of ✝️ the Day🕊️🔥*
*(February 4)*
*✠ St. John De Britto ✠*
Born: March 1, 1647, Lisbon, Portugal
Died: February 4, 1693, Oriyur, India
Education: University of Coimbra
Patronage: Portugal, Roman Catholic Diocese of Sivagangai, Sakthikulangara
Canonized: 22 June 1947, Rome by Pope Pius XII
Other Names :
• Apostle of Madura
• John de Britto
• Jean, João
Born : 1 March 1647 at Lisbon, Portugal
Died : Dismembered and beheaded 4 February 1693 at Oreiour, India
Canonized : 22 June 1947 by Pope Pius XII
Patronage :
• Portugal
• Sivagangai, India, diocese of
Saint John de Britto (also spelled Brito; Portuguese: João de Brito), also known as Arul Anandar, (born in Lisbon, Portugal on 1 March 1647 – died at Oriyur, Tamil Nadu, India on 11 February 1693) was a Portuguese Jesuit missionary and martyr, often called 'the Portuguese St Francis Xavier' by Indian Catholics. He can be called the John the Baptist of India.
John de Britto was the scion of a powerful aristocratic Portuguese family; his father, Salvador de Britto Pereira, died while serving as Viceroy of the Portuguese colony of Brazil. He joined the Jesuits in 1662, studying at the famous University of Coimbra. He travelled to the missions of Madurai, in Southern India, present-day Tamil Nadu, in 1673 and preached the Christian religion in the region of the Maravar country. He renamed himself Arul Anandar in Tamil. The ruler of the Maravar country imprisoned him in 1684. Having been expelled, he returned to Lisbon in 1687 and worked as a missions procurator. King Pedro II wanted him to stay, but in 1690 he returned to the Maravar country with 24 new missionaries.
The Madurai Mission was a bold attempt to establish an Indian Catholic Church that was relatively free of European cultural domination. As such, Britto learned the native languages, went about dressed in yellow cotton, and lived like a தமிழ் Thuravi/Sanyaasi, abstaining from every kind of animal food and from wine. St John de Britto tried to teach the Catholic faith in categories and concepts that would make sense to the people he taught. This method, proposed and practiced by Roberto de Nobili, met with remarkable success. Britto remained a strict vegan until the end of his life, rejecting meat, fish, eggs and alcohol, and living only on legumes, fruits and herbs.
John de Britto's preaching led to the conversion of Thadiyathevan, a Marava prince who had several wives. When Thadiyathevan was required to dismiss all his wives but one, a serious problem arose. One of the wives was a niece of the neighbouring king, the Sethupathi, the King of Ramnad, who took up her quarrel and began a general persecution of Christians. Britto and the catechists were taken and carried to the capital, Ramnad. Thence he was led to Oriyur, some 30 miles northward along the coast, where he was executed on 4 February 1693.
Britto was beatified by Pope Pius IX on 21 August 1853. He was canonised by Pope Pius XII on 22 June 1947. St John de Britto's feast day is 4 February. #✝பைபிள் வசனங்கள் #⛪ வேளாங்கண்ணி சர்ச் #✝️இயேசு #✝️இயேசுவே ஜீவன்


