BL. AUGUSTINE OF RAMAPURAM, PRIEST - 16 OCTOBER

 

ALL SAINTS CELEBRATED IN OCTOBER

Saints celebrated on the 16th of October

Prayer to the Angels and the Saints

Heavenly Father, in praising Your Angels and Saints we praise Your glory, for by honouring them we honour You, their Creator. Their splendour shows us Your greatness, which infinitely surpasses that of all creation.

In Your loving providence, You saw fit to send Your Angels to watch over us. Grant that we may always be under their protection and one day enjoy their company in heaven.

Heavenly Father, You are glorified in Your Saints, for their glory is the crowning of Your gifts. You provide an example for us by their lives on earth, You give us their friendship by our communion with them, You grant us strength and protection through their prayer for the Church, and You spur us on to victory over evil and the prize of eternal glory by this great company of witnesses.

Grant that we who aspire to take part in their joy may be filled with the Spirit that blessed their lives, so that, after sharing their faith on earth, we may also experience their peace in heaven. Amen.

BL. AUGUSTINE OF RAMAPURAM, PRIEST

Blessed Augustine was born on April 1, 1891, at Ramapuram in present-day Kerala, India, the son of Itty Iype and Eliswa of the Thevarparambil clan, which was a branch of the Kuzhumpil lineage. 

After completing in secondary education at St Ephrem's School, Augustine embarked on a jounery on foot from Ramapuram to Changanacherry in order to enroll in St Thomas Minor Seminary. After receiving his major seminary formation at Puthenpally Seminary in Varapuzha, Augustine was ordained a priest on July 16, 1915. A while later, Augustine was appointed as assistant vicar at St Sebastian Church in Kadanad. 

"FATHER OF THE UNTOUCHABLES"

He was known as Kunjachan ('little priest' in Malayalam) for his short stature. He helped all people and witnessed an entire caste of people deprived of dignity, respect, and the basic necessities of life. He would devote his entire life to the uplifting of the downtrodden. It is the singular achievement of 

Thevarparambil Kunjachan had been able to baptise by himself no less than 5,000 "Untouchables". He is to be counted as one of the foremost missionaries among the Dalits in India. He preached with his works, practising charity, and always sublime and dedicated.

Kunjachan led a very simple life for the poor and wished to be with them even after death. He spent everything he had for the poor. The Blessed who was a priest for more than 50 years, wrote in his Testament: "I do not possess anything either as landed property or as cash account... After my death, my funeral must be conducted in the most simple way. Ever since 1926, I had been staying with the Harijan (Dalit) Christians. Even after death, I would like to be with them. Therefore my dead body should be buried where the Harijan Christians are buried".

After a brief period of serious illness Kunjachan died on October 16, 1973 at the age of 82. At his death the children and others told that 'a saint has passed away'. 

Kunjachan had the reputation of a holy man even while he was alive. People irrespective of caste and religion, used to approach him in their manifold needs and they got favours through his prayers and blessings. Within a few days after his death his tomb at Ramapuram became a center of pilgrimage for people from far and wide. He was beatified: April 30, 2006. 

(Information from Wikipedia)