By Fr Rex Rocamora

The author is a Columban priest from Ipil, Zamboanga Sibugay. He was ordained in 2000 and until this year was based in China. He is now in Our Lady of Remedies Parish, Malate, Manila. His brother, Fr Joseph Joy Rocamora, is a priest in their home Diocese of Ipil.

Miss Dominga Bayocot sharing her memories of Fr Douglas

‘No wonder he was always looking towards the altar’,  said Miss Dominga Bayocot who had witnessed as an eight-year-old the man tied to one of the pillars in St James the Apostle Church, Paete, Laguna, after realizing that he was a priest. She was speaking in Tagalog but I noticed the interpreter missed this line and didn’t translate it for the pilgrims who were listening intently to the accounts of two witnesses – the other was Mrs Aurelia Cadapan – to events in the church in July 1943. It was an important line, I thought. They spoke to us after a lunch hosted by the parishioners at Lunal Paradiso Resort in an off-road garden setting.

Manila traffic bogged down the bigger of two buses carrying pilgrims to Pililla, Rizal, where Columban Fr Francis Vernon Douglas from New Zealand had been parish priest in the early years of World War II, and to Paete, Laguna, where he had been tortured and killed by Japanese soldiers. We pilgrims included Columban priests, lay missionaries and workers from many countries and relatives of Fr Douglas from New Zealand. Our bus almost skipped Pililla because we were running very late and we only had one day, 28 September 2016, to do this pilgrimage, to see and hear about Fr Douglas, known to his family as ‘Vernon’.

On the way, conversing with fellow pilgrims, praying and singing as well, and seeing rural of Rizal and Laguna from a front seat was very pleasant. Finally after many hours on the road, including a visit to St Mary Magdalene Church in Pililla, and our lunch, we slowly moved down the narrow street leading to Paete church and parked near the town hall. A local person told me that the name ‘Paete’ comes from the Tagalog word ‘pait’ or ‘paet’, ‘chisel’. The town has been famous for centuries for its woodcarving.

The old adobe church of Saint James the Apostle stands at the foot of a mountain. I entered the church, which was quiet and calm, and approached and, as other pilgrims were doing, prayerfully touched the post to which one of Fr Vernon’s hands had been tied. He held his rosary in the other, or so I imagined.

Mrs Verne Turner at the pillar where her uncle was scourged

The post is one of two supporting the choir loft and is near the baptistery, which was the ‘torture chamber’ of Fr Vernon’s three-day ordeal. Then the stirring within my soul began shortly after praying at the post, more so when I witnessed others praying solemnly there as well.  ‘Do you feel something within you?’, I had to ask, Verne, one of the New Zealanders, as my emotions were welling up. Had I been foolish in asking her? But she quickly replied, ‘I’m his niece’. Verne was born in April 1945 on the day the Douglas family received news of the death of Fr Vernon, hence her name. I was thinking that she had feelings that could not be expressed in words. We talked and went to the baptistery where we prayed in silence with a few others. We heard of the locals’ plan to install stained glasses in there; the image of St James the Apostle on one side and of Fr Vernon on the other.

Receiving Holy Communion during Mass

While I was praying at the post, a spontaneous conversation with God was quietly going on within me. It happened again during the Mass at which Columban Fr John Keenan, whose article Here was a Strong and Brave Man, first published in 2001, has stimulated much interest in Fr Vernon, was the main celebrant and homilist. Before the final blessing, Fr Dan O’Malley, the Columban Regional Director, an Irishman, spoke briefly, followed by inspiring words of thanks by Verne.

After Mass I walked outside the church and saw a vendor and bought a mortar and pestle chiselled out of molave wood. It symbolizes for me the ‘grinding’ that our fellow Columban, Fr Vernon, was subjected to. Terrible, it must have been. But I wanted to remember it as a graced moment between him and God, a shared moment with the crucified Lord. Martyrdom may not be for many, but everyone is called to holiness. God is alluring and inviting. The memory of Fr Vernon’s death has stirred a willingness within me to listen to God’s call to holiness, to total self-giving. On this pilgrimage to Paete I felt God’s gentle call to move on the path towards Him, the most Holy One.

Some of the pilgrims outside Paete Church

Church of St James the Apostle, Paete, Laguna, Philippines

By Fr John Keenan

On 28 September this year a group of Columban priests, Columban Lay Missionaries and co-workers, along with four relatives of Columban Fr Francis Vernon Douglas from New Zealand set off on a one-day pilgrimage to the two places associated with his death in 1943, Pililla, Rizal, and Paete, Laguna. Here is the homily given by Fr John Keenan, a Columban who came to the Philippines from Ireland in 1966, at the Mass in the church of St James the Apostle, Paete. His article, Here Was a Strong and Brave Man, first published in MISYON in January-February 2001, has renewed awareness of the martyrdom of this heroic priest from New Zealand.

Fr John Keenan and concelebrants

Magandang hapon po sa inyong lahat at maraming salamat para sa inyong pagdalo sa Misang ito para kay Padre Francis Vernon Douglas. Having traced the last journey of Fr Vernon Douglas from Pililla Catholic church where he was abducted to this church of St James the Apostle, we have reached the goal of our pilgrimage.  It was here that Fr Vernon spent the last three tortuous days of his life. We remember him affectionately and pray for his eternal repose.

Good afternoon everyone and many thanks for joining us at this Mass in memory of Fr Francis Vernon Douglas. A special welcome to his niece Verne and her husband Cliff Turner, also to his nephew Vernon Douglas and his son Brendan. It is wonderful that you are here all the way from New Zealand.  Very many thanks to your parents and grandparents for the big sacrifice which they made at the time of the death of Fr Vernon.

Our feast today is that of St Lorenzo Ruiz and companions who were martyred in Japan some 400 years ago.  Like them, Fr Vernon was made to endure terrible tortures for his faith in Jesus Christ. It is providential and a great co-incidence that our theme for today is that of martyrs.

Fr Jacques Hamel
(30 November 1930 – 26 July 2016) [FB]

In his homily to the relatives of Fr Jacques Hamel, 85, the elderly priest who was murdered by members of the Islamic State (near Rouen, France), Pope Francis said that there are more martyrs for the faith in modern times than in the early days of Christianity. In our times many priests, sisters and lay people have been killed for their Christian witness.

Pope Francis speaks about the martyrs of our times

Some 400 years ago Filipino St Lorenzo Ruiz and his companions were martyred in Japan, also St Pedro Calungsod, a Filipino catechist was killed in the Marianas Islands.
In February 1945 five Columbans were martyred in Malate parish and more recently Fr Tom Flynn in Labrador, Pangasinan in 1950, Fr Martin Dempsey shot dead in Mindanao in 1970 and Fr Rufus Halley mowed down in 2001 also in Mindanao.

Before them Fr Francis Vernon Douglas at the age of 33, after being severely tortured in this Church of St James, Paete, was killed on 27 July 1943 – 73 years ago. Our presence here today means that his supreme sacrifice is not forgotten, nor should it ever be.

When news of the martyrdom of St Lorenzo Ruiz (and companions) reached Manila all the church bells in the diocese were rung in thanksgiving to God for their fidelity to their faith in Jesus Christ. So here also we joyfully give thanks for Fr Vernon’s splendid and heroic witnessing to his Catholic and Christian faith.

Fr Francis Vernon Douglas

Fr Francis Vernon Douglas was born on Sunday 22 May 1910 to Catherine Gaffney from Ireland and George Douglas from Australia, in Johnsonville, Wellington, New Zealand, the fifth of eight children. After graduating as valedictorian from Mosgiel at the age of 14 to help his family financially he worked in the local post office and later as postmaster for three years. Responding to the call to priesthood, he entered Holy Cross Seminary in Mosgiel destined to serve in the Archdiocese of Wellington. After eight fulfilling years he was ordained a priest on 29 October 1934. For over three years he worked zealously in various parishes in his home diocese of Wellington.

Sensing a call to be a missionary he applied to Fr Luke Mullany, superior of the Columbans in Australia and New Zealand, who accepted him as a member of the Missionary Society of St Columban in 1937. After a year’s study and preparation he was sent to the Philippines and arrived in Manila in July 1938.  After a brief stay in Malate he was assigned to Binangonan and Morong (both in Rizal) to learn the local language, Tagalog.

At the early age of 28 he was assigned as parish priest to Pililla, Rizal. This parish was very much run-down having been 40 years without a resident priest.  Because of typhoons and floods the church and convento (rectory/presbytery) were in bad shape. Being young and energetic he set to work along with the local people and gradually renovated the church and convento where he lived. Through liturgies, catechesis, meetings they gradually built a loving Christian Community. As a zealous priest he often visited outlying villages to attend to the sick and respond to the various needs of the people in the hills around Pililla.

At that time many of the people in the hills resisted the Japanese military police known as the dreaded Kempeitai. In the eyes of the Japanese he was ‘an enemy alien’ and was suspected of collaborating and spying for the guerrillas.

Mrs Verne Turner, Fr Dan O’Malley and Fr John Keenan
Mrs Turner, whose mother was a sister of Fr Vernon, was born on the day in 1945 when the Douglas family learned of his death in 1943, hence her name.

On the afternoon of Saturday 24 July 1943 he was interrogated by the Japanese in his convent. He was heard to say in answer to a question, ‘I cannot answer you and you have no right to ask me that question’.  Many believe that he was referring to the seal of confession which he refused to break regarding what he knew about the guerrillas. He was abducted from the convento that day and brought by truck to this Church here in Paete. This was used as a concentration camp with some 1,700 prisoners, men and youths held in atrocious conditions.

The sacristy was used as a torture chamber where many prisoners died.  Here he was taken and severely tortured.  He was given the dreaded water–cure but still refused to give any information. Like Jesus before Pilate he uttered not a word. Later he was tied to the altar rails and further beaten. Let us imagine the scene in this very church:  ‘ECCE HOMO’, ‘BEHOLD THE MAN’, put before all the frightened prisoners as to what might happen to them also.  Then he was dragged to the baptistery and tied to the font and further tortured.

Vernon and Brendan Douglas with Frs O’Malley and Keenan
Vernon is a nephew of Fr Douglas, a cousin of Verne and the father of Brendan

Later he was manacled to the post beside it under the choir loft there. With one hand tied to the post above his head he was left to stand for two days and two nights. He was allowed neither food nor drinks even though the people had brought some for him. His eyes, swollen and bloody were fixed on the tabernacle while he fingered his rosary beads, which he was allowed to keep. Like Jesus before his tormentors he remained silent.

Realising that the end was near he asked to see the local parish priest, Fr Nicomedes Rosal, to whom he made his last confession.

Later, as night was falling, he was bundled into the back of a truck and driven off into the night in the direction of Sta Cruz (capital of Rizal Province).  He was never seen again.  The speculation is that he died from the effects of the beatings and torture he endured, or that he was killed and buried in an unmarked grave in a rice-field or in the vicinity of Sta Cruz town.

Pope Francis called the French priest who was murdered a couple of months ago in his parish in northern France a martyr. He said that we can pray for him and pray to him for our various needs and petitions. Fr Hamel suffered only for a couple of minutes. Fr Vernon suffered excruciatingly for three days and three nights. We also can pray for him and to him for our sick and for other needs.

The prisoners did not fail to notice that torture on them ceased after Fr Vernon’s arrival. All the anger seemed to be concentrated on him. They thought of him as their savior, like Jesus.

Some 2,700 years ago the prophet Isaiah said: ‘Yet it was our pain that he bore, our sufferings he endured . . . by his wounds we were healed (Isaiah 53:4-5). Fr Vernon’s faith, courage, commitment and fidelity to the end are an inspiration and example for all of us Columban missionaries and everybody else to follow.

Within a short time after Vernon’s death the zoning of the town ceased and all the prisoners were released and allowed to return to their homes. Maybe someday, with God’s help, Fr Francis Vernon Douglas will be listed with the church’s martyrs. He may become the first (canonized) Columban saint and the first saint and martyr from New Zealand.

Maraming salamat kay Fr Noel Canopio, Parish Priest, sa Sangguniang Pastoral ng parokya ni St. James Apostle at sa inyong lahat. (Many thanks, to Fr Noel Canopio, Parish Priest, and to the Parish Council, and to all).

Church of St James the Apostle, Paete

Fr Francis Vernon Douglas

Heavenly Father we join together with the people of New Zealand and of the Philippines
who are praying for the promotion of the Cause of Fr Francis Vernon Douglas SSC.
We are inspired by his example of heroic faith, courage and commitment to the Gospel.

We pray in confidence that by his example we will be inspired to do likewise and
live the call of Jesus as peacemakers, promote nonviolence and love of our enemies.

May the Holy Spirit move the hearts and minds of the Church and proclaim
Fr Francis Vernon Douglas as witness of the faith. Amen.

Mother Mary... Pray for us.
St James the Apostle... Pray for us.
St Mary Magdalene... Pray for us.

By Mary Joy Rile

The author is Editorial Assistant of MISYONonline.com and Columban Mission.

Prayer Service at St Mary Magdalene Parish Church, Pililla, Rizal

Columban missionaries and co-workers, with members of the Douglas family, gathered at 5:30am in Singalong St, Manila, on 28 September 2016, the feast day of the first Filipino martyr, St Lorenzo Ruiz. We were commemorating the life and death of Columban Father Francis Vernon Douglas, a New Zealander martyred in the Philippines in 1943. Riding on two buses, 68 of us started our pilgrimage with rain to grace our day, traffic to greet us in between and delays to test our endurance. But these challenges were a small sacrifice compared to the suffering that Fr Vernon bore.

We had Morning Prayer and rosary along the way. The prayer of Fr Dan O’Malley, Regional Director, was truly humbling, ‘We ask for forgiveness for having lost your story over the years. But we rejoice that we have re-discovered this. And in this re-discovery, deepen our own faith, our own commitment in our troubled times in this nation.’

When we reached the church of St Mary Magdalene, Pililla, Rizal, we visited its different parts before having a prayer service in the sala, which Fr Vernon had used as his room.

The readings and silent moments for reflection helped us internalize what he had gone through.

We continued the journey going to Paete, Laguna. We had a stopover for lunch at Lunal Paradiso Resort hosted by the parishioners. Afterwards two eye-witnesses, Mrs Aurelia Cadapan and Miss Dominga Bayocot, shared their personal encounters with Fr Vernon. Their sharing was moving and when we reached the church of St James the Greater we were drawn to venerate especially the wooden pillar to which the Columban priest had been tied. The atmosphere brought us back to the time of his suffering. The thought of his excruciating pain evoked in us deep sorrow, wishing to console him, yet we also recognized that sense of gratitude and awe for his courage in facing such a death. Holding the pillar as if reaching out to Fr Vernon felt like we were united with him. Such a grace!

Fr Kevin McHugh venerating the pillar that Fr Vernon was tied to

We celebrated the Eucharist along with some parishioners and students of Liceo de Paete. Msgr Jerry V. Bitoon, Vicar General of the Diocese of San Pablo, was one of the concelebrants. He said, ‘You see, he was a priest in Pililla, Rizal, and he was just brought here. Was it God's design? For what reason? We do not know. But we are happy that we've been part of that.’ Columban Fr John Keenan gave an inspiring homily on the life and death of Fr Vernon.

An ancient Spanish tradition is that the Blessed Virgn Mary appeared to St James the Greater as he was praying by the banks of the River Ebro near Zaragosa in Spain. She was resting above a pillar. This is the origin of the great devotion in the Hispanic world to Nuestra Señora del Pilar, Our Lady of the Pillar. Fr Vernon was a parish priest of St Mary Magdalene but was taken to another church, St James the Greater, where he was tied to a pillar and tortured.

To be snatched from your own people and made to suffer in front of others who didn’t know you at all – what suffering that must have been for Fr Vernon, having no friend to comfort him! Though silent, he was seen moving his lips in prayer, holding his rosary. Was he not in the company of Jesus and Mary? He found that friendship with God, his source of strength that made him conquer all the pain and suffering. He was probably in that state of union with God where he could only submit himself without resistance, denying himself for the sake of others.

Misyon editor and staff with the two eye-witnesses, Miss Dominga Bayocot and Mrs Aurelia Cadapan

Miss Dominga Bayocot recounted the sharing of her uncle who was next in line to be tortured in the baptistery of the church. The Japanese soldiers vented all their cruelty on Fr Vernon so that after him none of the other men were tortured, but freed. They were saved by that one white man whom they had only encountered during those three days. He was then taken away to some unknown place and never seen again. But Mrs Aurelia Cadapan, who told us that the remains of St James were discovered centuries after his death, continues to pray and hope that one day we will also find the remains of Fr Vernon Douglas. If he will be canonized some day, he will then be the first martyr of New Zealand and the first canonized saint to die in the Philippines, as St James the Greater has been traditionally considered to be the first martyred apostle.

It is normally a family’s desire to give one of their members a decent burial. But for a pilgrim such as Fr Vernon who had foreseen his possible fate, does that matter? Will not a man of faith who uttered the words of Jesus, ‘Not my will but yours be done’, a man blessed to have shared in the Passion of Jesus, not to be raised with him? Columbans identify themselves as Pilgrims for Christ with that spirit of leaving their homeland for their mission, continuing their journey wherever Christ leads them. A number of them have died and are buried in their mission lands. Their patron, St Columban, was born in Ireland but died in Bobbio, Italy.

Some of the Pilgrims in Paete Church

As we continue to search for answers to the mystery of the death of Fr Vernon, we keep the attitude of faith that he himself embraced, expressed in the hymn used during Evening Prayer on the pilgrimage: Holy darkness, blessed night, / heaven's answer hidden from our sight. / As we await you, O God of silence, / we embrace your holy night.

Holy Darkness by John Michael Talbot

Short Reflections on the Pilgrimage

Some of the pilgrims

The experience was surreal. I felt sad yet honored, privileged, and blessed to have walked the floors that Fr Francis Vernon Douglas walked, touched the pillar where he was tied up and tortured, entered through the doors where he welcomed my fellow Filipinos, climbed the stairs where he was dragged out, and just being in the space where he once was. He is truly an inspiration.  Mrs Mavic H. Mercene, Secretary, St Columban’s Lay Mission Center and of AITECE-Philippines.

I found the sharing of the two witnesses very moving and inspiring. Although they were young when they witnessed Fr Vernon's suffering it impacted on their lives, and enriched their faith. Meeting them and listening to their sharing enriched my own faith and helped me make the connection with this great Columban.  Fr Raymond Husband, Vice-Director, Region of the Philippines, and Rector, Columban House of Studies, QC.

God's will comes in surprises. Believing and trusting God's providence, willingness to serve and sacrifice, the patience to wait, the goodness, cooperation and uniqueness of  His people, and coming together walking with love, spirit and surprises in the direction of finding the true meaning of life is wonderful. We have nothing to worry about even unto death.  I for one couldn't hold my tears, because God and Fr Douglas  were  with us, happy and joyful. Even the traffic in Manila and rain along the way couldn't stop us.  Miss Thelma Patapat, Assistant Archivist, St Columban’s, Manila. Thelma is from Pililla.

Usa sa akong ginapuy-an nga versikulo gikan sa Matthew 20:26, ‘Rather, whoever wishes to be great among you shall be your servant’. Mao kana ang mga pulong nga akong ma-connect sa kang Fr Vernon upon hearing the testimomies sa mga katawhan. Nga samtang siya gitorture, anaa lamang siya sa kahilum samtang nagrosaryo. Diha sa kahilum, mas daghan pa kita’g mahunahuna nga mga bulawanong butang nga angay ikapa-ambit sa uban, sama sa atong mga talento ug gasa, aron daghan ang mabulahan. Daku kung kalipay nga nakasalmot sa gipahigayon nga pilgrimage isip pagbalik lantaw sa kinabuhing misyonero ni Fr Vernon. Usa ka maayong ehemplo nga pagasundon ug pagapuy-an sa atong inadlaw nga pagpakabuhi.  Malipayon nga nakauban pud ang ubang mga Columbano.  Jhan Yecyec, Columban Co-worker, Cagayan de Oro City.

It was a great opportunity for me to have joined the Pilgrimage to Pililla and Paete. To be in the places where the drama of Francis Douglas's martyrdom unfolded was both sad and inspiring. To personally hear the testimonies of the two ladies who saw him tied to the post created a more visual reality that gave flesh to the stories I had heard from other people. The more touching the experience became when his nephew expressed his gratitude on behalf of the Douglas family and saw how they were touched by the way people in Paete honored their uncle  all through the years. May Francis's life continue to inspire all of us and encourage us more to value the dignity and sanctity of our individual and collective vocation as Christians.  Fr Jovito Dales, Bursar General, Hong Kong.

I was deeply moved by the testimonies of Mrs Aurelia Cadapan and Miss Dominga Bayocot who, as youngsters, witnessed the torments of Fr Vernon Douglas.  While they were bringing food to their relatives who were also imprisoned in their church Aurelia and Dominga remembered seeing Fr Vernon tied to a pillar that supported the choir loft.  He was bruised and bleeding from a head wound. In telling their stories the two women, now in their late 80’s, mentioned details that attested to the accuracy of their memories. Dominga remembered that her mother made her wear tattered clothes so as not to attract the attention of the soldiers.  Aurelia remembered how deeply she had to bow to the Japanese guards before passing into the church.  They gave their testimonies before we visited the church where Fr Vernon was tortured.  Upon entering we saw the pillar to which Fr Vernon had been tied.  Next to it a tiny candle kept vigil over that sacred place.  Fr Vincent Busch, Ozamiz City.

I had known about Fr Douglas since I had worked in eastern Rizal in the 1990s but it was mostly on an 'informational' and individual level. The pilgrimage to Pililla and Paete in a Columban group that was multi-cultural, multi-generational and in the company of his immediate relatives brought home to me the sacredness of his sacrifice and how relevant and alive is his witness in the context of Columban mission today.  Fr John Leydon, Malate Parish.

The pilgrimage awakened my awareness of the multiple possibilities in my life as a missionary, depending on what the situation calls me to do. It was both a privilege and a joy that my faith in God was nourished. And my belief that the calling that have I responded came from God and not from myself was deepened. For this, I would like to ask Fr Vernon to help me to be faithful, just as he was, to the mission regardless of the possible consequences.  Jerry Lohera, Columban seminarian from Magsaysay, Misamis Oriental.

The pilgrimage was so special, you all shared our pain and joy. This has been the greatest journey I have ever made. Without your planned pilgrimage it would not be the same. I feel Uncle Vernon smiling on us all, I feel he can surely rest in peace now. Thank you all for this wonderful experience. God Bless.  Verne Rose, Fr Douglas's niece, with her husband Cliff Turner, New Zealand.