St. John Theophane Venard
Missionary & Martyr - Feast: November 6th
The Catholic Church is exceptionally rich when it comes to its history of heroic souls who died in witness to our faith in Jesus Christ and the Universal Church that he founded. Many of our martyrs not only died with remarkable courage, but also with a spirit of joy that astonished those who witnessed their deaths. One such martyr was the missionary-priest, St. John Theophane Venard. He was born on November 21, 1829, in the small French town of Saint-Loup-sur-Thouet, and was blessed to have been raised in a devout household from which two younger brothers also entered into the priesthood.
As a child Theophane read an account of the 1837 martyrdom in Vietnam of the French priest, St. John-Charles Cornay, and was so deeply inspired he exclaimed, “I want to go to Tonkin, too! I want to die a martyr, too!” So in his late-teens, he obtained permission from his father to enter the Minor Seminary in Montmorillon where he studied philosophy before completing the rest of his religious training in the Paris Seminary for Foreign Missions. He was ordained a Catholic priest on June 5, 1851, being only 22-years-old. In September, 1852, Fr. Venard’s goal of becoming a missionary was fulfilled when he was sent to a mission in Hong Kong, and later transferred to West Tonkin, Vietnam, in May of 1854.
When the young priest arrived in Vietnam, the Christian community was undergoing persecution by order of the local ruler, Minh-Menh. Recently enacted anti-Christian laws had forced the Church to go into hiding, with missionary-priests ministering to their flocks in secrecy under the cover of darkness in caves and remote forests. The hostile and extreme conditions, plus chronic illness, took a heavy toll on the health of Fr. Venard but he continued to labor zealously for the good of the young Church in Vietnam.
On November 30, 1860, at the height of a renewed Christian persecution, Fr. Venard was betrayed to government officials by a relative of one of his parishioners. During his short trial he was given repeated opportunities to renounce his faith in Jesus Christ, but he remained steadfast and was consequently sentenced to death. For several weeks prior to his execution, he was kept in a small ornate cage that left him with very little room to move. Sympathetic guards allowed Fr. Venard occasional breaks from his cage, while several of his parishioners secretly ministered to him. Given his situation, he also wrote a series of farewell letters to family and friends that expressed his commitment to the Faith, as well as the peace and joy he felt in being able to die a martyr’s death for the sake of Christ. In a particular letter to his bishop, he stated, “My heart is like a calm lake.”
As a child Theophane read an account of the 1837 martyrdom in Vietnam of the French priest, St. John-Charles Cornay, and was so deeply inspired he exclaimed, “I want to go to Tonkin, too! I want to die a martyr, too!” So in his late-teens, he obtained permission from his father to enter the Minor Seminary in Montmorillon where he studied philosophy before completing the rest of his religious training in the Paris Seminary for Foreign Missions. He was ordained a Catholic priest on June 5, 1851, being only 22-years-old. In September, 1852, Fr. Venard’s goal of becoming a missionary was fulfilled when he was sent to a mission in Hong Kong, and later transferred to West Tonkin, Vietnam, in May of 1854.
When the young priest arrived in Vietnam, the Christian community was undergoing persecution by order of the local ruler, Minh-Menh. Recently enacted anti-Christian laws had forced the Church to go into hiding, with missionary-priests ministering to their flocks in secrecy under the cover of darkness in caves and remote forests. The hostile and extreme conditions, plus chronic illness, took a heavy toll on the health of Fr. Venard but he continued to labor zealously for the good of the young Church in Vietnam.
On November 30, 1860, at the height of a renewed Christian persecution, Fr. Venard was betrayed to government officials by a relative of one of his parishioners. During his short trial he was given repeated opportunities to renounce his faith in Jesus Christ, but he remained steadfast and was consequently sentenced to death. For several weeks prior to his execution, he was kept in a small ornate cage that left him with very little room to move. Sympathetic guards allowed Fr. Venard occasional breaks from his cage, while several of his parishioners secretly ministered to him. Given his situation, he also wrote a series of farewell letters to family and friends that expressed his commitment to the Faith, as well as the peace and joy he felt in being able to die a martyr’s death for the sake of Christ. In a particular letter to his bishop, he stated, “My heart is like a calm lake.”
Another photo of St. John Theophane Venard and a 1st Class (bone) Relic
of the Martyr in my ministry's custody
Fr. Venard was beheaded on February 2, 1861. Witnesses at his martyrdom reported that he walked to the execution site without any signs of fear and joyfully singing the Magnificat. The Church Canonized St. John Theophane Venard on June 19, 1988. Among his most ardent admirers was none other than St. Therese, the Little Flower, who was deeply inspired by Fr. Venard’s missionary zeal. In her writings can be found this reference to the martyred priest: “I have read the lives of many missionaries. One I've read is the life of Theophane Venard, which interested me and touched me more than I can say.”
A Reflection
“We are all flowers planted on this earth, which God plucks in his own good time: some a little sooner, some a little later . . .” ~ Words of St. John Theophane Venard
A Short Prayer
Dear St. John Theophane, pray for us that we too may witness to the truth of our Faith with courage, and most importantly, with joy.
A Reflection
“We are all flowers planted on this earth, which God plucks in his own good time: some a little sooner, some a little later . . .” ~ Words of St. John Theophane Venard
A Short Prayer
Dear St. John Theophane, pray for us that we too may witness to the truth of our Faith with courage, and most importantly, with joy.
No comments:
Post a Comment
[Your comment/feedback is welcomed. However, business advertisements of any sort are not allowed and will be deleted. Thank you.]