Saint Francis Xavier is the greatest Roman Catholic missionary of modern times who was instrumental in bringing Catholicism to India, the Malay Archipelago and Japan. Jesus asked, “What profit would there be for one to gain the whole world and forfeit his life?” (Matthew 16:26). These words were repeated to a young teacher of philosophy, Francis Xavier, who had a highly promising career in academia with success and a life of prestige ahead of him.
At first, Francis Xavier, living and teaching in Paris, did not heed these Gospel words. These words came from a good friend, Ignatius of Loyola, whose tireless persuasion finally convinced this young man in 1534 to do the spiritual exercises and as a result Francis Xavier joined him and his newly established community, the Society of Jesus – vowing poverty, chastity, obedience and apostolic service according to the directions of the pope.
Saint Francis Xavier was born in 1506 in the family castle in the Basque region of northern Spain, the fifth and youngest child of noble, wealthy and pious parents. When he was 19 he left home to study at the University of Paris. There he earned a Master of Arts degree in philosophy and taught this subject for four years. Then, he started to study theology. While at the university in Paris, Francis Xavier met Ignatius Loyola, a fellow student who would become an important influence in his life. Ignatius was a former soldier and fifteen years Francis’s senior, but he had undergone a profound religious conversion and was gathering about himself a group of men, including the future saint Peter Faber, who shared his ideals. Francis Xavier was ordained a priest in 1537. The following year Xavier went to Rome to share in the discussions to formalize the formal founding of the Society of Jesus with Ignatius of Loyola.
As a result of their preaching and the caring of the sick in Europe, the Jesuits became so popular that many Catholic kings and princes sought their services. One of these was King John III of Portugal who asked the Jesuits to work in India. He requested six missionaries, but Ignatius could only spare two. One of the two assigned for this mission had become ill and then, at the last moment Xavier was chosen to go to India. Father Francis disembarked from Lisbon for Goa, the center of Portuguese activity in the East, on May 6, 1542. He spent the next three years on the southeastern coast of India among the simple and poor fishermen there. Using a small catechism, he had translated the Creed, the 10 Commandments and other prayers into the native Tamil language with the help of interpreters. Father Francis travelled widely from village to village instructing and baptizing people in the faith. His obvious goodness and forceful conviction helped him overcome the difficulties of verbal communication. He would form schools that would teach Catholicism.
In the fall of 1545 new opportunities for Christianity attracted him to the Portuguese commercial center in Malayasia. However, his eyes were fixed on converting the Japanese. So, in 1549 Father Xavier entered the Japanese port of Kagoshima in order to evangelize the Japanese people. There he realized that the real conversion lay through China since at that time the Japanese looked to the Chinese for wisdom.
Saint Francis Xavier ranks among the great missionaries in Catholic history. Historians place the number of baptisms he celebrated as close to 100,000. He was known to have conducted his life’s work with great vitality and zeal. He was described as preaching and baptizing “with a joyful, calm face.” In fact, he was seen as going “everywhere with laughter in his mouth.” Much of the enthusiasm for his work came from the support and prayers he received from those who had sent him and from the great beauty of helping others to find God. He worked with enthusiasm and passion. In addition, he was known to be a charismatic person with a “dashing and robust personality.” He loved and understood people. He was described by a Jesuit companion in this way: “I have never met anyone more filled with faith and hope, more open-minded than Father Francis. He never seems to lose his great joy and enthusiasm. He talks to both the good and the bad. Anything he is asked to do, Father Francis does willingly, simple because he loves God and everyone.”
Wherever he went, Saint Francis Xavier lived with the poorest people, sharing their food and rough accommodations. He spent countless hours ministering to the sick and the poor, particularly to lepers. Often he had no time to sleep as we know from his letters, but he was always filled with joy. On his way to China, Father Francis Xavier became ill with fever and died on December 3, 1552. His right arm, which he used to baptize so many people, is on display in Rome in the Church of Gesú. He was canonized by Pope Gregory XV on March 12, 1622 at the same ceremony with St. Ignatius of Loyola. His feast day is December 3 and he is known as the Patron of the Missions.
The Rev. Gus Puleo serves as director of the English as a Second Language (ESL) program and the Spanish Department at St. Charles Borromeo Seminary in Philadelphia, where he also teaches English and Spanish. He is a graduate of Norristown High School and attended Georgetown University, where he received B.A. and B.S. in Spanish and linguistics. He has master’s degrees in Spanish, linguistics and divinity from Middlebury College, Georgetown University and St. Charles Borromeo Seminary. He holds a Ph.D. in Spanish from the University of Pennsylvania. He is the former pastor of St. Patrick Church in Norristown.
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