On October 11, 2009, Pope John Paul II raised Joseph de Veuster to the altar by canonizing him. The saint had a beautiful life dedicated to caring for the lepers on Molokai until he contracted the disease and succumbed to it.
Family Background
Joseph de Veuster, better known as Father Damien of Molokai was born in Tremeloo, Belgium on
January 3, 1840, the seventh of eight children born to Frans and Catherine de Veuster. He was forced to drop out of school when he was 13 in order to work on the family’s farm. Two of his sisters became Ursuline nuns and his older brother Auguste joined the Congregation of the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary and the Perppetual Devotion to the Most Blessed Sacrament.
Vocation of Joseph
Although his father expected him to become a merchant-farmer, Joseph longed to follow his siblings into religious life. When he was 18, he attended a mission conducted by the Redemptorist Fathers and decided to enter the novitiate of the Congregation of the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary at Louvian. His name in religion became Damien after a fourth century martyr and physician. He took his final vows On October 7,1860 in the Motherhouse of his congregation in Paris. He received minor orders in 1863.
Volunteers to go to Hawaii
Also in the Congregation of the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary was Pamphile, a priest, and Damien’s brother. When his brother became ill and was unable to accept his assignment to go to Hawaii, Damien volunteered to go in his place.
Arrival in Hawaii
Having arrived in Honolulu in March 19, 1864, he was subsequently ordained a priest in the Cathedral of Our Lady Queen of Peace in Honolulu on May 24, 1864. He was sent to the Big Island, named Hawaii, the same as the state, where he stayed ministering to the people there for nine years.
Arrival on Molokai
Father Damien requested that he be allowed to go to Molokai to minister to the lepers in the colony that had been established there by the government. On May 10, 1873, with the blessing of his bishop, he arrived at the leper colony at Kalaupapa as their resident priest. At that time there were 600 lepers there. The first night, he spent sleeping under a tree.
Work on Molokai
When Damien arrived on Molokai, living conditions of the lepers were deplorable. Father Damien did everything in his power to aid the lepers in his charge—giving them the sacraments, bandaging their ulcers, helping them build modest homes, making their coffins, and digging their graves. He ate with the lepers, visited their homes, touched them and shared their life.
Damien Contracted Leprosy
In 1885, Father Damien noticed the first signs of leprosy in his own body. Addressing his congregation as “fellow lepers,” he let them know that he was one of them. He continued his ministrations until he was physically unable to do so. The photograph accompanying this article, taken shortly before Father Damien’s death, shows the ravages the disease had wreaked on his body
Death of the Saint
Father Damien became completely incapacitated on March 28, 1889 and passed away April 15, 1889. He was buried in Kalaupapa, but his body was moved to Belgium in 1936. After he was beatified in 1995, his body was returned to Hawaii. Father Damien was canonized by Pope John Paul II in October 11, 2009.
The religious congregation of which he was a member is still very active in Hawaii. There is an interesting museum containing relics and memorabilia of St. Damien on Waikiki where one can feel close to him and gain many insights into his holy life. To learn more about St. Damien, visit the website of the Diocese of Honolulu.
