St. Damien of Molokai traveled halfway around the world to follow the path God had planned for him. He saw all people as God’s children and worked to help them feel His love, despite how others treated them.
From a young age, Damien felt called to be a priest, and he began training for this vocation at the age of nineteen. Just four years later, Damien volunteered to travel from him home country of Belgium to Hawaii to minister to the people there. He was ordained and faithfully served the Hawaiian people for almost ten years.
Around this time, leprosy had come to Hawaii and was becoming an epidemic. Afraid of how fast the disease was spreading, the Hawaiian government decided to take action. The only thing they knew how to do was to separate the sick from the rest of society, so that is what they did. They chose a spot on the island of Molokai which is separate from any other villages by tall cliffs. They sent the sick here, expecting them to farm the land, build their own houses, and establish their own community without help from the rest of society.
Leprosy is a debilitating disease. Without treatment, it leads to open sores, the loss of fingers and toes, blindness, and paralysis. These poor people could not become farmers and construction workers, so they went hungry and tried to find shelter under trees and in caves. The people felt abandoned and worthless.
Upon hearing about the condition of this colony, Fr. Damien’s order decided to send a priest to minister to these poor souls. Fr. Damien immediately volunteered to go, and although he was meant to trade with another priest after a few months, Fr. Damien would live in the colony the rest of his life.
When he first arrived, Fr. Damien was shocked at the state of the community. There was one small chapel, but no other structures, very little food, no medical care, and no laws. He quickly set about at the hard task for caring for the sick and dying, but eventually did so much more than that.
Fr. Damien had to quickly learn to overcome the constant coughing, physical deformities, and the horrific smells of the infected. Fr. Damien sought to show these outcasts the value of their lives and of their deaths. He created a proper cemetery next to the little chapel and organized funerals to show to dignity of each of those that passed.
Seeing the good work he was going, the people of the colony began to help him as they were able. Eventually, they also helped him build houses, expand the church, set up an orphanage, and grow food. With organization and Fr. Damien’s guidance, the once miserable existence was replaced by a joyful community built on helping each other.
With proper food, shelter, and medical care, the community enjoyed life. They became people who happened to have leprosy, instead of worthless lepers to be tossed aside.
Throughout his time with the colony, Fr. Damien constantly asked the Hawaiian government to send more supplies, and even sent his plea out to the world, seeking the supplies needed to care for his people.
Living with and caring for this flock, Fr. Damien eventually also contracted leprosy. Upon realizing his fate, Fr. Damien did not despair or lose faith, instead he worked harder. He worked to complete many buildings, enlarge the orphanage, and prepared to pass on his work. He also did not give up his religious duties, saying his daily prayers from memory as he lost his sight.
Fr. Damien was buried in the cemetery he created under the same tree which provided his shelter upon arrival to the colony. The community Fr. Damien fostered continued to provide love and support to all of those banished from society until they were allowed to leave in the 1960s.