ALL SAINTS CELEBRATED IN APRIL
Saints celebrated on the 14th of April
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BLESSED LUCIEN BOTOVASOA, MARTYR
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| Bl. Lucien Botovasoa |
Blessed Lucien Botovasoa, born in 1908 in Madagascar, studied in a public school from 1918 before being baptised and receiving his First Communion in 1922. He completed his studies at the Jesuit college of Saint Joseph in 1928 and moved on to becoming an instructor there with his new teaching diploma. Blessed Lucien made it a practice after each lesson to read chapters and passages from the lives of the saints to those students who wanted to hear about them, and he often added his own comments and words of encouragement to the young people in his charge.
On October 10, 1930, Blessed Lucien married Suzanna Soazana in his local parish. They had five children together; his wife was pregnant with their last child at the time of Blessed Lucien's murder. His firstborn, Vincent de Paul Hermann, was born on September 12, 1931. One nun once remarked to him that he would made a fine priest and asked him if he had ever regretted marriage. But Blessed Lucien replied without hesitation: "I do not have the slightest regret at all", adding that it allowed him to serve God through that particular vocation.
Blessed Lucien was among the first to enter the Crusaders of the Heart of Jesus when it settled in his hometown of Vohipeno and was received on August 18, 1935 before becoming its treasurer in 1936 which was a position he held until his death. In addition to his native tongue he had mastered the Chinese language as well as German and French. He was an exceptional singer and musician and served as the director of the parish choir.
Blessed Lucien wished to become a religious but was well aware of the fact that he could not become a monk while still married. He had no desire to leave his wife and children but instead thought of becoming a secular religious. In 1940, he came across a handbook about the Secular Franciscan Order which appealed to him. Blessed Lucien gathered like-minded people to join him in establishing a branch of the order in the region. Blessed Lucien received the Franciscan habit on December 18, 1944. Blessed Lucien often fasted and dressed in plain beige trousers and a khaki shirt for he stressed that "it's the color of the clothes that tertiaries wear". His wife reproached him for not wearing black trousers as was traditional for teachers, though he pointed out to her that this was insignificant in the face of his religious practices.
In 1947, unrest broke out in the region; priests and nuns suffered kidnapping and attacks, and a few days later the uprising was in full swing. Blessed Lucien visited his father on March 30, 1947, but returned home on April 9, 1947, after learning of massacres near his home which entailed the rounding up of the religious. Blessed Lucien knew that he could be captured and killed due to his status as a religious educator but did not fear what would happen to him.
On April 14 he was at home having lunch with his wife and children when a pious woman came and told him of rumours that a teacher was to be summoned before the chief, which prompted his wife to weep, since she knew that it would be her husband. Blessed Lucien remained unmoved at this news and spoke with his wife after lunch of what might happen to him and gave her last instructions for the care of their children and their unborn child. Shortly after, four men knocked on his door, ordering him to come with them to see the chief who wished to judge him. He followed them uncomplainingly, was interviewed the chief for half an hour and the chief pronounced the death sentence at 10:00 pm. Blessed Lucien was then led off to be executed. He was to be killed at the edge of the Matitanana river and en route asked to stop. He knelt for sometime in deep prayer before continuing along the path. Upon their arrival his captors wanted to tie his hands together, but Blessed Lucien offered to do that himself in the form of a cross. Then he knelt once more, praying silently. The executioner beheaded Blessed Lucien and the men then tossed his remains into the river. Blessed Lucien died in his beige khaki jacket and trousers with a black cord for a belt.
His cause for canonization opened on October 11, 2011 under Pope Benedict XVI in which he became titled as a Servant of God. Pope Francis confirmed in mid-2017 that Blessed Lucien was killed in hatred of his faith and decreed that he was to be beatified. The ceremony, led by Cardinal Maurice Piat, took place on April 15, 2018, in Vohipeno, Madagascar. His feast day is April 14.
Sources: https://ciofs.info/2019/09/30/un-francescano-secolare-e-beatificato-il-maestro-di-scuola-lucien-botovasoa-del-madagascar/ -https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lucien_Botovasoa -https://aleteia.org/daily-prayer/monday-april-14
PRAYER:
Grant, we beseech you, almighty God, that the venerable feast of Blessed Lucien may increase our devotion and promote our salvation. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, for ever and ever. Amen.
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