"He was a servant of the outcast and should be an inspiration for us today to do as he did"
I've had this prayer card (pictured above) in my night stand since I was in grade school in Hawaii. He was declared Blessed in 1995 when I was 8 years old and living on Oahu. Blessed Damien of Molokai is now St. Damien of Molokai and the patron of those with HIV and AIDS. He was canonized in Rome today. Which is kind of really amazing and exciting to me as a Roman Catholic I guess too because I attended Catholic grade school in Hawaii. He worked with the lepers on Molokai and died of leprosy himself in 1889. It takes a very long time to become a saint, and you must prove that the candidate has also performed two miracles. It has been 120 years since Damien's death. I remember praying for him and his candidacy all the time in church in Hawaii. Mahatma Ghandi offered his own defense of Damien's life and work to the Church in 1971, before the whole process began in 1977. St. Damien worked in Hawaii before it was part of the United States and still under a monarch. King Kalakaua and Princess Liliuakalani honored him with a medal that he was said to have never worn, and the islands of Hawaii did and still do revere St. Damien as almost their own patron saint. Damien is considered an important person in the history of Hawaii. The Father Damien Statue on the steps of the State Capitol Building honors him, and a replica is displayed in the National Statuary Hall Collection in the United States Capitol. St. Damien is Hawaii's first and only Saint, and many people from Hawaii traveled to Rome for the canonization today. The way leprosy was perceived then is how AIDS is perceived today by many people. Leprosy's cure was found in the 1940's. Although I don't find myself to be super religious, this is somehow so inspiring to me. Maybe because Damien is a 19th Century Saint. That is tangible to me. It's like Ghandi and Mother Teresa. People who lead by example and by action and somehow have so much love for others and no ounce of selfishness in them.
I've had this prayer card (pictured above) in my night stand since I was in grade school in Hawaii. He was declared Blessed in 1995 when I was 8 years old and living on Oahu. Blessed Damien of Molokai is now St. Damien of Molokai and the patron of those with HIV and AIDS. He was canonized in Rome today. Which is kind of really amazing and exciting to me as a Roman Catholic I guess too because I attended Catholic grade school in Hawaii. He worked with the lepers on Molokai and died of leprosy himself in 1889. It takes a very long time to become a saint, and you must prove that the candidate has also performed two miracles. It has been 120 years since Damien's death. I remember praying for him and his candidacy all the time in church in Hawaii. Mahatma Ghandi offered his own defense of Damien's life and work to the Church in 1971, before the whole process began in 1977. St. Damien worked in Hawaii before it was part of the United States and still under a monarch. King Kalakaua and Princess Liliuakalani honored him with a medal that he was said to have never worn, and the islands of Hawaii did and still do revere St. Damien as almost their own patron saint. Damien is considered an important person in the history of Hawaii. The Father Damien Statue on the steps of the State Capitol Building honors him, and a replica is displayed in the National Statuary Hall Collection in the United States Capitol. St. Damien is Hawaii's first and only Saint, and many people from Hawaii traveled to Rome for the canonization today. The way leprosy was perceived then is how AIDS is perceived today by many people. Leprosy's cure was found in the 1940's. Although I don't find myself to be super religious, this is somehow so inspiring to me. Maybe because Damien is a 19th Century Saint. That is tangible to me. It's like Ghandi and Mother Teresa. People who lead by example and by action and somehow have so much love for others and no ounce of selfishness in them.
2 comments:
It is inspiring and thank you for that information.
I like little things like this in the religious world. it's reminders that some of it is good and will always be good.
it is a*
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