It was God’s amazing grace that motivated Fr Joseph Vaz, whose feast we celebrate on January 16, to decide to go to Sri Lanka. It was this amazing grace that strengthened him to battle the difficulties he encountered in his missionary endeavour and energised him to proclaim the Gospel in any situation and was the source of success for his mission.
When Fr Joseph Vaz heard about the Catholics of Ceylon, he offered to go to Ceylon but was sent instead to Kanara, a place without priests where he saw the spiritual desolation of people deprived of priests. Therefore, when he returned to Goa, three years later, he made plans to go to Ceylon. It was the loving providence of God that led him to a nameless community of three priests leading a life of seclusion. Seeing the finger of God he joined them in hope of going to the Island of Ceylon, and thus organised it into the Oratory of St Philip Neri.
In March 1686, he began his long journey to Ceylon with three companions. He made his way without the faintest suspicion of the real purpose of his journey being known. In January 1687, when he disclosed his intention to cross over to Ceylon his companions discontinued. However, his faithful servant John accompanied him. God willed that he continue his journey alone. When he reached Travancore, the Jesuit priests advised him to disguise.
He disguised himself as a coolie and passed off as a labourer employed by the Dutch regime. He and his servant John embarked, with great anxiety in keeping with their disguise as labourers. The journey took 20 days due to a severe storm and, having exhausted all food supply, made a halt at Mannar. Since they were beggars they left in Mannar. It was providential as they were able to enter Jaffna without much scrutiny.
With difficulty, they found shelter for the night in Jaffna, in an empty shed. Due to severe hardships during his journey Fr Joseph Vaz found himself unable to sit up the following morning. John brought him food by begging. It was found that he was suffering from acute dysentery. The neighbours, left him in a lonely place to be cared by John who also later contracted the disease. Their plight moved the heart of a woman, who happened to pass by, that she brought them a cup of cunjee every day.
When Fr Joseph Vaz regained his health he tried to identify the Catholics. He went around wearing a large Rosary around his neck and succeeded. The Catholics of Jaffna rejoiced for, before dawn of that day in 1687, Holy Mass was celebrated for the first time since 1658.
From 1687 to 1697, Fr Joseph Vaz, taking different forms trod the streets of Sri Lanka in search of Catholics and administered them the Sacraments. From then the Church in Sri Lanka grew in leaps and bounds amidst trials/tribulations. Before going out on a mission, they came to him for blessings, he took them to the altar, and read the last verses of the Gospel of St Mark and blessed them and when they came back, took them to give thanks to God holding a lighted candle and sang the ‘Te Deum’.
Before Fr Joseph Vaz breathed his last the priests begged him to give them a message and he said: “Remember that one cannot easily do at the time of death what one has neglected to do all his life.” The priests later told him to remember them when he appeared before God. ‘Don’t say such a thing’ he replied with great feeling. ‘I am nothing and can do nothing. Live according to the inspirations of God. It is only when I listened to the advice of the other fathers that I avoided mistakes’. In the footsteps of His master, the ‘passionate compassionate missionary’, travelled to the distanced country by His amazing grace and became all for all.
