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| Sunday, 12 January 2003 |
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Blessed Joseph Vaz - an embodiment of Christ by W. T. A. Leslie Fernando The 292nd death anniversary of Blessed Joseph Vaz known as the Apostle of Sri Lanka falls on January 16, 2003. He was beatified in Colombo on January 21, 1995 and the 8th anniversary of his beatification falls on January 21, 2003. Blessed Joseph Vaz could also be considered as an embodiment of Christ the Master. Christ the King of Kings was born poor of a humble maid in an abandoned stable in Bethlehem. For 30 years he lived as the son of a poor carpenter in a little village Nazareth. He selected his disciples not from the princes or the nobility, nor from the patrician classes or the rich but from fisherfolk an underprivileged class, tax collectors a despised class and publicans the outcasts. In his ministry Christ went from place to place saying "Foxes have holes. Birds of the air have nests. But the Son of Man has no place to lay his head". He devalued the rich and said "It is easier for a camel to go through an eye of a needle than rich man to enter into heaven" (Matthew 12/24). Christ recognised the dignity and worth of human labour saying "Come unto me all that labour and heavily burdened and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn of me, for I am meek and lowly in heart." (Matthew 11/28, 29). Disciples Christ in his Apostolic College instructed his disciples to go to far distant lands and undergo suffering to spread the message of God. He said to them "Provide neither gold nor silver or brass in your purses. No script for your journey neither two coats or shoes nor yet staves, for the workman is worthy of his meat" (Matthew 10/9, 10). After the death of Christ, the Apostles and early Christians adhered to the teaching of Christ and his instructions. They shared their income within the community and led simple and serene lives. Popes, priests, servants and slaves lived together in fraternity. The rulers on the other hand feared Christianity as it preached equality and justice. They tried to suppress Christianity by persecuting Christians and even by putting them to death. But more they persecuted Christians, more the Christianity spread. This situation changed when the Roman Empire embraced Christianity in the 3rd century. The rulers and the rich came into terms with the Church and donated wealth, lands and privileges to the church. As a result the Catholic Church became an affluent institution and the simplicity, austerity and humility practised by early Christians gave way to much glamour and splendour. Religious In fact even today some of our religious forms and practices with undue emphasis on outward manifestations have been influenced by grandeur that is Greek and glory that is Rome. The ecclestical pomp and ceremony, glamour and majesty seems to be incompatible with the life and teachings of Christ the simple Galilean. Catholic faith was officially established in Sri Lanka with the arrival of the Portuguese in the 16th century. The missionaries during the Portuguese times adjusted to the life here, underwent hardships led holy and exemplary lives and converted people to Christianity. They built churches and schools, established parishes and laid the foundation for the Catholic Church in our country. Nevertheless some missionaries during this time got involved in the politics of the day and made attempts to place Christian converts to the throne. They even got the Portuguese rulers to take over some Buddhist and Hindu temples, destroy the images and convert them to churches. The repressive attitude of the Portuguese towards the non-Catholics and the destruction of their places of worship aroused patriotic feelings against the Catholic missionaries as well as the Portuguese. Besides the missionaries failed to appreciate what is good and praiseworthy in indigenous culture. They rather sought to impose Western culture along with the Christian faith. In 1658 the Dutch ousted the Portuguese from the maritime provinces. For both political and sectarian reasons the Dutch set their face against the Catholics, proscribed the religion, drove away the priests and took over Catholic churches and schools. For thirty long years there was not a single Catholic priest to minister to the Catholics and Catholic activity almost disappeared in the island. It was Blessed Joseph Vaz who came into this country under the guise of a coolie who revived the Catholic faith in Sri Lanka. Blessed Joseph Vaz who was a Konkani Brahamin by lineage was born at Benelim, Goa on April 21, 1651. He was ordained a priest in 1676 and he was the superior of the Oratory of God when he came to Sri Lanka. Before leaving Goa he also made arrangements for other Oratorian priests to follow him for missionary work in our country. In Sri Lanka Blessed Joseph Vaz proved himself to be an embodiment of Christ. He walked barefooted all over the country visiting scattered Catholics and attended to their spiritual needs. He slept on a mat and fasted daily unless he was ill. When an epidemic of small pox spread in Kandy in 1697, Blessed Joseph Vaz and his companion Fr. Joseph Carvalho nursed both Christians and non-Christians. Obedience The Catholic missionaries in Sri Lanka during the Portuguese times though committed to poverty, chastity and obedience followed the traditions and practices in Europe. They received payment for certain services called stipends. Blessed Joseph Vaz never accepted such payments. On the contrary even the alms he received from people he distributed among the poor. Blessed Joseph Vaz and other Oratorians who followed him had to work hard in Sri Lanka under Dutch persecution. They were never disheartened and they looked after the spiritual welfare of the Catholics under severe oppression, victimisation and humiliation. |
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