Overseas
Missions
Blessed Peter ToRot:
A Saint for the Third Millennium
Michael Doyle, cssp
Michael Doyle is a Spiritan
who was ministering
in a teachers training college
in Wewak, Papua New Guinea.
When it comes
to dressing up for a celebration few peoples are more spectacular
than those of Papua New Guinea. Thus when Pope John Paul II visited
this country in mid-January 1995 he was greeted by cheering crowds
many of whom wore the traditional kumul feathers, purpur skirts, and
necklaces of shells over brightly
painted bodies and faces. Adding to the natural joy of welcoming
their 'Papa' was the fact that central to his visit was the
beatification of Papua New Guinea's first saint, Peter ToRot
(pronounced toe/rote), who gave his life for the Faith during the
Japanese occupation of the island.
Although it was martyrdom that eventually won him the crown, it was
his life prior to execution that endeared Peter to the people. He was
one of their own, a layman, married with three children, an exemplar
of family values, a staunch defender of the ideals of Christian
marriage, a Melanesian steeped in the traditions and culture of that
remarkable nation. Here was somebody with whom the ordinary people
could easily relate, and whom they can now invoke, confident that
their situations and their worries will be fully understood.
Fortunate indeed is the nation to have such a home grown product for
its first beatus.
HIS STORY
The life story of Peter is soon told. He was born in 1912 on the
island of New Britain (close to the site of the recent volcanic
eruption). His father, Angelo ToPuia, was a Luluai (chief) much
respected by the people; his mother, Maria Ia Tumul is remembered as
a quiet and modest woman. Peter was the third of six children four of
whom survived to adulthood. His home life was happy, stable and
basically uneventful; he attended school faithfully, participated in
sports and got up to his share of mischief. His father quietly
encouraged Peter to develop his talents to the limit of his ability.
As his schooling drew to a close, the local parish priest, who had
watched his progress carefully, suggested that he might havc a
vocation to the priesthood. ToPuia thought not. 'I don't believe that
one of our generation is ready to become a priest,' he said, 'It is
too early for that; perhaps one of my grandchildren.' So instead
Peter enrolled in the Catechist School at Talilgap. Here, too, he
gave himself to his studies, exhibited a taste for prayer and was
highly respected by teachers and fellow students alike.
He is also remembered as a keen fisherman and someone who loved to
eat!On graduating Peter returned to work in his home parish.
Al-though the youngest member of the catechetical team, his natural
ability soon moved him into a leadership position, with the
concurrence of his more senior co-workers. He was efficient, well
informed and a gifted communicator.
In 1936 the young catechist fell in love with one of his students,
Paula Ia Varpit, and the customary bride price having been paid, they
were married on 11th of November. It was a solid marriage but not
without its difficulties. In the first few months there were many
arguments, provoked, according to Paula, by her laziness and
disobedience. 'I was a bit of a blockhead,' she admitted. On one
occasion Peter even physically punished his young wife, an action
that he immediately regretted and for which he sought forgiveness.
The marriage was blessed with three children one of whom was born
after his death.
PERSECUTION AND DEATH
At
the beginning of 1942 the Japanese landed on the Gazelle Peninsula
and the life style of Peter and his family was totally disrupted.
Missionaries were either interned or expelled and Peter found himself
as the sole guardian of the Catholic community. At first he managed
to maintain good relations with the invaders continuing to minister
to his flock; he conducted lotus (Eucharist liturgies),
visited the sick, baptised the new arrivals and buried the dead. He
was also permitted to bring food to prisoners of war some of whom
were missionaries.
Little by little, however, the Japanese grew dissatisfied with his
activities and he was forced to move the lotus underground
literally. The final crunch came when the Japanese encouraged the
local people to disregard their marriage vows and to practise
polygamy. This was too much for Peter who openly and firmly expressed
his disapproval. He was arrested and beaten on two occasions but,
refusing to succumb, he was eventually executed by a lethal
injection. He gave his life for his Faith, in particular in defence
of the sanctity of Christian marriage.
AN ACCESSIBLE SAINT
Although Peter was beatified as a martyr, it is his exemplary life
made up of ordinary, every day events that will render him especially
attractive to modern Catholics. A married man, a considerate (but not
perfect) husband, a good father, he reminds us that sanctity is
achieved by the performance of life's common duties in a spirit of
faith or, as his older sister put it when asked if Peter had any
extraordinary experiences, 'he was extraordinarily ordinary.'
It seems especially appropriate in today's world to emphasise the
attainment of sanctity by lay people through marriage, the normal
vocation of most of the world's population. Sometimes in the past one
could be forgiven for suspecting that it was only by the renunciation
of marriage and family life that one could enter the higher realms of
spirituality. Lay saints are rare enough, married saints even rarer
(and canonised but virtually never because of the holiness of their
marriages) and married-couple saints almost non existent; and all of
this despite hundreds of documents and thousands of words expended to
extol the sanctifying prop-erties of the sacrament of marriage.
Perhaps the choice of this married man from the 'third church' as a
defender of the family is an indicator of a change of emphasis, an
invitation to deepen our appreciation of lay spirituality forged
through a combination of career, marriage, erotic love, family life
and interaction with the local community.
The beatification decree refers to the Vatican II constitution Lumen
Gentium, one paragraph of which seems to express in a nut-shell
Peter's understanding of his mission: 'The laity.. .are given the
special vocation to make the Church present and fruitful in those
places and circumstances where it is only through them that she can
become the salt of the earth. Thus every lay person, through the
gifts given him/her is at once the witness and the living instrument
of the mission of the Church itself, according to the measure of the
gift of Christ"(L.G. 33).
Welcome to the site of the TransCanada Province of the Spiritans. We are a Roman Catholic Religious Congregation of over three thousand members, founded in 1703. Our missions are spread worldwide. While we may be found involved in many diverse ministries, we have dedicated ourselves to working with the poor and in those situations where the Church has difficulty in finding ministers. We hope you enjoy your visit to our site and that while browsing you will keep us in your prayers. May God bless you.
