is considered an important person in the history of Hawaii
. The Father Damien Statue
on the steps of the Hawaii State Capitol Building
honors him, and a replica is displayed in the National Statuary Hall Collection
in the United States Capitol
.
Schools are named after him, including Damien High School
in Southern California
, and Damien Memorial School
in Hawaii. The village of Saint-Damien, Quebec
is also named after him. Churches worldwide are also named after him.
St. Damien of Molokai Catholic Church in Edmond, Oklahoma
, is believed to have been the first Roman Catholic church in the continental United States to be named for Saint Damien when it was dedicated in 2010. A Traditional Latin Mass church, it is operated by the Priestly Fraternity of St. Peter (FSSP), and was authorized by Eusebius J. Beltran, Archbishop of Oklahoma City, in 2010.
Congregation of the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary
The Congregation of the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary and of the Perpetual Adoration of the Most Holy Sacrament of the Altar is a Roman Catholic religious order of brothers, priests, and nuns...
( or ; January 3, 1840 – April 15, 1889), born Jozef De Veuster, was a Roman Catholic priest
Priest
A priest is a person authorized to perform the sacred rites of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in particular, rites of sacrifice to, and propitiation of, a deity or deities...
from Belgium
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
and member of the Congregation of the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary
Congregation of the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary
The Congregation of the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary and of the Perpetual Adoration of the Most Holy Sacrament of the Altar is a Roman Catholic religious order of brothers, priests, and nuns...
, a missionary
Missionary
A missionary is a member of a religious group sent into an area to do evangelism or ministries of service, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care and economic development. The word "mission" originates from 1598 when the Jesuits sent members abroad, derived from the Latin...
religious order
Religious order
A religious order is a lineage of communities and organizations of people who live in some way set apart from society in accordance with their specific religious devotion, usually characterized by the principles of its founder's religious practice. The order is composed of initiates and, in some...
. He won recognition for his ministry to people with leprosy
Leprosy
Leprosy or Hansen's disease is a chronic disease caused by the bacteria Mycobacterium leprae and Mycobacterium lepromatosis. Named after physician Gerhard Armauer Hansen, leprosy is primarily a granulomatous disease of the peripheral nerves and mucosa of the upper respiratory tract; skin lesions...
(also known as Hansen's disease), who had been placed under a government-sanctioned medical quarantine on the island of Molokai
Molokai
Molokai or Molokai is an island in the Hawaiian archipelago. It is 38 by 10 miles in size with a land area of , making it the fifth largest of the main Hawaiian Islands and the 27th largest island in the United States. It lies east of Oahu across the 25-mile wide Kaiwi Channel and north of...
in the Kingdom of Hawaii
Kingdom of Hawaii
The Kingdom of Hawaii was established during the years 1795 to 1810 with the subjugation of the smaller independent chiefdoms of Oahu, Maui, Molokai, Lānai, Kauai and Niihau by the chiefdom of Hawaii into one unified government...
.
After sixteen years caring for the physical, spiritual, and emotional needs of those in the leper colony
Leper colony
A leper colony, leprosarium, or lazar house is a place to quarantine leprous people.-History:Leper colonies or houses became widespread in the Middle Ages, particularly in Europe and India, and often run by monastic orders...
, he eventually contracted and died of the disease, and is widely considered a "martyr of charity
Martyr of charity
In the Catholic church, a martyr of charity is someone who dies as a result of administering Christian charity. While a martyr of the faith dies through being persecuted for being a Catholic or for being a Christian, a martyr of charity dies through practising charity motivated by Christianity...
". He is the ninth person recognized as a saint by the Catholic Church to have lived, worked, and died in what is now the United States.
In both the Latin Rite and the Eastern Rites of the Catholic Church, Damien is venerated as a saint
Saint
A saint is a holy person. In various religions, saints are people who are believed to have exceptional holiness.In Christian usage, "saint" refers to any believer who is "in Christ", and in whom Christ dwells, whether in heaven or in earth...
, one who is holy and worthy of public veneration and invocation. In the Anglican
Anglicanism
Anglicanism is a tradition within Christianity comprising churches with historical connections to the Church of England or similar beliefs, worship and church structures. The word Anglican originates in ecclesia anglicana, a medieval Latin phrase dating to at least 1246 that means the English...
communion, as well as other denominations of Christianity
Christianity
Christianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus as presented in canonical gospels and other New Testament writings...
, Damien is considered the spiritual patron for leprosy and outcasts. As the patron saint
Patron saint
A patron saint is a saint who is regarded as the intercessor and advocate in heaven of a nation, place, craft, activity, class, clan, family, or person...
of the Diocese of Honolulu
Roman Catholic Diocese of Honolulu
The Catholic Diocese of Honolulu, officially in Latin Dioecesis Honoluluensis, is an ecclesiastical territory or particular church of the Catholic Church in the United States...
and of Hawaii
Hawaii
Hawaii is the newest of the 50 U.S. states , and is the only U.S. state made up entirely of islands. It is the northernmost island group in Polynesia, occupying most of an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of...
, Father Damien Day is celebrated statewide on April 15. Upon his beatification
Beatification
Beatification is a recognition accorded by the Catholic Church of a dead person's entrance into Heaven and capacity to intercede on behalf of individuals who pray in his or her name . Beatification is the third of the four steps in the canonization process...
by Pope John Paul II
Pope John Paul II
Blessed Pope John Paul II , born Karol Józef Wojtyła , reigned as Pope of the Catholic Church and Sovereign of Vatican City from 16 October 1978 until his death on 2 April 2005, at of age. His was the second-longest documented pontificate, which lasted ; only Pope Pius IX ...
in Rome
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
on June 4, 1995, Blessed Damien was granted a memorial feast day
Calendar of saints
The calendar of saints is a traditional Christian method of organizing a liturgical year by associating each day with one or more saints and referring to the feast day of said saint...
, which is celebrated on May 10. Father Damien was canonized
Canonization
Canonization is the act by which a Christian church declares a deceased person to be a saint, upon which declaration the person is included in the canon, or list, of recognized saints. Originally, individuals were recognized as saints without any formal process...
by Pope Benedict XVI
Pope Benedict XVI
Benedict XVI is the 265th and current Pope, by virtue of his office of Bishop of Rome, the Sovereign of the Vatican City State and the leader of the Catholic Church as well as the other 22 sui iuris Eastern Catholic Churches in full communion with the Holy See...
on Sunday October 11, 2009. The Catholic Encyclopedia
Catholic Encyclopedia
The Catholic Encyclopedia, also referred to as the Old Catholic Encyclopedia and the Original Catholic Encyclopedia, is an English-language encyclopedia published in the United States. The first volume appeared in March 1907 and the last three volumes appeared in 1912, followed by a master index...
calls him "the Apostle of the Lepers", and elsewhere he is known as the "leper priest".
Early life
Damien was born Jozef ("Jef") De Veuster, the seventh child and fourth son of the FlemishFlemish people
The Flemings or Flemish are the Dutch-speaking inhabitants of Belgium, where they are mostly found in the northern region of Flanders. They are one of two principal cultural-linguistic groups in Belgium, the other being the French-speaking Walloons...
corn merchant Joannes Franciscus ("Frans") De Veuster and his wife Anne-Catherine ("Cato") Wouters in the village of Tremelo
Tremelo
Tremelo is a municipality located in the Belgian province of Flemish Brabant, in Flanders. The municipality comprises the towns of Baal and Tremelo proper. On January 1, 2006 Tremelo had a total population of 13,725...
in Flemish Brabant
Flemish Brabant
Flemish Brabant is a province of Flanders, one of the three regions of Belgium. It borders on the Belgian provinces of Antwerp, Limburg, Liège, Walloon Brabant, Hainaut and East Flanders. Flemish Brabant also completely surrounds the Brussels-Capital Region. Its capital is Leuven...
. He attended college at Braine-le-Comte
Braine-le-Comte
Braine-le-Comte is a Walloon municipality located in the Belgian province of Hainaut.On January 1, 2006, Braine-le-Comte had a total population of 20,305...
, then entered the novitiate
Novitiate
Novitiate, alt. noviciate, is the period of training and preparation that a novice monastic or member of a religious order undergoes prior to taking vows in order to discern whether they are called to the religious life....
of the Congregation of the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary in Leuven
Leuven
Leuven is the capital of the province of Flemish Brabant in the Flemish Region, Belgium...
, taking the name of Brother Damianus (Damiaan in Dutch, Damien in French) in his first vows, presumably in reference to the first Saint Damian
Saints Cosmas and Damian
Saints Cosmas and Damian were twin brothers, physicians, and early Christian martyrs born in Cilicia, part of today's Turkey. They practiced their profession in the seaport of Ayas, Adana, then in the Roman province of Syria...
.
Following in the footsteps of his sisters Eugénie and Pauline (who became nuns) and brother Auguste (Father Pamphile), Damien became a Picpus Brother on October 7, 1860. His superiors thought that he was not a good candidate for the priesthood because he lacked education. However, he was not considered unintelligent. Because he learned Latin
Latin
Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...
well from his brother, his superiors decided to allow him to become a priest. During his ecclesiastical studies, he would pray every day before a picture of St. Francis Xavier
Francis Xavier
Francis Xavier, born Francisco de Jasso y Azpilicueta was a pioneering Roman Catholic missionary born in the Kingdom of Navarre and co-founder of the Society of Jesus. He was a student of Saint Ignatius of Loyola and one of the first seven Jesuits, dedicated at Montmartre in 1534...
, patron of missionaries, to be sent on a mission. Three years later his prayer was answered when, because of illness, Auguste could not travel to Hawaii as a missionary, and Damien was allowed to take his place.
Mission to Hawaii
On March 19, 1864, Damien landed at Honolulu HarborHonolulu Harbor
Honolulu Harbor, also called Kulolia and Ke Awa O Kou, is the principal seaport of Honolulu and the State of Hawaii in the United States. It is from Honolulu Harbor, located on Mamala Bay, that the City & County of Honolulu was developed and urbanized, in an outward fashion, over the course of the...
in downtown Honolulu
Downtown Honolulu
Downtown Honolulu is the current historic, economic, governmental, and central part of Honolulu—bounded by Nuuanu Stream to the west, Ward Avenue to the east, Vineyard Boulevard to the north, and Honolulu Harbor to the south—situated within the larger Honolulu District...
as a missionary. There, Damien was ordained to the priesthood on May 21, 1864, at the Cathedral of Our Lady of Peace
Cathedral of Our Lady of Peace
The Cathedral of Our Lady of Peace — also known by its original French name Cathédrale de Notre Dame de la Paix, its Portuguese variant Catedral de Nossa Senhora da Paz and its Hawaiian derivative Malia o ka Malu Hale Pule Nui — is the Mother Church of the Diocese of Honolulu and houses...
, a church established by his religious order. In 1865, he was assigned to the Catholic Mission in North Kohala
Sacred Heart Catholic Church in Hawi
Most Sacred Heart of Jesus Catholic Church in Hāwī, North Kohala, is an historic parish in the West Hawaii Vicariate of the Catholic Diocese of Honolulu...
on the island of Hawaii
Hawaii (island)
The Island of Hawaii, also called the Big Island or Hawaii Island , is a volcanic island in the North Pacific Ocean...
.
While Father Damien was serving in several parishes on the island of Oahu
Oahu
Oahu or Oahu , known as "The Gathering Place", is the third largest of the Hawaiian Islands and most populous of the islands in the U.S. state of Hawaii. The state capital Honolulu is located on the southeast coast...
, the Kingdom of Hawaii was facing a public health
Public health
Public health is "the science and art of preventing disease, prolonging life and promoting health through the organized efforts and informed choices of society, organizations, public and private, communities and individuals" . It is concerned with threats to health based on population health...
crisis. The Native Hawaiians
Native Hawaiians
Native Hawaiians refers to the indigenous Polynesian people of the Hawaiian Islands or their descendants. Native Hawaiians trace their ancestry back to the original Polynesian settlers of Hawaii.According to the U.S...
became afflicted by diseases introduced to their islands
Hawaiian Islands
The Hawaiian Islands are an archipelago of eight major islands, several atolls, numerous smaller islets, and undersea seamounts in the North Pacific Ocean, extending some 1,500 miles from the island of Hawaii in the south to northernmost Kure Atoll...
by foreign traders and sailors. Thousands died of influenza
Influenza
Influenza, commonly referred to as the flu, is an infectious disease caused by RNA viruses of the family Orthomyxoviridae , that affects birds and mammals...
, syphilis
Syphilis
Syphilis is a sexually transmitted infection caused by the spirochete bacterium Treponema pallidum subspecies pallidum. The primary route of transmission is through sexual contact; however, it may also be transmitted from mother to fetus during pregnancy or at birth, resulting in congenital syphilis...
and other ailments which had never before affected them. This included the plight of leprosy (Hansen's disease). At the time, leprosy was thought to be highly contagious (we now know that 95% of the general population has immunity) and was thought to be incurable. In 1865, fearful of its spread, the Hawaii Legislature passed and King Kamehameha V
Kamehameha V
aloghaKamehameha V , born as Lot Kapuāiwa, reigned as monarch of the Kingdom of Hawaii from 1863 to 1872. His motto was "Onipa`a": immovable, firm, steadfast or determined; he worked diligently for his people and kingdom and was described as the last great traditional chief...
approved, the "Act to Prevent the Spread of Leprosy" which quarantined the lepers of the kingdom and moved them to settlement colonies known as Kalaupapa
Kalaupapa, Hawaii
Kalaupapa is a small unincorporated community on the island of Molokai in the U.S. state of Hawaii, within Kalawao County.The village is located on the Kalaupapa peninsula at the base of the highest sea cliffs in the world, dropping about into the Pacific Ocean.- Volcanic origin :Kalaupapa...
and Kalawao
Kalawao, Hawaii
Kalawao is an unincorporated town on the Kalaupapa Peninsula of the island of Molokai, in eastern Kalawao County, Hawaii, United States. It is the smaller of the two communities in Kalawao County, which was established as a leper colony separate from Maui County, which governs the rest of the...
at the east end of the Kalaupapa peninsula on Molokai. Kalawao County
Kalawao County, Hawaii
-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 147 people, 115 households, and 21 families residing in the county. The population density was 11 people per square mile . There were 172 housing units at an average density of 13 per square mile...
, where the village is situated, is divided from the rest of the island by a steep mountain ridge, and even today the only land access is by a mule track. Over 8,000 people were sent to the Kalaupapa peninsula from 1866 to 1969. The Royal Board of Health provided the quarantined people with supplies and food but did not yet have the resources to offer proper healthcare. According to documents from the time, the Kingdom of Hawaii did not plan the settlement to be in disarray but did not provide sufficient resources and medical help. They planned on the inhabiting sufferers to grow their own crops, but because of the nature of the environment and their sickness, it was nearly impossible. By 1868, according to the Catholic Encyclopedia (1911), "Drunken and lewd conduct prevailed. The easy-going, good-natured people seemed wholly changed."
Apostolic vicariate
An apostolic vicariate is a form of territorial jurisdiction of the Roman Catholic Church established in missionary regions and countries that do not have a diocese. It is essentially provisional, though it may last for a century or more...
, believed that the lepers at the very least needed a priest to minister to their needs, he realized that this assignment could potentially be a death sentence, and thus did not want to send any one person "in the name of obedience". After prayerful thought, four priests volunteered. The bishop's plan was for the volunteers to take turns assisting the distressed. Father Damien was the first to volunteer and on May 10, 1873, Father Damien arrived at the secluded settlement at Kalaupapa, where Bishop Maigret presented him to the 816 lepers living there. Damien's first course of action was to build a church and establish the Parish of Saint Philomena
Philomena
Saint Philomena is venerated as a virgin martyr saint of the Catholic Church, said to have been a young Greek princess martyred in the 4th century. Her veneration began in the early 19th century after the archaeological discovery in the Catacombs of Priscilla of the bones of a young woman, which...
. His role was not limited to being a priest: he dressed ulcers, built homes and beds, built coffins and dug graves. Six months after his arrival at Kalawao he wrote his brother, Pamphile, in Europe:
...I make myself a leper with the lepers to gain all to JesusJesusJesus of Nazareth , commonly referred to as Jesus Christ or simply as Jesus or Christ, is the central figure of Christianity...
Christ.
Damien's arrival is seen by some as a turning point for the community. Under his leadership, basic laws were enforced, shacks became painted houses, working farms were organized and schools were erected. At his own request, and that of the lepers, Father Damien remained on Molokai.
Illness and death
In December 1884 while preparing to bathe, Damien inadvertently put his foot into scalding water, causing his skin to blister. He felt nothing. Damien had contracted leprosy. Despite this discovery, residents say that Damien worked vigorously to build as many homes as he could and planned for the continuation of the programs he created after he was gone.Masanao Goto
Masanao Goto
was a Japanese leprologist. He was the son of first Shobun Gotō and called as the second Shobun Gotō. He devoted his life to leprosy patients in Japan and on the island of Molokai in the Kingdom of Hawaii....
, a Japanese leprologist, came to Honolulu in 1885 and treated Father Damien. It was his theory that leprosy
Leprosy
Leprosy or Hansen's disease is a chronic disease caused by the bacteria Mycobacterium leprae and Mycobacterium lepromatosis. Named after physician Gerhard Armauer Hansen, leprosy is primarily a granulomatous disease of the peripheral nerves and mucosa of the upper respiratory tract; skin lesions...
was caused by a diminution of the blood, and his treatment consisted of nourishing food, moderate exercise, frequent friction to the benumbed parts, special ointments and medical baths. The treatments did, indeed, relieve some of the symptoms and were very popular with the Hawaiian patients. Father Damien had faith in the treatments and stated that he wished to be treated by no one but Dr. Masanao Goto.
Dr. Goto was one of his best friends and Damien's last trip to Honolulu on July 10, 1886, was made to receive treatment from him.
In his last years Damien engaged in a flurry of activity. While continuing his charitable ministrations, he hastened to complete his many building projects, enlarge his orphanages, and organize his work. Help came from four strangers who came to Kalaupapa to help the ailing missionary: a priest, a soldier, a male nurse, and a nun.
Franciscan
Most Franciscans are members of Roman Catholic religious orders founded by Saint Francis of Assisi. Besides Roman Catholic communities, there are also Old Catholic, Anglican, Lutheran, ecumenical and Non-denominational Franciscan communities....
-run St Joseph's Hospital in Syracuse, New York
Syracuse, New York
Syracuse is a city in and the county seat of Onondaga County, New York, United States, the largest U.S. city with the name "Syracuse", and the fifth most populous city in the state. At the 2010 census, the city population was 145,170, and its metropolitan area had a population of 742,603...
. Joseph Dutton was an American Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
soldier who left behind a marriage that had been broken by alcoholism
Alcoholism
Alcoholism is a broad term for problems with alcohol, and is generally used to mean compulsive and uncontrolled consumption of alcoholic beverages, usually to the detriment of the drinker's health, personal relationships, and social standing...
. James Sinnett was a nurse from Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
. Conrardy took up pastoral duties; Cope organized a working hospital; Dutton attended to the construction and maintenance of the community's buildings; Sinnett nursed Damien in the last phases of the disease. An arm in a sling, a foot in bandages and his leg dragging, Damien knew death was near. He was bedridden on March 23, 1889, and on March 30 he made a general confession and renewed his vows. On April 1, he received Holy Viaticum
Viaticum
Viaticum is a term used especially in the Roman Catholic Church for the Eucharist administered, with or without anointing of the sick, to a person who is dying, and is thus a part of the last rites...
and on April 2, Extreme Unction
Anointing of the Sick (Catholic Church)
Anointing of the Sick is a sacrament of the Catholic Church that is administered to Catholics who because of sickness or old age are in danger of death, even if the danger is not proximate...
.
Father Damien died of leprosy at 8:00 am on April 15, 1889, aged 49. The next day, after Mass
Mass (liturgy)
"Mass" is one of the names by which the sacrament of the Eucharist is called in the Roman Catholic Church: others are "Eucharist", the "Lord's Supper", the "Breaking of Bread", the "Eucharistic assembly ", the "memorial of the Lord's Passion and Resurrection", the "Holy Sacrifice", the "Holy and...
by Father Moellers at St. Philomena's, the whole settlement followed the funeral cortège to the cemetery where Damien was laid to rest under the same Pandanus
Pandanus
Pandanus is a genus of monocots with about 600 known species. They are numerous palmlike dioecious trees and shrubs native of the Old World tropics and subtropics. They are classified in the order Pandanales, family Pandanaceae.-Overview:...
tree where he first slept upon his arrival on Molokai.
In January 1936, at the request of the Belgian government
Politics of Belgium
Politics of Belgium takes place in a framework of a federal, parliamentary, representative democratic, constitutional monarchy, whereby the King of the Belgians is the Head of State and the Prime Minister of Belgium is the head of government in a multi-party system. Executive power is exercised by...
, Damien's body was returned to his native land. It was brought back aboard the Belgian sailing ship Mercator
Mercator (ship)
The barquentine Mercator was designed by the Antarctic explorer Adrien de Gerlache as a training ship for the Belgian merchant fleet. She was named after Gerardus Mercator , Flemish cartographer...
and now rests in Leuven, an historic university city close to the village where Damien was born. After his beatification in June 1995, the remains of his right hand were returned to Hawaii, and re-interred in his original grave on Molokai.
Order of Kalākaua
King David KalākauaKalakaua
Kalākaua, born David Laamea Kamanakapuu Mahinulani Nalaiaehuokalani Lumialani Kalākaua and sometimes called The Merrie Monarch , was the last reigning king of the Kingdom of Hawaii...
bestowed on Damien the honor Knight Commander of the Royal Order of Kalākaua. When Princess Lydia Liliuokalani visited the settlement to present the medal, she was reported as having been too distraught and heartbroken to read her speech. The princess shared her experience with the world and publicly acclaimed Damien's efforts. Consequently, Damien's name was spread across the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
. American Protestants
Protestantism
Protestantism is one of the three major groupings within Christianity. It is a movement that began in Germany in the early 16th century as a reaction against medieval Roman Catholic doctrines and practices, especially in regards to salvation, justification, and ecclesiology.The doctrines of the...
raised large sums of money for the missionary. The Church of England
Church of England
The Church of England is the officially established Christian church in England and the Mother Church of the worldwide Anglican Communion. The church considers itself within the tradition of Western Christianity and dates its formal establishment principally to the mission to England by St...
sent food, medicine, clothing and supplies. It is believed that Damien never wore the medal given to him.
C. M. Hyde
Upon his death, a global discussion arose as to the mysteries of Damien's life and his work on the island of Molokai. Much criticism came out of the CongregationalCongregational church
Congregational churches are Protestant Christian churches practicing Congregationalist church governance, in which each congregation independently and autonomously runs its own affairs....
and Presbyterian
Presbyterianism
Presbyterianism refers to a number of Christian churches adhering to the Calvinist theological tradition within Protestantism, which are organized according to a characteristic Presbyterian polity. Presbyterian theology typically emphasizes the sovereignty of God, the authority of the Scriptures,...
churches in Hawaii. It is possible that these church leaders took a stance against Damien largely because of their bias against Catholicism
Catholicism
Catholicism is a broad term for the body of the Catholic faith, its theologies and doctrines, its liturgical, ethical, spiritual, and behavioral characteristics, as well as a religious people as a whole....
. The most well-known treatise against Damien was by a Honolulu Presbyterian, Reverend C. M. Hyde, in a letter dated August 2, 1889 to a fellow pastor, Reverend H. B. Gage; in it, Hyde referred to Father Damien as "a coarse, dirty man" whose leprosy should be attributed to his "carelessness".
In 1889 Scottish
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
author Robert Louis Stevenson
Robert Louis Stevenson
Robert Louis Balfour Stevenson was a Scottish novelist, poet, essayist and travel writer. His best-known books include Treasure Island, Kidnapped, and Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde....
and his family arrived in Hawaii for an extended stay. While there Stevenson, also a Presbyterian, drafted a famous open letter
Open letter
An open letter is a letter that is intended to be read by a wide audience, or a letter intended for an individual, but that is nonetheless widely distributed intentionally....
as a rebuttal in defense of Damien. The Catholic Encyclopedia judges that in this treatise "the memory of the Apostle of the Lepers is brilliantly vindicated". Prior to writing his letter, dated February 25, 1890, Stevenson stayed on Molokai for eight days and seven nights, during which he kept a diary. In the letter Stevenson answered Hyde's criticisms point by point. He sought testimony from critical Protestants who knew the man, which he recorded in his diary. The treatise included some extracts, like the following which upbraided Rev. Hyde for his fault finding:
But, sir, when we have failed, and another has succeeded; when we have stood by, and another has stepped in; when we sit and grow bulky in our charming mansions, and a plain, uncouth peasant steps into the battle, under the eyes of God, and succours the afflicted, and consoles the dying, and is himself afflicted in his turn, and dies upon the field of honour - the battle cannot be retrieved as your unhappy irritation has suggested. It is a lost battle, and lost for ever. One thing remained to you in your defeat - some rags of common honour; and these you have made haste to cast away.
In writing to Hyde, Stevenson proved prescient:
If that world at all remember you, on the day when Damien of Molokai shall be named a Saint, it will be in virtue of one work: your letter to the Reverend H. B. Gage.
Stevenson further chided Hyde for nit-picking Damien and failing to acknowledge his heroic virtue
Heroic virtue
Heroic virtue is a phrase coined by Augustine of Hippo to describe the virtue of early Christian martyrs and used by the Roman Catholic church. The Greek pagan term hero described a person with possibly superhuman abilities and great goodness, and "it connotes a degree of bravery, fame, and...
:
You are one of those who have an eye for faults and failures; that you take a pleasure to find and publish them; and that, having found them, you make haste to forget the overvailing virtues and the real success which had alone introduced them to your knowledge. It is a dangerous frame of mind.
Stevenson then comments on his own journal entries:
...I have set down these private passages, as you perceive, without correction; thanks to you, the public has them in their bluntness. They are almost a list of the man's faults, for it is rather these that I was seeking: with his virtues, with the heroic profile of his life, I and the world were already sufficiently acquainted. I was besides a little suspicious of Catholic testimony; in no ill sense, but merely because Damien's admirers and disciples were the least likely to be critical. I know you will be more suspicious still; and the facts set down above were one and all collected from the lips of Protestants who had opposed the father in his life. Yet I am strangely deceived, or they build up the image of a man, with all his weakness, essentially heroic, and alive with rugged honesty, generosity, and mirth.
The Catholic Encyclopedia further states that a correspondence in the "Pacific Commercial Advertiser", June 20, 1905, "completely removes from the character of Father Damien every vestige of suspicion, proving beyond a doubt that Dr. Hyde's insinuations rested merely on misunderstandings".
Mahatma Gandhi
Mahatma Gandhi offered his own defense of Father Damien's life and work. Gandhi claimed Damien to have been an inspiration for his social campaigns in IndiaIndia
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
that led to the freedom of his people and secured aid for those that needed it. Gandhi was quoted in M.S. Mehendale's 1971 account, Gandhi Looks at Leprosy, as saying,
The political and journalistic world can boast of very few heroes who compare with Father Damien of Molokai. It is worthwhile to look for the sources of such heroism.
Canonization
Pope Paul VI
Paul VI , born Giovanni Battista Enrico Antonio Maria Montini , reigned as Pope of the Catholic Church from 21 June 1963 until his death on 6 August 1978. Succeeding Pope John XXIII, who had convened the Second Vatican Council, he decided to continue it...
declared Father Damien to be venerable
Venerable
The Venerable is used as a style or epithet in several Christian churches. It is also the common English-language translation of a number of Buddhist titles.-Roman Catholic:...
, the first of three steps that lead to sainthood. On June 4, 1995, Pope John Paul II beatified him and gave him his official spiritual title of Blessed. On December 20, 1999, Jorge Medina Estévez
Jorge Medina Estévez
Jorge Arturo Agustín Medina Estévez is a Chilean Cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church. He was Cardinal Protodeacon until February 23, 2007, and is Prefect Emeritus of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments.-Early life and ordination:Medina was born in Santiago in...
, Prefect of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments
Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments
The Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments is the congregation of the Roman Curia that handles most affairs relating to liturgical practices of the Latin Catholic Church as distinct from the Eastern Catholic Churches and also some technical matters relating to the...
, confirmed the November 1999 decision of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops
United States Conference of Catholic Bishops
The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops is the episcopal conference of the Catholic Church in the United States. Founded in 1966 as the joint National Conference of Catholic Bishops and United States Catholic Conference, it is composed of all active and retired members of the Catholic...
to place Blessed Damien on the liturgical calendar
Liturgical year
The liturgical year, also known as the church year, consists of the cycle of liturgical seasons in Christian churches which determines when feast days, including celebrations of saints, are to be observed, and which portions of Scripture are to be read. Distinct liturgical colours may appear in...
with the rank of optional memorial. Father Damien was canonized on October 11, 2009, by Pope Benedict XVI. His feast Day is celebrated on May 10. In Hawaii, it is celebrated on the day of his death, April 15.
Two miracles have been attributed to Father Damien's posthumous intercession:
On June 13, 1992, Pope John Paul II approved the cure of a nun in France in 1895 as a miracle attributed to Venerable Damien's intercession
Intercession
Intercession is the act of interceding between two parties. In both Christian and Islamic religious usage, it is a prayer to God on behalf of others....
. In that case, Sister Simplicia Hue began a novena
Novena
In the Catholic Church, a novena is a devotion consisting of a prayer repeated on nine successive days, asking to obtain special graces. The prayers may come from prayer books, or consist of the recitation of the Rosary , or of short prayers through the day...
to Father Damien as she lay dying of a lingering intestinal illness. It is stated that pain and symptoms of the illness disappeared overnight.
In the second case, Audrey Toguchi, a Hawaiian woman who suffered from cancer, was completely cured after having prayed at the grave of Father Damien on Molokai: In 1997, Toguchi was diagnosed with liposarcoma
Liposarcoma
Liposarcoma is a malignant tumor that arises in fat cells in deep soft tissue, such as that inside the thigh or in the retroperitoneum.They are typically large bulky tumors which tend to have multiple smaller satellites extending beyond the main confines of the tumor.Liposarcomas, like all...
, a cancer that arises in fat cells. She underwent surgery a year later. A tumor the size of a fist was removed from the side of her left thigh and buttock. Unfortunately, the cancer spread to her lungs. Her physician, Dr. Walter Chang, told her, 'Nobody has ever survived this cancer. It's going to take you.' The Toguchi case was documented in the Hawaii Medical Journal of October 2000.
In April 2008, the Holy See
Holy See
The Holy See is the episcopal jurisdiction of the Catholic Church in Rome, in which its Bishop is commonly known as the Pope. It is the preeminent episcopal see of the Catholic Church, forming the central government of the Church. As such, diplomatically, and in other spheres the Holy See acts and...
accepted the two cures as evidence of Father Damien's sanctity. On June 2, 2008, the Congregation for the Causes of Saints
Congregation for the Causes of Saints
The Congregation for the Causes of Saints is the congregation of the Roman Curia which oversees the complex process that leads to the canonization of saints, passing through the steps of a declaration of "heroic virtues" and beatification...
at the Vatican voted to recommend raising Father Damien of Molokai to sainthood. The decree that officially notes and verifies the miracle needed for canonization was promulgated by Pope Benedict XVI and Cardinal
Cardinal (Catholicism)
A cardinal is a senior ecclesiastical official, usually an ordained bishop, and ecclesiastical prince of the Catholic Church. They are collectively known as the College of Cardinals, which as a body elects a new pope. The duties of the cardinals include attending the meetings of the College and...
José Saraiva Martins on Thursday, July 3, 2008, with the ceremony taking place in Rome, with celebrations in Belgium and Hawaii. On February 21, 2009, the Vatican announced that Father Damien would be canonized. The ceremony took place in Rome on Rosary Sunday, October 11, 2009, in the presence of King Albert II of the Belgians
Albert II of Belgium
Albert II is the current reigning King of the Belgians, a constitutional monarch. He is a member of the royal house "of Belgium"; formerly this house was named Saxe-Coburg-Gotha...
and Queen Paola
Queen Paola of Belgium
Paola, Queen of the Belgians , is the queen consort of Albert II of Belgium....
as well as the Belgian Prime Minister, Herman Van Rompuy
Herman Van Rompuy
Herman Achille Van Rompuy is the first long-term and full-time President of the European Council...
, and several cabinet ministers, completing the process of canonization. In Washington, D.C., President Barack Obama
Barack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office. Obama previously served as a United States Senator from Illinois, from January 2005 until he resigned following his victory in the 2008 presidential election.Born in...
affirmed his deep admiration for St. Damien, saying that he gave voice to voiceless and dignity to the sick. Four other individuals were canonized with Father Damien at the same ceremony: Zygmunt Szczęsny Feliński
Zygmunt Szczęsny Feliński
Saint Zygmunt Szczęsny Feliński, SFO was Archbishop of Warsaw and founder of the Franciscan Sisters of the Family of Mary. He was canonized on 11 October 2009 by Pope Benedict XVI.-Early life:...
, Sister Jeanne Jugan
Jeanne Jugan
Saint Jeanne Jugan , also known as Sister Mary of the Cross was born in Cancale in Brittany, France, the sixth of the eight children of Joseph and Marie Jugan. Her father died when she was very young and her mother raised this large family alone. When Jeanne was 16, she took a job as the kitchen...
, Father Francisco Coll Guitart
Francisco Coll Guitart
Saint Francisco Coll Guitart was a priest of the Order of Preachers and founded the Dominican Sisters of the Annunciation of the Blessed Virgin....
and Rafael Arnáiz Barón
Rafael Arnáiz Barón
Saint Rafael Arnáiz, is a saint of the Roman Catholic Church.. He was a trappist monk and he is considered one of the greatest mystics of the XX century....
.
Damien's symbols are a tree and a dove.
Damien is honored, together with Marianne Cope, with a feast day on the liturgical calendar of the Episcopal Church (USA)
Calendar of saints (Episcopal Church in the United States of America)
The veneration of saints in the Episcopal Church is a continuation of an ancient tradition from the early Church which honors important people of the Christian faith. The usage of the term "saint" is similar to Roman Catholic and Orthodox traditions. Those in the Anglo-Catholic tradition may...
on April 15.
In arts and media
Father Damien Statue
The Father Damien Statue, also called the Saint Damien of Molokai Statue, is the centerpiece of the entrance to the Hawaii State Capitol and the Hawaii State Legislature in Honolulu, Hawaii. A second bronze cast is displayed in the National Statuary Hall Collection in the United States Capitol...
on the steps of the State Capitol Building
Hawaii State Capitol
The Hawaii State Capitol is the official statehouse or capitol building of Hawaii in the United States. From its chambers, the executive and legislative branches perform the duties involved in governing the state...
honors him, and a replica is displayed in the National Statuary Hall Collection
National Statuary Hall Collection
The National Statuary Hall Collection in the United States Capitol comprises statues donated by individual states to honor persons notable in their history...
in the United States Capitol
United States Capitol
The United States Capitol is the meeting place of the United States Congress, the legislature of the federal government of the United States. Located in Washington, D.C., it sits atop Capitol Hill at the eastern end of the National Mall...
.
Director David Miller
David Miller (director)
David Miller was an American movie director who directed such varied films as Billy the Kid with Robert Taylor and Brian Donlevy, Flying Tigers with John Wayne, and Love Happy with the Marx Brothers.-Filmography:* Bittersweet Love * Executive Action * Hail, Hero! * Hammerhead...
made a short film of Father Damien's life in 1938 entitled The Great Heart
The Great Heart
The Great Heart is a 1938 short film about the life of Father Damien and is directed by David Miller. It was nominated for an Academy Award in 1938 for Best Short Subject .- Cast :* Carey Wilson - Narrator* Tom Neal - Father Damian...
, released by MGM
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Inc. is an American media company, involved primarily in the production and distribution of films and television programs. MGM was founded in 1924 when the entertainment entrepreneur Marcus Loew gained control of Metro Pictures, Goldwyn Pictures Corporation and Louis B. Mayer...
.
The first full-length
Feature film
In the film industry, a feature film is a film production made for initial distribution in theaters and being the main attraction of the screening, rather than a short film screened before it; a full length movie...
picture on Father Damien was Molokai (1959), a Spanish production directed by Luis Lucia
Luis Lucia
Luis Lucia Mingarro was a Spanish film director and screenwriter.He studied Law and was the attorney of CIFESA film studios....
with Javier Escrivá, Roberto Camardiel and Gerard Tichy
Gerard Tichy
Gérard Tichy was a Spanish actor of German descent, who appeared in numerous movies, including several international productions. He was born in Weißenfels, Germany, on March 11, 1920, and died in Madrid, Spain, on April 11, 1992.Tichy participated in World War II and held the rank of a...
playing the main roles.
The one-man play Damien
Damien (play)
* For the other uses of Damien, see Damien .Damien is a 1976 one person show about Father Damien by Aldyth Morris. The play was originally performed in Hawaii in by Terence Knapp and has had numerous professional and amateur productions since that time.The play is set in 1936 when Damien's body...
tells the story of Damien's life in the first person through a series of flashbacks.
Father Damien was portrayed in 1980 by Ken Howard
Ken Howard
Kenneth Joseph "Ken" Howard, Jr. is an American actor, best known for his roles as Thomas Jefferson in 1776 and as basketball coach and former Chicago Bulls player Ken Reeves in the television show The White Shadow...
in the television film Father Damien: Leper Priest.
Belgian film producer
Film producer
A film producer oversees and delivers a film project to all relevant parties while preserving the integrity, voice and vision of the film. They will also often take on some financial risk by using their own money, especially during the pre-production period, before a film is fully financed.The...
Tharsi Vanhuysse produced and Paul Cox
Paul Cox
Paulus Henriqus Benedictus "Paul" Cox is an award-winning Australian film director.Cox was born in Venlo, Limburg, the Netherlands, the son of Else , a native of Germany, and Wim Cox, a documentary film producer. Cox emigrated to Australia in 1965...
directed the 1999 film Molokai: The Story of Father Damien
Molokai: The Story of Father Damien
Molokai: The Story of Father Damien is a 1999 biopic of Father Damien, who was a Belgian priest working at the Kalaupapa Leprosy Settlement on the Hawaiian island of Molokai...
.
Legacy
De Grootste Belg
De Grootste Belg was a 2005 vote conducted by Belgian public TV broadcaster Canvas, public radio broadcaster Radio 1, and newspaper De Standaard, to determine who is the Greatest Belgian of all time...
, chosen as "The Greatest Belgian" throughout that country's history
History of Belgium
The history of Belgium, from pre-history to the present day, is intertwined with the histories of its European neighbours, in particular those of the Netherlands and Luxembourg...
in polling conducted by the Flemish public broadcasting service, VRT
Vlaamse Radio- en Televisieomroep
The Vlaamse Radio- en Televisieomroeporganisatie , or VRT, is a publicly-funded broadcaster of radio and television in Flanders ....
. At the same time he was placed third on Le plus grand Belge
Le plus grand Belge
Le plus grand Belge , was a television show on the Belgian French-speaking public channel RTBF. In the program the audience could vote for the greatest Belgian by using the website, sending an SMS or using the telephone...
("The Greatest Belgian") by the French-speaking public channel RTBF
RTBF
Radio Télévision Belge Francophone is the public broadcasting organization of the French Community of Belgium, the southern, French-speaking part of Belgium...
.
In both ecumenical
Ecumenism
Ecumenism or oecumenism mainly refers to initiatives aimed at greater Christian unity or cooperation. It is used predominantly by and with reference to Christian denominations and Christian Churches separated by doctrine, history, and practice...
religious and nonsectarian
Nonsectarian
Nonsectarian, in its most literal sense, refers to a lack of sectarianism. The term is also more narrowly used to describe secular private educational institutions or other organizations either not affiliated with or not restricted to a particular religious denomination though the organization...
communities, Damien's ministry to lepers is being cited as an example of how society should minister to HIV/AIDS patients. Many clinics and centers worldwide catering to HIV/AIDS patients, including Damien Centers or Damien Ministries, bear his name. There is a chapel named after him, and dedicated to people with HIV/AIDS, in St. Thomas the Apostle Hollywood
St. Thomas the Apostle Hollywood
Saint Thomas the Apostle is an Episcopal / Anglican church in Hollywood, California.-History:St. Thomas Episcopal Church did not become an officially incorporated parish of the Episcopal Diocese of Los Angeles until August 1920. Its history really began in 1912, when Mrs. Mary Ogden organized a...
, an Episcopal parish.
The Blessed Damien Society
Blessed Damien Society
The Damien The Leper Society, formerly the Blessed Damien Society, is a non-profit organization aiding victims of leprosy in Vietnam and the Philippines...
, and other charities fighting leprosy, have been set up in his name. A centre for "peace for families and individuals affected by bereavement, stress, violence, and other difficulties with particular attention to Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...
".
Damien is considered an important person in the history of Hawaii
History of Hawaii
The human history of Hawaii includes phases of early Polynesian settlement, British arrival, unification, Euro-American and Asian immigrators, the overthrow of the Hawaiian monarchy, a brief period as the Republic of Hawaii, and admission to the United States as Hawaii Territory and then as the...
. The Father Damien Statue
Father Damien Statue
The Father Damien Statue, also called the Saint Damien of Molokai Statue, is the centerpiece of the entrance to the Hawaii State Capitol and the Hawaii State Legislature in Honolulu, Hawaii. A second bronze cast is displayed in the National Statuary Hall Collection in the United States Capitol...
on the steps of the Hawaii State Capitol Building
Hawaii State Capitol
The Hawaii State Capitol is the official statehouse or capitol building of Hawaii in the United States. From its chambers, the executive and legislative branches perform the duties involved in governing the state...
honors him, and a replica is displayed in the National Statuary Hall Collection
National Statuary Hall Collection
The National Statuary Hall Collection in the United States Capitol comprises statues donated by individual states to honor persons notable in their history...
in the United States Capitol
United States Capitol
The United States Capitol is the meeting place of the United States Congress, the legislature of the federal government of the United States. Located in Washington, D.C., it sits atop Capitol Hill at the eastern end of the National Mall...
.
Schools are named after him, including Damien High School
Damien High School
Damien High School is a private, all-male Roman Catholic high school in La Verne, California named for Saint Damien of Molokai. The school had its first graduating class in 1963. Each of Damien's freshmen classes draws from an average of over 75 different elementary and junior high schools for...
in Southern California
Southern California
Southern California is a megaregion, or megapolitan area, in the southern area of the U.S. state of California. Large urban areas include Greater Los Angeles and Greater San Diego. The urban area stretches along the coast from Ventura through the Southland and Inland Empire to San Diego...
, and Damien Memorial School
Damien Memorial School
Damien Memorial School is a private Roman Catholic prep-school for grades 6-12 located in Kalihi, Oahu, a section of Honolulu, Hawaii. Located in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Honolulu, the school is sponsored by the Congregation of Christian Brothers and is accredited by the Western Association...
in Hawaii. The village of Saint-Damien, Quebec
Saint-Damien, Quebec
Saint-Damien is a parish municipality of 2,178 inhabitants in Quebec, Canada. It is located in the Regional County Municipality of Matawinie, Lanaudière region.-History:The town was founded the 6 September 1870...
is also named after him. Churches worldwide are also named after him.
St. Damien of Molokai Catholic Church in Edmond, Oklahoma
Edmond, Oklahoma
Edmond is a city in Oklahoma County, Oklahoma, United States, and a part of the Oklahoma City metropolitan area in the central part of the state. As of the 2010 census, the population was 81,405, making it the sixth largest city in the state of Oklahoma....
, is believed to have been the first Roman Catholic church in the continental United States to be named for Saint Damien when it was dedicated in 2010. A Traditional Latin Mass church, it is operated by the Priestly Fraternity of St. Peter (FSSP), and was authorized by Eusebius J. Beltran, Archbishop of Oklahoma City, in 2010.
See also
- American Catholic Servants of God, Venerables, Beatified, and Saints
- Charles Reed BishopCharles Reed BishopCharles Reed Bishop was a businessman and philanthropist in Hawaii.Born in Glens Falls, New York, he sailed to Hawaii in 1846 at the age of 24, and made his home there. Bishop was one of the first trustees of and a major donor to the Kamehameha Schools in Hawaii...
- Charles Warren StoddardCharles Warren StoddardCharles Warren Stoddard was an American author and editor.-Life and works:Charles Warren Stoddard was born in Rochester, New York on August 7, 1843. He was descended in a direct line from Anthony Stoddard of England, who settled at Boston, Massachusetts, in 1639...
- Herman KoeckemannHerman KoeckemannHerman Koeckemann, formally Bernard Hermann Koeckemann, SS.CC., , served as the second vicar apostolic of the Vicariate Apostolic of the Sandwich Islands — now the Roman Catholic Diocese of Honolulu — from 1881 to 1892.Born in Ostbeveren, Westphalia, Germany, he was baptized as Bernard...
- Jonatana NapelaJonatana NapelaJonatana Napela or Jonathan Hawaii Napela was one of the earliest Latter-day Saint converts in Hawai'i. He helped translate the Book of Mormon into Hawaiian with George Q...
- Kalaupapa Leprosy Settlement and National Historical Park
- List of American saints and beatified people
- LunaliloLunaliloLunalilo, born William Charles Lunalilo , was king of the Kingdom of Hawaii from January 8, 1873 until February 3, 1874...
- Peter KaeoPeter KaeoPeter Young Kaeo Kekuaokalani was a Hawaiian noble and politician of the Kingdom of Hawaii.-Life:Peter was born March 4, 1836 at Paloha, Honolulu on the island of Oahu. His mother was Jane Lahilahi, the youngest daughter of John Young Olohana, the advisor to Kamehameha I, and Chiefess Kaōanaeha...
- Walter M. GibsonWalter M. GibsonWalter Murray Gibson was an American adventurer and a government minister in the Kingdom of Hawaii prior to the kingdom's 1887 constitution.-Life:...
- St. Thomas the Apostle HollywoodSt. Thomas the Apostle HollywoodSaint Thomas the Apostle is an Episcopal / Anglican church in Hollywood, California.-History:St. Thomas Episcopal Church did not become an officially incorporated parish of the Episcopal Diocese of Los Angeles until August 1920. Its history really began in 1912, when Mrs. Mary Ogden organized a...
External links
- Kalaupapa National Historic Park – about the human and natural community of Father Damien's work
- Damiaandorp – Hometown of Father Damian