October 18, 2012. (Romereports.com) Moments after being kidnapped in Madagascar, Jacques Berthieu was given a choice: Renounce your faith and live, or die in a matter of seconds. Despite the fact that the rebels offered him a prestigious title, the
French Jesuit priest, didn't think twice.
FR. MARK LINDEIJER
Jacques Berthieu Assistant Postulator
“We will make you our counselor. We will make you our head. He very simply said, 'My son, I'm sorry, that I cannot do. I prefer to die.”
He was killed right then and there by the rebels in 1896, at the age of 58. His body was thrown into a river and was never recovered. This wooden reliquary which will be given to the Pope on the date of Berthieu's canonization, was made in Madagascar by a local artist. It includes water from that very river and also a leaf from the nearby bushes.
FR. MARK LINDEIJER
Jacques Berthieu Assistant Postulator
“It's actually the water and the leafs that have been instrumental in the healing of the man who was miraculously healed and gave us the miracle for the canonization.”
Jesuit priest Mark Lindeijer, admits that out of the seven future saints, Jacques Berthieu is probably the least known. Even in his native France, few people know him. But in Madagascar locals remember him as their first Christian martyr. In addition to religion, he also taught agriculture to locals. In fact, thousands are looking forward to a moving celebration in his honor.
FR. MARK LINDEIJER
Jacques Berthieu Assistant Postulator
“Ten, 20,000 pilgrims, who will stay there the whole night in a vigil service before the canonization and then will have the great feast of their saint on the actual day.”
Before being killed, he actually had several chances to escape and flee from the rebels. But Lindeijer says his deeply rooted faith and his yearning to stay with his people, far outweighed any other option. Above it all, he says Berthieu is the perfect example of a Good Shepard.
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