Tomorrow night at Pipe, we will learn about the first Christian missionaries as outlined in the second half of the Book of Acts. This is a super important part of our Christian heritage, as it describes the incredible lengths to which early followers of Christ, like Paul and Barnabas, went to ensure the Good News could be made known to all people.
While there are so many incredible stories of great personal sacrifice, imprisonment and even martyrdom (as we discussed last week) in the scriptures, there are also many modern examples of missionaries who made the Great Commission their life’s work.
My favorite story is of Father Damien of Molokai, a Catholic priest who was born in Belgium in 1840. Father Damien, who achieved sainthood in the Roman Catholic Church, spent 16 years serving in a leper colony in what is today Hawaii. At that time, people stricken with this terrible illness were thought to be highly-contagious, and thus they were shunned and ultimately deported to live among each other. They were separated from their families and sent there to die.
These poor and destitute people begged for a minister, and Father Damien heeded their call. When given the chance to cut short his mission among the lepers, he refused — he was living out his calling. Ultimately, he died of leprosy alongside the people who he loved.
This is how the Diocese of Honolulu described the mission of St. Damien:
He brought hope to this hell of despair. He became a source of consolation and encouragement for his flock by becoming the doctor of their souls and of their bodies without distinction of race or religion. He gave a voice to the voiceless and built a community where they discovered new reasons for living. That once lawless place had now become a place where the law of love prevailed.
Catholic diocese of Honolulu
I would encourage you to read more about this incredible man of faith, and to follow his example as he followed the example of Christ.
See you tomorrow night!
The Pipe 