SAINT FRANCIS XAVIER ( 1506 – 1552)

A Message for us on the Five Hundredth Anniversary of His Birth

“All for God, All for Neighbor, All for Himself”

On the occasion of the 500^th anniversary of the birth of Saint Francis Xavier, in the biennium set aside for the theme “Holiness of Life” which we are living as a missionary family, let us look at him as the model of a genuine self-giving. Remembering that Father Founder, Blessed Joseph Allamano proposed him as the patron of the Institute, we would like to share some thoughts trying to understand, above all, the extraordinary inheritance which Francis Xavier left to us missionaries of today.

Francis Xavier (1506 – 1552) of Basque origin, meets Ignatius of Loyola, is converted at 27 years of age, is ordained a priest and four years later, sets sail in 1541 for India, reaching there after 13 months. According to Xavier Leon-Doufour, the well known biblical scholar who has written the Saint’s biography, the ten years spent in India can be divided into the following periods: period of organizational activity and shipment of missionary material, each lasting two years: in India (1542-1544), to the Molucca Island (1545-1547), to Japan (1548-1551). He died on the rocky ridge of Sancian, facing China where it was his dream to enter. This wonderful achievement has made Francis Xavier the prototype of the missionary.

Blessed Joseph Allamano affirms that “he is the Protector of our Institute. Like Saint Paul, and coming immediately after him, Francis is the model of missionaries. His life, in the words of Chaignon, is summed up in these three phrases which say everything: “He was all for God, all for neighbor, all for himself” (VS, p. 646).

THE TEACHING FOR US

There many aspects which strike us in the life of Francis Xavier: the enthusiasm and clarity of his principles and values; the generosity and joy with which he devoted himself to the missionary life; his apostolic zeal in preaching the Gospel. Les us come closer to him, to reflect together on three points.

a. Xavier, a man of high ideals / holiness is not mediocrity

Francis, at 26 years of age, has magnificent dreams, but not of God. Professor in the humanities, he teaches philosophy, and aspires to become renowned among scholars. Helped by Saint Ignatius during his studies in Paris, he discovered what was unreservedly worthy of one’s fidelity in human life. He no longer aspired to gain fame, riches and success, and without turning back, pledged himself to announcing the Good News. For Francis, as for Paul, such preaching is not a cause for pride, but a life of fulfilling need which cannot be repressed. What interested him above all were the “treasures of the Gospel”.

As he became aware of this call to holiness, he tried to live a holy, heroic life, putting into practice that which became his lifelong program: “all for God, all for neighbor, all for myself”.

Even when facing insurmountable difficulties and obstacles, capable of causing a giant to give up, he did not allow himself to be overcome, and fall into temptation to yield. Even today he helps us and our peers to overcome the present day trend which makes it difficult to take on lifelong commitments and be faithful to them. Francis Xavier represents whoever gives himself unconditionally to Christ, dedicates himself totally to bringing about God’s Kingdom, no matter how many sacrifices it demands.

Sanctity requires men who are strong willed, persevering, full of love for Christ, as was Francis Xavier who, to the very end of his life, overcoming all his disappointments, experienced a superabundant joy, because the risen Christ lived in him.

b. Xavier, a mystic missionary / holiness for the missionary is to be contemplative in action

Hearing himself being called to the missionary vocation, he dedicated himself totally to a spiritual preparation, to have sufficient strength to overcome dangers and great sacrifices.

It is said of him that, during the day he belonged entirely to his neighbor, at night, entirely to God. In this, he was truly an imitator of Christ, who spent the day preaching, the nights in prayer. In order not to withhold from his neighbor, Francis found the needed light and energy in the silence of the night.

Xavier was urged on by human needs, but, more so, by the love of Christ. He brought harmony to these two kinds of love. He struggled against the feverish activity of the conqueror, which makes us loose the sense of gratuitousness, and, with it, the meaning of redemption through the cross. His peers often noticed; the nights of silence and spiritual struggle, were they perhaps more meaningful than the more noticeable activities? The apostle is one who works in God, and Francis saw this clearly; but his message is even that only God is at work in the apostle.

Then breaks in the radical freedom which gives to whoever is attentive to the Spirit and his breath the ability to think up what the circumstances ask from him. So the journey undertaken is not so much the conquest of the world by the apostle, but, rather, through it, the conquest of the apostle by God.

Behind the man of action, there is the one who has left space and time for God. Francis travels the world, but, every day within himself a loneliness grows deeper, or, rather, complete trust outflows. Without doubt, “what does it serve a man if he gains the whole world, but loses his soul?”: but following Christ to the very end, he discovers with increasing joy the Trinity at work in his life, and in the universe transformed by Love. The grain dies in the earth, and the harvest is ready.

He was a contemplative in action. However, he was satisfied to give the example, without teaching this duty in a special way.

c. Xavier, an apostle full of zeal and charity / holiness and charity, love, gift of oneself

Giving himself completely to God, for ever, he plunged himself into mission, always remaining enthusiastic. He never spared himself, in any way.

The reason behind his activity which never caused him fatigue, his missionary involvement culminating in giving his life for the evangelization of the Orient, are dominated by the evangelical perspective in which the real power is that of God, who let himself to be crucified: a power which desires the otherness to the point of being crucified, in order to bring the resurrection. It is here that the power of God coincides with the gift of himself. Sacrificing himself, God communicates life and lays the foundation of man’s freedom. This is a love beyond any understanding, a love which confronts all the contradictions of the world, death and life, justice and injustice, poverty and riches, gift of self and affirmation of self. For us today it means confronting and breaking the vicious circle of offence and revenge, and so on unendingly.

If today we wish to imitate the example of Francis Xavier, we must become the critical conscience and the prophetic and creative action in our world.

Only by following this path, will we be able to meet the real needs of people, above all the poorest and marginalized, thus transforming the logic of charity into that of salvation. Thus, we will open a preferential avenue to bring about, beginning here and now, the “new heavens and the new earth” proposed by the liturgy in this time of the year.

MISSION: APOSTLES IN ACTION ….TRUSTING IN THE LORD

It is not sufficient to announce the Good News. It is necessary to accompany that with the credibility of the announcer. A credibility which emerges from our life style. The novelty of the Gospel cannot be introduced without immersing oneself in the realities within which the evangelizer is met with. It is not possible to ignore the history, differences, preoccupations, anxieties of those to whom the Gospel is being brought. The fervent wish of Francis Xavier to be able, in a short time, to learn the language, so as not to be “among them like many statutes”, reveals the desire of forming relationships, the determination to communicate with the others, and to understand them. The Good News is announced when life, gestures, work are not detached from Christ. Evangelization takes place not only with what one says, but, above all, from what one is and does.

Francis Xavier lived these principles to the full. These attitudes challenge our ability to listen attentively to the other, to become “all things to all people”, as Saint Paul states, to live in one’s own situations what we wish to announce and become “neighbor” to those who are in need.

Francis lived at a time very much like our own, a time of discoveries, and intense activity in all fields, a time of great changes in interpersonal relationships in the family, society and community.

We can hear being directed to us his recommendations which condense his fundamental principle: God alone! The apostle is of no importance, achieves nothing. God is everything!

He never tired of repeating: Obedience! Humility! Humility! Obedience! His fear was that the apostle, relying on himself to get a little authority, might put himself in God’s place and do everything possible to keep it, and, thanks to the esteem of others, he may build on sand. Francis fears that the inclinations of the apostle’s heart may lead him to the powerful of this world and not towards the poor. This is Francis’ fear, and it is for this reason that he wants the apostle to become immoveable on the unshakable foundation which is God, our Lord. Only God takes the initiative, only God acts, only God crowns his gifts.

To understand that God is the only source of good, the apostle must let himself be considered as worthless, in the depths of his own being. From this abyss will gush forth a cry of boundless confidence. In this man of action, that is the apostle, admitting who and what he really is, does not come from paying attention to himself, which would distance him from the action, it is instead the result of a radical and uninterrupted detachment. Humility is not a conquest. It comes from God. The secret is not in action, but in allowing oneself to be molded by God, according to his ever new manifestations of himself to us. This is not passivity, but it is a response to the least sign of God’s will, in whatever way it is presented: circumstances, needs of one’s neighbor, appeals from the Spirit, and, above all, obedience.

It is not a matter of choosing one or another type of activity, but first of all to be open to the least sign, docile at every moment, because the initiative comes from God. In this way, confidence in oneself becomes undermined. In a way quite different to the man of action who is a son of this world, the apostle trusts in the Lord more than in himself. Then God gives himself to the man of action, and the man of action is given to God.

My dear missionaries,

while it is our wish that all of you enjoy the protection of such a great Sait like Francis Xavier, we invite you to proceed as he did, filled with love for Christ and for the mission that has been entrusted to us.

Fraternally,

Fr. Aquiléo Fiorentini

Fr. Stefano Camerlengo

Fr. Francisco López

Fr. Antonio Fernandes

Fr. Matthew Ouma Opiyo