Although many of the best known and most popular Saints are European and many of us in the U.S. love our American Saints, we must not forget that Catholicism is a universal faith and there are Saints from every place that Christianity has taken a hold. To that end, I present a Saint from Asia today.
Saint Pedro Calungsod (spelled Calonsor in Spanish records) was born in the Philippines in 1654. Little is known of his early life - even his actual birthdate and birth place are in dispute. He received basic education at a Jesuit boarding school, mastering the Catechism and learning to communicate in Spanish. In 1668, around the age of 14, Pedro was among the exemplary young catechists that were chosen to accompany Spanish Jesuit Missionaries to the Mariana Islands. Pedro went with the priest Diego San Vitores to Guam to catechize the native people there. Missionary life on the island was difficult, but the mission persevered and many locals were baptized into the faith.
A criminal who was exiled to Guam from Manila started spreading rumors that the water used for baptism was poisonous. As some sickly infants who had been baptized had died, many people believed the rumors and held the missionaries responsible. Searching for a runaway companion, Pedro and Fr. San Vitores came to the village of Tumon, where they learned that the wife of the village chief had given birth to a daughter. The chief, influenced by the rumors, strongly opposed the baptism. Determined to kill the missionaries, the chief left to enlist the help of another villager. While he was away, the two missionaries baptized the baby girl with the consent of her Christian mother. When the chief learned of the baptism, he became even more furious and attacked the missionaries with spears. Witnesses claim that Calungsod could have escaped the attack, but did not desert San Vitores, and both were killed. Pedro Calungsod was 17 years old. His feast day is April 2.
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