3rd December is the saint’s day of Francis
Xavier, a 16th century missionary and Jesuit.
Born in 1506 in Xavier, Navarre, Francis was one of the
seven founder members of the Society of Jesus which began, under the leadership
of Ignatius of Loyola, in 1534. The chief aim of the Society was to preach and
teach wherever the need seemed greatest, anywhere in the world.
In 1541 Xavier was sent by Ignatius to India. It took him
more than a year to make the journey but eventually he arrived at the
Portuguese enclave of Goa on the west coast of India. Although the colony had
plenty of churches and professed Christians, Xavier was horrified by the lax
standards being set by the European Christians and he was determined to do
something about it.
After seven years working in Goa, with considerable success,
Francis Xavier set sail again, this time for Japan. He found the work of
evangelisation much harder there, as he was up against entrenched religions,
such as Buddhism, that already had a devoted following. However, he claimed to
have made several thousand converts before he returned to Goa.
His final missionary journey was to China, which he began in
April 1552. However, he was still waiting to find a way to enter the country,
which was closed to foreigners, when he fell ill and died on 3rd
December 1552.
© John Welford
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