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Vaz attended the elementary school in Sancoale. He
learned Portuguese in Sancoale and Latin in Benaulim. He was a bright
pupil and respected by his teachers and fellow students. He made such
rapid progress in his studies that his father decided to send him to the city
of Goa for further studies; where he did a course
in rhetoric and Humanities at the Jesuit college
of St. Paul. He further studied philosophy and theology at the
St. Thomas Aquinas' Academy of the Dominicans, in Goa city.
In 1675, Vaz
was ordained a deacon for the Archdiocese of
Goa by Custódio de Pinho, the Vicar
Apostolic of Bijapur and Golconda. In 1676, he was
ordained a priest by the Archbishop of Goa, António
Brandão, S.O.Cist. Soon after his ordination, he started going
barefoot to live like the poor and acquired a reputation as a popular preacher
and confessor. He opened a Latin school in Sancoale for prospective
seminarians. In 1677 he consecrated himself as a "slave of Mary",
sealing it with a document known as the "Deed of Bondage".
Ministry in Canara (1681–1687)
Vaz wanted to serve as a missionary in Ceylon, and
therefore presented his request to go there to the cathedral chapter, which was
administering the diocese following the vacancy created by the death of Brandão
on 6 July 1678. However, the cathedral chapter proposed to him to go
to Canara instead, where the Padroado authorities in Goa
were in conflict with the local authorities belonging to the Propaganda
Fide. Vaz was appointed the Vicar Forane of Canara by the
Padroado in 1681, and sent with the purpose of asserting their jurisdiction
against the Propaganda Fide. The chapter also gave him the esteemed title
of "Frame of Canara". Upon his arrival, he found the situation
of the Roman Catholic Church there to be highly explosive.
The Padroado authorities in Goa were at conflict
with those of the Propaganda Fide in Canara, led by the already incumbent Vicar
Forane, Bishop Thomas de Castro. The source of the conflict was that
De Castro's appointment as Vicar Forane of Canara by Pope Clement
X on 30 August 1675 was not recognised by the preceding Padroado
archbishop. Consequently, they did not cede the jurisdiction to him despite the
pope's letter of appointment.
The Padroado–Propaganda conflict which ensued
divided the Catholics of Canara into two sides—those who recognised the
authority of the Padroado archbishop in Goa versus those who supported De
Castro. Those who recognised the authority of the Padroado were excommunicated
by De Castro, while those who recognised the authority of the Propaganda were
excommunicated by the Padroado authorities at Goa. Both groups were forbidden
from receiving sacraments from the priests of the rival group, on penalty of
excommunication.
In a letter dated 14 September 1681, Vaz lamented:
"Many in fact believe that the Catholic Church
is divided, and that we and the Bishop's priests are not children of the same
Mother Church; and that our doctrines and our sacraments are different; and
what the ones do, the others destroy. Thus the Catholic Church is much despised
and is not acceptable."
With great diplomacy and humility, Vaz met De
Castro at Mangalore and after having convinced himself of the
legitimacy of the documents, brought about a truce until a direction was
received from the new pope, Innocent XI. In light of the fact that the
bishop had legitimate authority, Vaz recognised his authority and while
continuing to adhere to the Padroado system, zealously worked for the religious
welfare of the people. The bishop further agreed to delegate jurisdiction
to him conditionally. Vaz often spoke to him and pleaded with him not to issue
so many excommunications, but to wait for a final decision from the pope. He
pointed out that the Hindus were scandalised and the Christians bewildered by
these arguments.
During his stay, Vaz undertook serious missionary
activities in Canara from 1681 to 1684, carrying out a lot of
missionary work
in Mangalore, Basroor, Barcoor, Moolki, Kallianpur and
other areas, and reviving the spirits and faith of the widely scattered Roman
Catholic community. He reconstructed the Rosario Cathedral in
Mangalore and built new churches at Onore, Basroor, Cundapore,
and Gangolim. He also set up small schools in some of the villages
with the co-operation of their residents.
Vaz's most important contribution, however, was the
establishment of a large number of Irmidades(Confraternities)
throughout Canara, where he would periodically celebrate festive occasions with
great pomp. Vaz was compelled to do so due to a shortage of priests, and as
such an Irmidade brought together the Catholics of a place
where there was no church or resident priest. To this end, he constructed
small huts and asked the local Catholics to gather there and recite their prayers.
This greatly helped to keep alive and encourage the religious fervour for
Christianity.
In his short stay, Vaz acquired a great and saintly
reputation. He did yeoman service to the cause of the upliftment of the
downtrodden. Many miracles are attributed to him. A local legend has
it that while serving as parish priest of Our Lady of Mercy parish,
Paneer, a few kilometres from Mudipu, Bantwal, a few Hindus arrived in the
night, asking him to accompany them to administer final sacraments to a sick
parishioner in the neighbourhood of Mudipu.
The men had conspired to slay the priest, due to
his tireless missionary activities. When they reached the top of the Hill, the
men tried to kill him. The serene Vaz knelt down on the rock and held his stick
straight on the ground. A light flashed in their midst and the men could see
water gushing from the spots where he knelt. Owing to this miracle, the men
fled from the scene and Vaz returned to the parish unharmed. A shrine dedicated
to him was constructed at that very site at Mudipu. It is visited annually by
thousands of pilgrims and devotees, seeking blessings and cures for various
ailments.
The new archbishop, Manuel de Sousa e Menezes,
arrived in Goa and was displeased with Vaz on account of the agreement he had
made with De Castro. When Vaz sought permission to return to Goa, the
request was refused by the archbishop. After the archbishop's death in 1684,
however, the cathedral chapter of Goa allowed him to return to Goa, replacing
him with Nicholas de Gamhoa, one of his former assistants.
Oratorian
When Vaz returned to Goa, he spent his time
preaching in the surrounding villages. He also joined a group of priests of the
archdiocese who had decided to live together in a religious community. The
group was formally erected as a community of the Congregation of
the Oratory of St. Philip Neri on 25 September 1685, the first native
religious community in the diocese. They took charge of the Church of the Holy
Cross of Miracles, where they established their residence. Vaz was elected
first provost of the community.
Sri Lanka mission (1687–1711)
Hearing of the distressful situation of the
Catholics of Ceylon who reportedly had no priests for many years, Vaz desired
to go to their rescue. But instead he was named Superior of the Canara Mission,
a post which he occupied for three years. In 1686, Vaz obtained permission to
give up this office and to proceed to Ceylon. He stopped in the Keladi
Kingdom in 1686–1687 for a few months on his way to Ceylon, where helped
by his companions, he attended to the spiritual needs of the local Christians.
Disguised as a mendicant, he reached the port of Tuticorin on Easter
Sunday 1687.
Jaffna mission
On landing at Jaffna, Vaz found a
strong Calvinist presence. As Catholic priests were banned by the
Dutch authorities, he had to travel under the guise of a mendicant and to work
in secret. He travelled barefoot as an Indian sanyasi.
Vaz suffered from acute dysentery, contracted
from the terrible travelling conditions. Upon recovering, he began contacting
Catholics and hiding from the Dutch. He was taken in and ministered to his
secret flock by night. In 1689, taking up his residence in a village
called Sillalai where the Catholics were numerous and resolute, Vaz
succeeded in reviving the spirit of the faithful. In 1690, he was forced to
change his quarters for Puttalam, where he worked with great success for a
whole year.
Kandy mission
In 1692, Vaz settled in Kandy, the capital of the
independent Kingdom of Kandy, as his centre of operations. On his arrival,
he was deemed to be a Portuguese spy and was imprisoned with two other
Catholics. There he learned Sinhala, the local language. They were left
alone by the prison guards as long as they didn't try to escape and he built a
hut-church and later a proper church dedicated to Our Lady, and began
converting other prisoners.
Vaz carried his mission to the main centres of the
island. Between 1687 to 1711 he was at the head of a group of Goan Bamonn priests
who under his leadership and inspiration, mixed and moved about under cover
sustaining the persecuted Roman Catholic population in Ceylon.
Vaz returned to Kandy in 1699 with a fellow priest,
Joseph de Carvalho, who had been expelled at the instigation of Buddhist monks.
He completed the construction of his new church, and went into service for the
king, translating Portuguese books into Sinhala. From this vantage point, Vaz
intensified his ministry, and converted some Sinhalese notables. New
missionaries arrived in 1705, which enabled him to organise the mission into
eight districts, each led by a priest. He worked on the creation of Catholic
literature comparable to that of the Buddhists, and to affirm the rights of
Catholics with those of the Dutch Calvinist Government. Vaz humbly declined the
offer made to him in 1705, to be the bishop and first Vicar Apostolic of
Ceylon, preferring to remain a simple missionary. For this reason, he is often
depicted with a mitre beside him.[10]
Death
King Vimaldharna Surya II, Vaz's patron, died
in 1707, but Vira Narendra Sinha, his successor, proved to be an even
greater supporter. New missionaries arrived in 1708. In 1710, despite health
problems, Vaz took another apostolic trip. On his return, he fell ill. He recovered
from a series of infections and fevers, but was left weakened. He undertook
eight days of spiritual exercises prescribed by the Oratorian Rule, but before
the seventh day he died at Kandy on 16 January 1711, aged 59.
Beatification
The subject of his beatification was
first urged upon the consideration of the Holy See about 1737 by
Francisco de Vasconcellos, S.J., Bishop of Cochin, who also claimed
jurisdiction over Ceylon.
The process was begun in Goa, and a number
of miracles were registered. But the non-fulfilment of certain
essential formalities led Pope Benedict XIV to cancel the
proceedings, with an order, however, that they should be re-instituted.
The Apostolic Delegate of the East Indies, Ladislaus
Zaleski (1852–1925), who was resident in Kandy, kept hearing reports of
this saintly priest. He did his own research about him, was a great admirer of
Joseph Vaz and published a multi-issued biography of him. The beatification
process was resumed later and completed in 1953 by the Archdiocese of Goa
and Daman. On 21 January 1995, he was beatified by Pope John Paul
II in Colombo.
Cause for canonisation
The canonisation process for Joseph Vaz
to be declared a saint by the Catholic Church has concluded. A Diocesan Inquiry
of a miracle attributed to Vaz took place in the month of October 2013. In
November 2013, Patriarch Filipe Neri Ferrao stated that the cause for
Vaz's canonisation had reached a 'crucial stage'. On the 17th Of September
2014, His Holiness Pope Francis approved the decision of the Congregation for
the Causes of Saints, to canonise Blessed Joseph Vaz.
Veneration
So far the only school named in honour of Vaz is
the Joseph Vaz College of Wennappuwa, which was founded in January 1935 by
the Marist Brothers (initiated 1933).
There is a parish dedicated to Vaz in Mudipu. There
is also a chapel under his patronage in a remote village called Aluthwewa,
about 10 miles off Galewela, in the Parish of Wahakotte. There is a small
community of Christians who are migrant farmers from Wahakotte there who brought
the devotion to him.
Canonization
On September 17, 2014, the Vatican announced that
Blessed Joseph Vaz, "the Apostle of Sri Lanka" will be declared a
saint during Pope Francis' visit to the island nation scheduled to take place
Jan. 13-15, 2015. The Pope approved the vote by the Ordinary Session of
Cardinals and Bishops in favour of canonization of the Indian-born priest and
decided to summon a Consistory shortly.
Pope Francis has bent the rules once again and
dispensed with a second miracle, a requirement for canonization. The Pope had
used the same process he to canonize St. John XXIII without a second
miracle attributed to his intercession.
