(A.D. 1693.)
[Roman Martyrology. Beatified on August 21st, 1853. The following
account is epitomised from his life in "Pictures of Christian
Heroism."]
John de Britto was born at Lisbon, March 1st, 1647; he was the son of
Don Salvador de Britto Peregra and Beatrix his wife, both of whom were
of noble birth. His father dying when he was only four years old, he
was committed by his mother to the care of the Jesuits; and under them
grew up full of the grace of God.
At the age of nine he was sent to court in the capacity of page to Don
Pedro, the youngest son of the king, and probable heir to the throne
of Portugal. During the six years he spent at court, he persevered in
the pious habits he had formed under his mother's roof, and in the
Jesuit school, frequently retiring for private prayer, and attending
mass daily.
By this exemplary course of life he incurred the hatred of his fellow
pages; for his rigid rule of life was a check upon their profligacy.
They ridiculed his piety, and heaped upon him persecution, not only by
words, but also by blows. He bore their ill-treatment with great
patience; but it produced an illness which brought him into hourly
danger of death. At the very moment of his agony his patron, S.
Francis Xavier, at the earnest prayer of his mother, restored his
health. She had from his birth dedicated her son to the apostle of
India, and she now vowed that if her child were to recover, he should
wear the Jesuit habit for the whole year in honour of his deliverer.
When, therefore, he appeared at court again after his recovery, it was
in a little black robe, with a chaplet of the Blessed Virgin hanging
by his side; and in this garb he served the Prince, and attended the
Jesuit college of S. Antony of Padua. The people stopped in the
streets to see him pass; not on account of the strangeness of such a
dress on a child, but to mark his holy and edifying demeanour. When
the term of his vow had expired, he put off the dress, but with the
intention to assume it one day for ever. Notwithstanding his infirm
health, he had long resolved to leave the world, and lead an apostolic
life as a Jesuit, and at the age of fifteen he carried this resolution
into effect. He applied for admission into the society to the
father-provincial, Michael Tinsco, by whom he was placed in the
novitiate at Lisbon. The Prince, Don Pedro, opposed his resolution,
but the mother rejoiced that her son should possess a vocation for the
Company of Jesus.
It was on the 17th of December, 1662, that John de Britto entered the
novitiate at Lisbon. A novena had just commenced in preparation for
Christmas. At its close each postulant had to present the Infant Jesus
with a petition, according to his wants. De Britto wrote his petition
with the others. It was that he might be sent as a missionary to
Japan, there to live and labour, and at length obtain the crown of
martyrdom. After two years he took the three vows of poverty,
chastity, and obedience, having passed through the novitiate a very
model of holiness.
On leaving the novitiate at Lisbon, he went to Evora for two years,
and thence to Coimbra, to study literature and philosophy. He then
removed to Lisbon to teach grammar; and while thus employed, his
thirst to go out as a missionary received an additional impulse from
the visit of Father Balthazar da Costa, who had just returned from
Madura to find recruits. To him he stated the wish of his heart, and
he promised to plead his cause at Rome; the consequence of which was
that a few months afterwards orders were received by the
father-provincial to despatch John de Britto, along with several other
young missionaries, in the first ship which should sail for Madura.
John returned hearty thanks to God for the favour, but his mother was
distracted at the thought of losing her child. She appealed to the
provincial, to her son himself, to the papal nuncio, and to the king,
but without effect; and at length, fearing to offend God by persisting
in her opposition, she offered him up as the dearest sacrifice she
could render. His departure was fixed for the 25th of March, 1674. The
night before, he paid a visit to his mother; but to save her the pang
of parting, he forebore to tell her that it was the last. He carefully
avoided any thing which might interfere with his object; and
therefore, instead of joining the other missionaries, when, with a
great crowd of people, they attended church on the banks of the Tagus,
he embarked secretly, and only appeared when all danger of being
delayed was over. He was ordained priest just before leaving.
During the voyage he won the favour of the captain, and took advantage
of it to exercise his ministry with the utmost freedom. He had to
preach every Sunday, taught the catechism to the ignorant and the
children on board, and continually engaged the passengers and sailors
in exercises of devotion.
Scarcely had the father set foot on shore, than he ran to embrace the
brethren of the college. Having then paid a visit to the Blessed
Sacrament, he prostrated himself at the tomb of S. Francis Xavier,
thus gathering fresh ardour for his apostolic course. At Goa he
commenced the austere life of the Madura missionaries,--which consists
in neither eating flesh-meat nor fish, in sleeping on the ground, and
walking bare-foot,--that he might be ready for his apostolate when his
summons should arrive. In April, 1674, orders arrived from the
father-provincial that he should set sail for Malabar, with Father
Emmanuel Rodriguez and some other companions.
The mission of Madura, to which Father de Britto was called, comprised
a tract of country two hundred leagues long by eighty broad. It
presented the most arduous field of labour for the missionary, on
account of its extent, the denseness of the population, the climate
and nature of the country, and the wild beasts with which it is
infested.
The inhabitants generally are very intelligent; they have made great
progress in many sciences, and their Brahmins are perfectly able to
sustain an argument in defence of their religion. To holiness,
devotion, energy, and courage, the essential qualities of an apostle,
the Indian missionary must add the advantages of a logical mind and a
ready wit. But perhaps the opposition of the Brahmins is less to be
feared by the missionary than the popular veneration for caste.
The first missionaries in India, not possessing caste, found it
impossible to obtain a hearing. With all their holiness, earnestness,
and zeal, no one would listen to a pariah. It was reserved for Father
Robert de' Nobili to surmount, or at least show how to surmount, this
obstacle. He was a Roman Jesuit, nephew of Cardinal Bellarmine, and
grand-nephew of Pope Marcellus II. After carefully studying the
peculiarities of the Brahmins, their laws, traditions, customs, and
tenets, he saw the rock on which his predecessors had split. He
determined to lay aside whatever should denote his European
extraction, and adopt the dress and mode of life of some class of the
natives possessing caste. First he appeared as a rajah, then as a
secular Brahmin, with a long flowing robe and a silk shoulder-knot;
but without success. He then discovered that, over and above caste, a
mortified exterior is required to influence the Indians. He appeared,
therefore, partly in the dress of the Samasks, or Brahmins of Penance;
and in this he was completely successful. This class is in the highest
repute among the natives; they are regarded as the masters of the law,
and their word is final. They are distinguished by their ascetic life,
and their renunciation of the pleasures of the world. They live on a
little boiled rice, which they receive only once a day, at sunset. In
this character Father de' Nobili converted a vast number of Brahmins.
Father de Britto approved the principle of his great predecessor, but
somewhat varied his practice. He adopted the dress of the Pandarists,
a sect in very great estimation on account of their ascetism; they are
not held in equal honour with the Samasks, but they mix more with the
various sects, and their garb therefore affords greater opportunities
of intercourse with the natives. The reader then must imagine our
blessed martyr for the future not in his own black habit, but in the
long yellow wrapping of the Pandarist.
The Pandarists wear no other garment than a piece of yellow cloth
enveloping the whole figure. This dress guards them from the dangerous
rays of the tropical sun, to which they are exposed the whole day.
They sometimes wear a cap, an addition absolutely necessary to the
European who would avoid a stroke of the sun; but they walk barefoot,
except on occasions of ceremony, and in crossing the burning sands of
the country, when they adopt a sandal of a peculiar construction. It
is not fastened by a strap, but attached to the foot by means of a
wooden peg between two toes. This clog is of little value for purposes
of travelling, as it produces violent swellings of the legs and feet;
but it is useful in crossing the deserts. The Pandarists allow the
beard to grow, which is a mark of distinction in India, and carry a
staff as a symbol of authority. Their diet is of the plainest kind,
and entirely vegetable; animal life being held too sacred among them
for the purposes of food, and therefore of course interdicted to all
who would adopt their mode of life.
This rigorous rule might have discouraged souls less ardent than John
de Britto; but to him no sacrifice, no painfulness, seemed too great
in his Master's service; and he cheerfully entered upon it, in spite
of his feeble health and European constitution for the love he bore to
Jesus Christ, and his yearning for the salvation of the idolators.
Father de Britto set sail from Goa for the coast of Malabar, and
landed at Ignapatam; then through Tanjore, where he was detained
nearly a year by illness, he passed on to Ambalgata. In the college at
this station Father de Britto, after a retreat of a month, took his
monastic vows, and received his appointment to the Madura mission.
He set out immediately with one other missionary and a few neophytes
for Colli. They suffered excessive hardships on the route: they had to
climb steep and rugged mountains, to pass through forests dense with
briers and brushwood, and swarming with reptiles, to cross swollen
rivers and pathless deserts; but at length they reached Colli, on the
festival of S. Ignatius.
There he found the plague raging, and he made it the means of
converting very many to the faith by his intrepidity in relieving the
sufferers. After the pestilence had ceased, the conversions increased
so rapidly, that it became necessary to divide the northern and
southern district of the mission, and the latter was committed to
Father de Britto.
His plan was to send on before him two or more catechists to get the
work ready; so that when he arrived himself, he might proceed without
loss of time. On arriving, he assembled the Christians and
catechumens, and preached a sermon; then he visited the sick and
dying, and baptized the infants of Christian parents; after which he
entered the tribunal of penance, in which he sat often for twelve
consecutive hours, for the whole neighbourhood flocked, and made their
confessions to him. He preached on all Sundays and holidays,
catechized the children, and passed from house to house to warn bad
Christians, or to resolve the doubts of inquiring idolators. In the
evenings he assembled the whole congregation to recite the rosary of
the Blessed Virgin, and in this way he made a vast number of converts;
and when he had stayed long enough in one place for the requirements
of the people, he passed on to some other station.
In his dress of a Pandarist, De Britto always obtained a ready
hearing, and hence perhaps the great success of his preaching. But in
all these labours he was obliged, by the universal prejudice against
the pariahs, to direct his endeavours mainly towards the conversion of
the upper classes. To his great sorrow, he found that even as a
Pandarist he could not openly make proselytes among that caste without
exposing his religion to universal contempt. He therefore was
compelled to recognise their distinctions in society for the present,
in order to establish Christianity on the broader basis ultimately.
But, notwithstanding, he took care to advance the cause of the
pariahs, or lowest and most despised caste, by showing to the converts
the universality of the Gospel of Christ; and secretly he effected many
conversions among the pariahs themselves. But the caste-prejudices of
the natives were so strong, that he found it impossible to overcome
them; and he did not consider them incompatible with the most sincere
acceptance of Christianity. As the Apostles had for a time consented
to circumcision, the more effectually to recommend the new faith,--so
the Indian missionaries judged it right to waive for awhile, in the
infant state of Christianity in India, their objection to the social
distinctions between man and man.
In addition to the natural obstacle from caste, and the ability of the
Brahmins, which the Indian missionary has to encounter, the saint had
to labour at a time when the whole country was convulsed with civil
war. Hordes of savage Indians from the interior traversed the country;
fire and the sword destroyed whole villages; and the inhabitants,
being unable to take vengeance on the real aggressors, the tide of
popular fury set in against the Christians. Thus it was that in many
cases prosperous missions had to be given up, and the trembling
Christians fled to celebrate the rites of religion in secret places.
Solitary chapels rose up in the depths of the forest, or by the lone
riverside, and thither the faithful repaired with their beloved
pastor. But here they were exposed to a danger from which they had
been free in the cities. The fury of the inundations rendered their
retreats exceedingly perilous. An instance of this occurred near the
river Corolam, where the Christians, who had been driven from Ginghi,
erected a chapel. De Britto was praying in the chapel with sixteen of
his flock, when the cry was raised that the building was surrounded
with water. They tried to dam the water out, but unsuccessfully; and
were compelled to construct a raft out of the beams of the roof, and
upon that they floated to a wood at a little distance, situated on an
eminence. There they intended to remain till the flood subsided; but
they had no food; and even their place of security threatened to fail
them, for the waters ran with terrible rapidity, and almost covered
the hill; so one of the Christians, at the risk of his life, swam back
to the chapel, and succeeded in obtaining a little rice; this, along
with some bitter herbs, which they procured with difficulty, was all
their sustenance during the three days they were encompassed by the
floods. But this was not all; they were attacked by a number of
serpents, which, driven out of their holes by the water, sought the
same place of safety. But throughout his missionary career, the
blessed De Britto enjoyed that power over venomous beasts which our
Saviour promised to His followers, and the band of Christians were
unhurt. Power over serpents gives its possessor an unbounded influence
with the Indians; and this terrible situation of the little band of
Christians, being perfectly well understood by the idolaters, procured
for De Britto a wonderful reputation. When the waters subsided, the
Christians returned to their chapel, and found it almost swept away;
but the foundations remained, and they set to work with such vigour,
that in a short time the walls were raised again, and the chapel was
ready for the Christmas solemnity. Father de Britto, with streaming
eyes, thanked God for their escape, and besought him to look down with
pity upon the struggling society, and prosper the cause of Christ in
his hands.
In consequence of the wonderful success of De Britto, his superiors
would have made him rector of Ambalucata. This preferment he evaded;
but he accepted the post of superior of both districts of the mission.
His journeys now became longer and more arduous. He travelled on foot,
and was detained neither by the heat of the sun nor by the floods in
the rainy seasons. Rocky mountains, sandy plains, dense forests, broad
and rapid rivers were traversed. At Madura, as he was preparing 200
catechumens for baptism, a band of armed men rushed upon him and took
him prisoner. They struck him with their fists and with sticks, and
kicked him, and threw him into a dungeon with his hands tied behind
his back. But God suffered them not to hurt him; and after trying to
terrify him with threats of death, they at length let him go.
Journeying northward, he made a stay at Marava of three months, in the
year 1686, during which he baptized more than 2000 idolaters; but not
withstanding his success he was anxious to get on, in consequence of
the accounts which reached him of the ripeness of the natives for
Christianity still farther north. This anxiety was the cause of a long
and painful imprisonment.
At Mangalam the idolaters laid wait for the missionary, and seized him
as he was entering the gates of the city. They bound him hand and foot
with iron chains, and conducted him immediately to the presence of
General Conmara, the first minister of state of the King of Marava.
This man had an implacable hatred of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. The
father was first accused of being a magician; but he meekly answered
that he was under no guidance of the spirit of darkness, but that he
preached the law of the true God, the Maker of heaven and earth. The
judge then addressed the two catechists and other churchmen who were
taken with him:
"And you," he said, "what do you say?"
"We say the same," they replied.
For which answer they were all condemned to be scourged. And so
cruelly were they scourged, that some of them died from the effects.
The tyrant then ordered the others to be confined in dungeons, and
loaded with irons. Afterwards he tried to shake the constancy of De
Britto, believing that if he could gain over the leader the rest would
follow. After heaping upon him insults and reproaches, he desired him
to sprinkle his forehead with ashes consecrated to the idols, as that
would have been tantamount to an acknowledgement of their divinity;
the saint of course refused, and the judge in a fury exclaimed that he
would have him torn limb from limb.
He was then beaten again, and taken back to his dungeon, laden with
irons, and tied to a pillar.
On the fourth day, the persecutors tried a new kind of torture, common
enough in that country. The sufferer is taken to the bank of a river,
and a cord is fastened to his feet; his hands are tied behind his
back, and he is then allowed to fall into the water; then an
executioner jumps upon his back, and with his whole weight presses the
poor victim to the bottom, where he is kept till he is almost dead;
next he is dragged out gasping for breath, and before he has recovered
is cast in again; and so on, at the pleasure of his executioners,
always being dragged out before life is extinct. It is a torture
enough to overcome the staunchest courage. Up to this moment all the
companions of the blessed father had remained stedfast; but now one of
them, unhappily, entreated the executioners to let him loose. The
wretched man saved his life at the expense of his faith.
After enduring farther hardships for some days, the father and his
fellow-sufferers were brought into the judgment-hall, where all sorts
of instruments had been laid out to terrify their minds,--axes,
scourges, torches, pincers, knives, and all the horrible apparatus of
torture. The sight of these things, however, inspired them with fresh
courage, and a more vehement desire for martyrdom; and as the
spectacle had only been produced to impress their minds, they were led
back again, the better rather than the worse for what they had seen.
But the next day an order came for the execution; and they were taken
to Paganari to be tortured and put to death. The executioners began
with Valentine, a catechist; whom they led full of wounds and with one
of his eyes forced out, to De Britto, and taunted the father with
being the cause of the poor man's sufferings.
"He is a happy man," said Father de Britto; "when will you do the like
for me?"
Amazed at fortitude such as this, the executioners perceived that
while the father lived they could effect nothing by tormenting the
disciples; and leaving Valentine alone, they cast themselves upon
Father de Britto. Valentine's sufferings had been very great, but they
had reserved a special torture for the blessed father. Hard by was a
flag of pumice-stone, which the sun had heated up to blister-heat;
after beating the missionary violently, they stripped off his clothes
and laid him down upon this burning stone; eight of the executioners
then jumped upon his body, so as to press the sharp and heated points
into his back, already raw with the scourges; and then they took him
by the feet and shoulders, and rubbed him up and down till his back
was entirely excoriated. In this miserable plight he was left to
scorch in the sun; but a charitable idolater dragged him into the
shade; and a storm coming on, his murder was deferred till the
following day, and he was thrown back into his dungeon, more dead than
alive. Valentine's eye was miraculously cured by the blessed father.
The most ignominious death which a criminal can die in that country is
by impalement; and the idolaters determined to stamp Christianity in
India with infamy by subjecting its ministers to this punishment. The
next morning Father de Britto and his companions were marshalled for
the execution; in front marched a detachment of armed men; then
followed the man of God in irons, with his eyes raised to heaven and
his face beaming with joy; last came the executioners and an immense
crowd of people. But Almighty God had yet work for him to do, and
suspended the blow as it was about to fall. A messenger arrived from
court, bearing an order to General Conmara to come immediately to the
capital with all his forces, as an insurrection had broken out against
the government. At this news the crowd dispersed, the soldiers made
ready to march, and the officers of justice retraced their steps with
their prisoner. But they revenged themselves upon him for their
disappointment by ill-usage of every kind. At last, after three weeks,
he was ordered up to Ramanadabouram, the capital, to see the prince.
On his arrival, he was to his astonishment received with favour by
Prince Ranganadeven. He made the missionary sit by his side, and
explain the principal doctrines, and practices of the Christian
religion. The prince having listened, said, "I grant you your liberty,
and your companions may go also: worship your God and preach His law;
but do not preach it in my country. It is an excellent law; but it
forbids stealing and polygamy, so it will not suit my subjects. If you
dare to disobey me, depend upon it I will cut off your head." Thus De
Britto obtained his liberty; and as he thought it best to obey the
prince's injunctions, he left Marava.
When Father Rodriguez, Provincial of Malabar, heard of the liberation
of De Britto, he summoned him to the pearl-fishery coast, to regain
his strength after their labours. He obeyed, though he would rather
have continued in the mission while any strength remained to him. But
his journey to the coast had been ordered by God. Father Francis
Paolo, who was returning to Europe in his capacity of procurator of
Malabar, had been shipwrecked; and Father de Britto was sent home in
his place. He left the fishery in 1687; and after a voyage of ten
months he reached Lisbon in September, 1688, having been absent
fourteen years and a half.
On the news of his arrival, the whole city rose to greet him, for the
fame of his sanctity and heroism had reached Portugal long before. The
king, whose page he had been, the infanta Isabella Louisa, the
ministers of state and the grandees, the people and the religious
orders, all showed him a thousand marks of respect and honour.
He maintained in Portugal the same mortified habits which he had
formed in India, wore the same dress, used the same food, and slept on
the bare ground. He set about the work upon which he had been sent
home with great diligence; and in the college of the Jesuits which he
visited, he awoke an extraordinary enthusiasm among the young men;
even old priests were seized with the same fervour. Of the volunteers,
Father de Britto selected six, and to that number he added several who
had been missionaries, but were now occupying chairs in different
universities, and whom he wanted to argue with the Brahmins.
Having once selected his band, he commenced instructing them in the
details of their work; and when all things were ready, and he had
obtained larger funds for the support of this increase to his mission,
from the king, they set sail for India in 1690; but not without great
opposition; for the King of Portugal would have retained him at home,
first to superintend the education of his son, and then to promote him
to a bishopric--both of which _persecutions_, however, as he called
them, he happily surmounted. They started with a favourable wind, and
the voyage was at first prosperous; but presently they were detained
by a calm, when their provisions became tainted, and a fever broke
out. The holy father fell ill, and two of his missionaries died. De
Britto, writing home, gave a horrible account of that voyage, and the
miseries they endured from the sickness of the crew, the stench of the
vessel, the heat and cold, the contrary winds, the incessant fatigues
which they all had to suffer. In his great humility he attributed them
all to his own sins.
On their arrival at Goa, his return was celebrated by the whole
college of Santa Fé and the Christians there with rejoicings. After a
short stay, he passed on to see the Provincial at the pearl fishery,
with whom he held a council on the plan of his future campaign. In
consequence of the maturity of judgment, which the father displayed on
this occasion, he was nominated Visitor of the mission, and
immediately after Easter he set out for Madura on his new charge. Then
he visited in succession all the stations, encouraged the
missionaries, confirmed the faithful, and converted a great number of
idolaters to the faith of Christ. But his chief longings were in the
direction of Marava, where he hoped to find that palm and crown of
martyrdom which five years before had fallen from his grasp. Thither
accordingly he bent his steps.
The kings of Marava and Madura were still at war; and all the
sufferings which he had formerly experienced under the same
circumstances awaited him now upon his second arrival. Soldiers were
ravaging the country, and he and his flock were compelled to skulk
about in the woods. It is difficult to realize the sufferings which
the holy father endured for several months with so much joy and
resignation. It was his zeal for the salvation of sinners, and the
numerous conversions with which God accredited his mission, that
supported him under all. We should scarcely be able to credit the
fact, if it had not been asserted on oath by one of the catechists in
the process of Beatification; that, in the short space of ten days the
blessed father administered Baptism with his own hand to twelve
thousand idolaters; and more than once his right hand fell powerless
through fatigue.
He established his head quarters in the principality of Mouni, on the
borders of Marava. In order to obtain for the Maravians a proper place
for celebrating the holy mysteries, he chose a thick forest not far
from Mouni, and there constructed three chapels, to which catechists
were attached for the instruction of converts in Christian doctrine;
and at night the holy father came to administer the Sacraments. In a
short time he gained to the faith a vast number of heathen. And
Almighty God deigned to confirm the faith of these converts by the
most extraordinary miracles. By the mere touch of the father, devils
were cast out and the sick cured. The same power was possessed even by
the catechists and neophytes. They read the Gospel over the sick, and
made the sign of the Cross, and God restored them to health.
The report of these wonderful cures reached the ears of Prince
Teriadeven, the real heir to the throne of Marava, now in the
possession of Prince Ranganadeven the usurper, a young man who had
before shown some signs of favour towards Christianity. Being taken
ill, he sent to the blessed father to come and heal him. The father
did not go at once himself, but sent one of his catechists, to
instruct the prince in the elements of Christian doctrine, and exhort
him to put his whole trust in Jesus Christ, as at once the Saviour of
soul and body. The catechist went and read the Gospel to him, made him
repeat the Apostles' Creed, and that instant the sickness left him.
Awed by the sudden miracle of which he had been the subject, the
prince no longer delayed his resolution, but expressed his readiness
at once to be baptized. He sent to the father and desired to be made a
Christian, and was the more confirmed in his desire when he had
witnessed on the feast of Epiphany a large assembly of the faithful,
and the holy sacrament of Baptism conferred upon two hundred
catechumens. But the missionary, who knew him to be possessed of five
wives, replied that he could not conscientiously grant him so great a
favour until he had put away all save one, with the firm resolution of
adhering to her alone for the remainder of his life. The noble Indian
upon the spot sent for his wives, selected the first of the five, who
herself wished to be a Christian, and informed the others of the
resolution he had taken in consequence of his miraculous cure by the
holy missionary. Stupefied at this announcement, they assailed the
prince, now with tears and caresses, then with threats and reproaches;
but nothing could change his resolution; and they went away
transported with fury against Father de Britto, whom they looked upon
as the author of their calamity.
Teriadeven received baptism solemnly with two hundred of his court.
This was in the beginning of 1693. Immediately after the ceremony he
returned to Mouni, where a great multitude awaited baptism. The joy of
the Church was raised to its highest pitch by these glorious
conversions, and by the prospect of greater still, when suddenly there
burst out the most terrible persecution that had yet fallen upon them.
It confounded in its fury the whole of that infant society, and tore
from them their sole support, the holy father, to whom they owed their
birth unto Jesus Christ, and whose hour of martyrdom had at length
arrived.
In every one of the four wives put away by Prince Teriadeven, Father
de Britto had raised up an enemy, who would be satisfied with no
sacrifice short of his life. But among them all the youngest, who
happened to be the usurper's niece, was the most furious. In a
transport of rage she ran to her uncle and told him of the outrage she
had suffered from the European. Then she appealed to the Brahmins, who
hated him too bitterly to remain deaf to her cries. They had long
nourished their thirst for revenge, and now they saw an opportunity of
slaking it. A consultation was held as to the best course to be
pursued, and it was decided that they should go in a body to the king,
and make a formal complaint against Father de Britto. They selected
Pomparanam to be their spokesman, an old man, and very spiteful, who
pronounced a set speech on the occasion.
The king saw perfectly well through the motives of the Brahmins in
thus taking up the woman's cause; but as the honour of his own family
was concerned in the person of his niece, he acceded to their request.
He ordered the Christians to be fined, and their houses to be burnt.
The father had foreseen the storm that was gathering, and had warned
his flock of the danger, but they all refused to fly. They determined
to stand by their dear master, upon whom they knew the great fury of
the persecution would fall, and if God required it, die with him. The
king despatched four companies of soldiers to seize the missionary.
Three of them advanced to the chapels which he had built in the woods,
where they arrested the catechists who were in charge of them. The
fourth hastened to Mouni, and there they found the holy father. It was
the morning of the 8th of January, and he was offering, as was his
wont, the Holy Sacrifice, when God revealed to him what was coming;
and after Mass he addressed the people, and said that those who had
not courage to give up their lives in testimony to the faith of Jesus
Christ, had better depart at once and hide themselves. He pronounced
these words in so decided and significant a manner, that they all
perceived he had received some definite intelligence, and, seized with
a sudden panic, they all dispersed except one Brahmin, a convert, and
two children, who preferred remaining with him. In the evening,
warning came of the approach of a troop of mounted soldiery. He knew
their errand, and raising his eyes towards heaven, he offered up his
life as a sacrifice to God, and went forth to meet them. They seized
him violently, and led him off with his three companions.
In a neighbouring village, there was being celebrated at that time a
grand festival to one of their gods. Thither on their arrival they
drew the Christian victims, and harnessed them to the triumphal car of
the idol, and exposed them to the jeers of the multitude. Next day
they were taken to the royal city of Ramanadabouram, and there the
saint was incarcerated in a filthy hovel, and with him the three
catechists who had been arrested in the forest chapels. The holy
father embraced them, and exhorted them to continue firm to the end.
The heroism of the two children is especially recorded. They animated
each other to suffer for Jesus Christ.
The imprisonment lasted for several days. Teriadeven only heard of
their captivity when it was too late to avert it; but he gave orders
that they should be treated with kindness till the king's wishes
should be known. Those orders, however, were not attended to, and the
brutal jailors amused themselves with the sufferings of the martyrs,
and fed them with food which the soldiers rejected.
At last the prisoners were brought before the chief minister of state.
A small crucifix had been found upon De Britto, and the judge asked
him what that image represented. "It is the image of my God," said the
father, "who being immortal and impassible in his own nature, was made
man, and died upon a cross to rescue us from the slavery of the
devil." At these words the impious wretch threw it down upon the
ground in contempt, and stamped upon it with his feet. The holy man,
although chained and bound, fell upon his knees, and crawling with
difficulty to the crucifix, pressed it to his breast, and watered it
with tears, in reparation of the insult. There was a great crowd of
spectators present, who regarded this action as a contempt of court,
and loudly demanded sentence. But the judge, not knowing what to say,
ordered the confessors back to prison, and there they remained for a
month.
Prince Teriadeven boldly pleaded their cause before the king, in face
of the personal danger he incurred by his advocacy of the Christians.
Ranganadeven, in a rage, ordered him at once to adore the gods. The
prince refused, and said he would rather die than again offer the
worship to idols which was due only to Jesus Christ. The tyrant
answered that he would soon show which religion was the most powerful,
and forthwith gave orders to the magicians to prepare a certain
incantation considered infallible in its operation, to cause the death
of the missionary. The incantation failed, to the shame of the king,
and the discomfiture of his priests; and Father de Britto was sent
for, and asked whether the failure of the sorcerers was owing to the
enchanted book, meaning the Breviary, which he was still allowed to
retain in his possession. The missionary replied that that book was
devoted to the praise of God, and to nothing so hateful as sorcery.
The tyrant ordered the book to be hung round his neck, and the
executioners to shoot at him in the market-place: "And we shall see,"
said he "whether your God can deliver you." He was led away, and the
soldiers were taking aim, when Teriadeven broke through their ranks,
and ordered them to desist. They obeyed, knowing him to be the true
owner of the crown; and as he was very popular, the tyrant feared a
revolt if he should persist in the execution. De Britto's death was
accordingly again deferred; and the tyrant ordered him to be sent to
Oureiadeven, his brother, who lived at Orejour, a distance of two
days' journey from the court, with instructions that he should be put
to death on his arrival.
The father rejoiced when he heard whither he was going, for he knew
that it was to die; but he wept at leaving his dear companions; they
separated, never more to meet again in this world. He had to travel
barefoot, tightly bound, and surrounded by guards, who hurried him
over rocks and briers, through sand and brushwood. The blood gushed
from the wounds he had received in prison, and from his torn and
blistered feet; but instead of receiving pity from these wretches,
they heaped abuse upon him. On his journey, the Christians assembled
to see him pass, and receive his blessing.
He arrived at Orejour on the last day of January, and was immediately
taken before Oureiadeven, the king's brother. This prince laboured
under an incurable leprosy. Having heard of the missionary's gift of
miracles, he doubted not that he would gladly purchase his life by
exerting it for his cure. The father replied, that it appertained to
God alone to cure disease; all that he could do was to apply the
remedies, and entreat Almighty God to bless them; and he added, that
if the prince desired to be made whole of his bodily disease, he must
first heal the sickness of his soul, by accepting the true faith. When
the prince saw that nothing would move the holy man, he turned to one
of his suite named Margharittei, and bade him cut off his head upon
the spot. Margharittei answered, that he was a Christian himself, and
nothing would induce him to imbrue his hands in innocent blood. Then
the prince's own wife rushed in, and threatened her husband with the
judgments of heaven if he dared to execute the sentence of the king.
Moved by these remonstrances, he ordered the servant of God to be
carried back to his dungeon.
As soon as this got abroad, the Brahmins, fearing that their prey
might escape their hands, went to the governor of the town, who was a
bitter enemy of the Christians, and represented the case to him.
Mourougapapoullei, for that was his name, instantly demanded an
audience of the prince, and in the strongest terms reproached him for
not obeying the commands of the king. The cowardly prince yielded
through fear of the king's displeasure, and granted the governor leave
to execute the sentence of death. It was on the morning of the 4th of
February, being Ash-Wednesday, that the servant of God was apprised of
his final sentence. At the joyful news, his countenance lighted up; he
fell on his knees, and returned thanks to God. Then rising up, he said
to the executioners, "I am ready." He walked to the place of execution
without restraint, and with his Breviary hanging from his neck, his
eyes fixed on heaven, and his steps so rapid that his guards were
compelled to restrain him. Along the road a multitude of the faithful
were waiting to see him pass.
The spot which had been selected for the martyrdom was a little hill
by the bank of the river, not far from the city. On arriving there he
was allowed by the guards to retire for a short time to pray. The
executioner who at that moment came up, seeing the servant of God
absorbed in prayer, was afraid to disturb him. More than a quarter of
an hour had elapsed, when the son of the prince ran up and reprimanded
the executioner for his delay in executing the sentence. Then the holy
man approached the side of the river, and, after embracing the
executioner, knelt down, and holding out his head, said, "I am ready;
do as you are commanded." The executioner drew his scymitar, and
raising his arm, was about to give the fatal blow, when he perceived
the martyr's reliquary hanging by a cord from his neck. Taking it for
granted that it was some charm which would ward off the stroke, he had
first to remove it; but he durst not take it away with his hand, lest
he should be bewitched. He therefore severed the string with the
scymitar, and made a frightful gash on the breast and shoulder. The
holy martyr offered to God the first fruits of his sacrifice; and then
the executioner, no longer fearing any amulet to turn the edge of his
weapon, raised the scymitar and hewed off his head.
This glorious triumph of the faith of Jesus Christ took place at
Marava, on the 4th of February, 1693.
After Father de Britto's death the executioner drove a stake into the
ground, on which he impaled the body; and having cut off the hands and
feet, he hung them, along with the head, from the waist. The faithful
tried hard to obtain possession of the relics, but in vain; they were
too well guarded by the soldiers. His crucifix the martyr had given to
a faithful convert, who transmitted it to Father Laine, and from his
hands it reached his house of profession in Paris. And all that could
be collected of the clothing, writing, objects of devotion, and
instruments of penance were forwarded to the same father, by whom they
were laid up in the Jesuit Church at Pondicherry, and thence they
found their way to Goa. But it was some time before any fragments of
the body fell into the hands of the Christians. The soldiers kept
guard over the body while it remained impaled on the stake; but at
last a violent storm came on, and the cord which supported the head
and hands broke; the head rolled into the river, and was saved; but
wild beasts preyed upon the body. When the soldiers had retired, the
catechists came and gathered up all they could find of the body. In
the river they discovered the head; they bought the stake, on which
his limbs had been impaled, of the soldiers, and the scymitar of the
executioner; this scymitar Father John de Corte brought with him to
Europe a few years afterwards, and presented it to the king of
Portugal, Pedro II. And these are all the relics that remain of the
blessed Father John de Britto.
[12] 'Annales Archeologiques,' Tom. xxiii. p. 232.
[13] "Vie des Saints" Tom. ix. p. 22.
[14] Elmasini 'Hist. Sarac.' Lugd. Batav. 1625, p. 267.
[15] This article is condensed from an article by the Author in the
Quarterly Review for October, 1867, on "Portraits of Christ."
[16] For information on this Order, see Jan. 15, S. Alexander.
[17] See for more information on the Iconoclastic heresy the life of
S. Tarasius, Feb. 25th.
[18] This very term "Symbol of Christ," as applied to the Holy
Eucharist, is indication of heretical views on the Presence.
[19] Gofredus in Vita S. Bernardi.
[20] Eugenius III.
[Illustration: S. Veronica. See page 73.]
February 5.
S. AGATHA, _V. M. at Catania_, A.D. 251.
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