Memorial of Saint Peter Claver, Priest
Peter Claver was born on June 25, 1580 in Verdú (Catalonia, Spain) into a wealthy farming family. He lost his mother and older brother early. In 1596, he enrolled at the University of Barcelona, which was run by the Jesuits at the time. He befriended them and joined their congregation. In the years 1602-1604 he made his novitiate and made his first vows. He studied pedagogy as a seminarian in the school year 1604/1605 in Gerona. During his studies in philosophy (1605-1608) at the Jesuit college in Palma, Mallorca, he met a religious brother, St. Alfonso Rodriguez. He foretold him that the field of his missionary work would be to care for blacks in South America.
Peter studied theology in Barcelona (1608-1610). It was at this time that the Jesuits opened a mission in Colombia. Peter was ordered to stop his studies and go there to work among black slaves, who were then massively transported from Africa as free, cheapest labor force.
Shocked by the misery and harm of the black brothers, Peter Claver devoted himself to serving them. With his limitless dedication, he wanted to make up for their harm, at least in a small part. On a page of the formula of religious vows, Peter wrote the words: “Love, Jesus, Mary, Joseph, Ignatius, my Alphonsus , Tomas, Lawrence , Bartholomew, my saints, my patrons, masters and intercessors of me and my dear blacks, intercede for me. At the end he signed: Petrus Claver, aethiopum semper servus - Peter Claver, a servant of the Ethiopians.” That was what the Black People were called then. In this way he defined himself and charted out the program of his life.
This was Peter Claver’s answer. He did not write treaties against slavery, nor did he openly attack structures against which he felt powerless. He began to fight this system with deeds, loving and respecting slaves and putting them ahead of those who were free. He interceded for them with their owners and took care of their material needs. He preached to them the truth about Christ who gives meaning to life. For 38 years he dedicated himself to this service day by day, being a true "slave of the slaves." In those days, it was impossible to do more than what Peter Claver had done.
Peter was ordained a priest in 1616 in Cartagena. As a priest, he could provide African People with comprehensive spiritual and material help: he tried to get a refreshing drink for the thirsty, for the hungry a meal, for the naked some clothes, for the sick medicines. He intervened vigorously both with private individuals and with the authorities to ease the plight of slaves. By a separate vow, he undertook to serve them. His boundless mercy opened their hearts to him. He won over tens of thousands of peoples to the faith and personally baptize them.
Saint Peter Claver also ministered the sick. For 14 years he visited an old slave daily living in a decaying shed. Also, often he was seen at St. Sebastian Hospital, where he rendered the lowest ministries. He was sometimes accompanied by college clerics whom he taught to serve the needy. St. Lazarus Hospital, located on the outskirts of the city, was intended for lepers. There, Peter Claver’s love knew no bounds or precautions. He personally took care of the sick by putting them on his coat. Brother Gonzalez said his companions hated the stench of the hospital and had to wash their coats up to four times a day. There are witnesses confirming that they saw Saint Peter Claver kissing the wounds of slaves caused by shackles and chains. Wasn't that a silent scream of protest?
Good Father Peter Claver touched everyone with his dedication to prisoners and those convicted of civil or religious crimes. The testimonies about his life are amazing: he ate badly, slept on an ordinary mattress, made long night vigils accompanied by bodily penance. And yet exhausting work, hot climate and pesky mosquitoes were a sufficient mortification!
In 1650, when he was 70 years old, Peter Claver set off with his translator, on one of the missions. He came as far as the Río Sinú. Near the town of Santa Cruz de Lorica, he felt ill and, exhausted by malarial fever, was forced to return to Cartagena.
The following year, an epidemic of plague decimated Cartagena. Claver overcame the disease, but he remained paralyzed. His illness due to loneliness and abandonment resembled the cross of Christ. He, who had been tireless all his life, was isolated in his room, unable to work. This was discovered later because Father Claver never complained! For the last four years of his life, he was slowly dying. On September 6, 1654, Peter Claver asked to be brought to the church so that he could receive the Blessed Sacrament and visit the Miraculous Mother of God for the last time. On September 7, he lost his speech. Brother Gonzalez testified that people began to gather to shout: Come, a saint is dying! Blacks and whites wanted to see him one last time and take any relic with them. He extinguishes slowly and died in the first hours of the morning on September 8, the feast of the Nativity of the Mother of God. All Cartagena, moved, gave him a funeral that was rarely seen there. The people then understood who Peter Claver was.
Although the beatification process began so early that testimony was given by the direct witnesses of Peter Claver, it was only after 200 years that Pope Pius IX included him among the blessed in 1851. The reason for this delay was the suspension of the process during the dissolution of the Jesuit Order. Pope Leo XIII included Peter Claver among the saints in 1888 (simultaneously with his spiritual master, Br. Alfonso Rodriguez). The same pope proclaimed St. Peter Claver, the patron of missions among the Black People (1896).
Two years earlier (1894), a Pole, Blessed Maria Teresa Ledóchowska (+ 1922), founded the Society of St. Peter Claver for the African Mission, which soon became a new religious family, approved by the Holy See in 1910. There are also two other religious congregations that have chosen St. Peter Claver as a special patron. These are the sisters of St. Peter Claver in Colombia and Italy.
One sentence of Pope Leo XIII expresses everything that can be said about Peter Claver: “After the life of Christ, none of them touched me as deeply as the life of the great apostle - Peter Claver”.
The saint's mortal remains rest in a crystal reliquary under the main altar in the church dedicated to him in Cartagena, Colombia.
Until Tomorrow
fr. George