[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 155 (2009), Part 17]
[Senate]
[Pages 23579-23580]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




COMMEMORATING THE CANONIZATION OF FATHER DAMIEN DE VEUSTER TO SAINTHOOD

  Mr. KAUFMAN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate 
proceed to the immediate consideration of S. Res. 304, submitted 
earlier today.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report.
  The bill clerk read as follows:

       A resolution (S. Res. 304) commemorating the canonization 
     of Father Damien de Veuster, SS.CC to sainthood.

  There being no objection, the Senate proceeded to consider the 
resolution.
  Mr. INOUYE. Mr. President, today, I rise in support of this 
resolution commemorating the canonization of Father Damien de Veuster, 
SS.CC, to sainthood.
  Joseph De Veuster, was born in Tremolo, Belgium, on January 3, 1840. 
At the age of 19, he entered the Congregation of the Sacred Heart of 
Jesus and Mary and took the religious name of Damien.
  After his brother fell ill, Damien obtained permission from the 
Superior General to take his place for a mission in the Hawaiian 
Islands, although he was not yet an ordained priest. After a six-month 
boat ride, he arrived in Honolulu on March 19, 1864, and was ordained 
to the priesthood two months later.
  During this time in Hawaii, an outbreak of Hansens' disease, also 
known as leprosy, occurred. Patients were sent away to the small island 
of Molokai to prevent the disease from spreading. Several priests took 
turns coming to Molokai to offer spiritual aid for three months at a 
time, but Damien chose to never leave, instead sacrificing his own life 
for those with Hansen's disease.
  He worked tirelessly and continuously to turn this remote island into 
a colony of hope. He offered encouragement and spiritual guidance to 
those who were less able to help themselves. He built houses, chapels 
and hospitals and even built coffins and dug graves for those who lost 
the fight from Hansen's disease.
  In 1884, Damien contracted Hansen's disease himself but continued 
working until months before dying on April 15, 1889. His remains were 
brought back to Belgium in 1936, and now rest in the crypt of the 
church of the Congregation of the Sacred Hearts at Louvain, where he 
first entered religious life.
  On April 15, 1969, as a gift from Hawaii, a statue of Father Damien 
and a statue of King Kamehameha I, were unveiled at the Capitol 
Rotunda.
  He was declared Venerable by Pope Paul VI on July 9, 1977, the first 
of three steps that lead to sainthood. On June 4, 1995, Pope John Paul 
II declared him Blessed Damien, and his feast is on May 10, the day he 
entered Molokai.
  In observance of Father Damien de Veuster, SS.CC., I urge my 
colleagues to support this resolution recognizing his canonization to 
sainthood by Pope Benedict XVI on October 11, 2009.
  Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that Senator Daniel Akaka be 
added as a cosponsor to this Resolution.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  Mr. AKAKA. Mr. President, I am proud to join Senator Inouye in 
submitting a resolution commemorating the canonization of Father Joseph 
Damien de Veuster. Father Damien was born in Tremeloo, Belgium, on 
January 3, 1840. He is best known for his tireless efforts to provide 
material and spiritual comforts for leprosy patients at Kalaupapa, 
Molokai, during the latter half of the 19th century. Beloved by the 
people of Hawaii and the country of his birth, his selfless service to 
mankind serves as a model for all of us.
  Father Damien arrived in Hawaii in 1864 to join the Sacred Hearts 
Mission in Honolulu. After several years of serving isolated 
communities on the island of Hawaii, Father Damien became concerned 
that many of his parishioners that were afflicted by leprosy were 
forced to separate from their families and sent to Kalaupapa, Molokai 
and virtually imprisoned. In 1873, Father Damien's request to reside at 
Molokai and devote his life to serving the people of Kalaupapa was 
granted.
  Father Damien's selfless devotion to the patients was evident when in 
1876, he told a U.S. medical inspector, ``This is my work in the world. 
Sooner or later I shall become a leper, but may it not be until I have 
exhausted my capabilities for good.'' For 16 years, he labored to bring 
material and spiritual comfort to Kalaupapa's leprosy patients, 
building chapels, water cisterns, and boys and girls homes.
  On April 15, 1889, Father Damien died of leprosy, at the age of 49. 
While his death was a devastating loss, the spiritual foundation that 
he established for the community of Kalaupapa would forever be 
remembered by the people of Hawaii.
  Father Damien is a beloved figure in Hawaii's history, and so 
noteworthy are his deeds that he is one of the two people from Hawaii 
who are memorialized here in the Capitol, the other being King 
Kamehameha, the man who united the Hawaiian Islands. The statue of 
Father Damien stands proudly, as

[[Page 23580]]

a reminder of his stewardship and love for Kalaupapa.
  We must take every opportunity to educate our Nation on Father 
Damien's life and the history of Kalaupapa. Out of concern that Father 
Damien's legacy and Kalaupapa's rich history not be forgotten, the 
Kalaupapa National Historical Park was established in 1980, with a 
provision that former leprosy patients may remain as long as they wish.
  The Holy See ruled in April 2008 that Father Joseph Damien de Veuster 
was responsible for two miracles and The Congregation of the Causes of 
Saints at the Vatican voted to recommend raising Father Damien to 
sainthood. In February 2009, the Vatican announced that Father Damien 
would be canonized on October 11, 2009 in ceremonies at the Vatican. It 
will be my great honor to attend those ceremonies as part of President 
Barack Obama's official delegation. Through this recognition, Father 
Damien and the 8,000 leprosy patients will forever be remembered as a 
legacy of human spirit and dignity.
  Mr. KAUFMAN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the 
resolution be agreed to, the preamble be agreed to, the motions to 
reconsider be laid upon the table, with no intervening action or 
debate, and that any statements relating to the resolution be printed 
in the Record.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The resolution (S. Res. 304) was agreed to.
  The preamble was agreed to.
  The resolution, with its preamble, reads as follows:

                              S. Res. 304

       Whereas Father Damien de Veuster, SS.CC. was born Joseph de 
     Veuster in Tremelo, Belgium, on January 3, 1840, and in 1859, 
     at age 19, he entered the Congregation of the Sacred Hearts 
     of Jesus and Mary in Louvain and selected Damien as his 
     religious name;
       Whereas in 1863, Father Damien received permission to 
     replace his ill brother, and sailed to the Hawaiian Islands 
     to perform missionary work;
       Whereas Father Damien arrived in Honolulu, Hawaii on March 
     19, 1864, was ordained to the priesthood at the Cathedral of 
     Our Lady of Peace on May 21, 1864, and began his pastoral 
     ministry on the island of Hawaii;
       Whereas the Hawaiian Government deported individuals 
     infected with Hansen's disease, also known as leprosy, to a 
     peninsula on the island of Molokai, to prevent further spread 
     of the disease, and Bishop Louis Maigret, SS.CC. sought the 
     help of Father Damien and other priests to provide spiritual 
     assistance for the sufferers of Hansen's disease;
       Whereas several priests volunteered to work on Molokai for 
     a few months, but Father Damien requested to remain 
     permanently with the individuals suffering from Hansen's 
     disease, and was among the first to leave for the island of 
     Molokai on May 10, 1873;
       Whereas for 16 years, Father Damien served as a voice of 
     hope and a source of consolation and encouragement for the 
     individuals afflicted with Hansen's disease, accomplishing 
     remarkable achievements, including building houses and 
     hospitals, taking care of the patients' spiritual and 
     physical needs, building 6 chapels, constructing a home for 
     boys and a home for girls, and burying the hundreds who died 
     during his years on the island of Molokai;
       Whereas Father Damien died on April 15, 1889, after 
     contracting Hansen's disease, and his remains were 
     transferred to Belgium in 1936, where he was interred in the 
     crypt of the church of the Congregation of the Sacred Hearts 
     at Louvain;
       Whereas in 1938, the process for beatification for Father 
     Damien was introduced at Malines, Belgium;
       Whereas on April 15, 1969, a statue of Father Damien and a 
     statue of King Kamehameha I, gifts from the State of Hawaii, 
     were unveiled at the Capitol Rotunda;
       Whereas on July 7, 1977, Pope Paul VI declared Father 
     Damien ``venerable'', the first of 3 steps that lead to 
     sainthood;
       Whereas on June 4, 1995, Pope John Paul II declared Father 
     Damien ``Blessed Damien'', and his feast is on May 10, the 
     day Father Damien first entered the island of Molokai; and
       Whereas Father Damien will be canonized a saint on October 
     11, 2009, by Pope Benedict XVI: Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved, That the Senate--
       (1) recognizes the canonization of Father Damien to 
     sainthood; and
       (2) honors and praises Father Damien for his legacy, work, 
     and service to the Hansen's disease colony on the island of 
     Molokai.

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