Part II

St. Maximilian Kolbe’s Visits to Ceylon (Sri Lanka) and His Impressions

St. Maximian Kolbe, during his missionary travels to and from Japan, China and India, visted Sri Lanka (then known as Ceylon) in 1930, 1932 and 1933. The impressions he formed during these visits as recorded in his contemporary writings – letters, diaries, notes and article, provide a fascinating read.

March 1930

Whilst in transit and staying aboard a ship anchored in the port of Colombo for two days in March 1930 (March 24-25), St. Maximilian Kolbe and his fellow missionaries, Br. Zygmunt and Br. Seweryn visited several notable locations in the city of Colombo. These included the Colombo Catholic Press, described by him as ‘the print shop of the Oblate Fathers of Mary Immaculate (OMI)’ which published “The Messenger of the Heart of Jesus” in English and Sinhalese; a leading Catholic school; St. Anthony’s Church, Kochchikade; and the Post Office to buy postcards. He also distributed the Miraculous Medals at the places he visited.

In his notes, he also makes mention of the tropical ‘summer heat’, ‘palm trees’ (a likely reference to the coconut trees), the sight of ‘a Buddhist monk’, ‘street cars’ (tram cars) and ‘cab drivers’ in Colombo. He attentively observed the devotional gestures of the faithful – ‘bowing’, ‘partly removing turbans’, ‘ joining hands’, ‘kneeling’, and placing ‘hands on the glass’ of the vitrine encasing the statue of St. Anthony whilst praying to him. He calls them ‘such good souls!’.

His notes of Tuesday, March 25, 1930 (Feast of the Annunciation of Most Holy Virgin Mary) record celebrating the ‘Mass and Communion according to the intentions of the Immaculate, and speaks of a late afternoon ‘typhoon’, ‘storm’ and rain, and of ‘jumping fish’ being ‘tossed here and there’. In a parting remark, he also recorded that he had got into the boat to return to the ship, leaving the city of Colombo, ‘taking along pleasant impressions.’

[Source: March 24,25 1930 Monday Tuesday – Ceylon, port [Colombo]: The Writings of St Maximilian Maria Kolbe, Volume II Various writings, nr 991 A, Daily Notes, Notebook IV (1930-1933)page 1713-1714 Nerbini International 2016]

Summer (June- July) 1932

In the summer of 1932, St. Maximilian Kolbe visited Sri Lanka twice on his travels to and from India, en route from Japan and Hong Kong. In a letter to his superior in Warsaw, he recorded:

‘On our way there we stopped in Hong Kong, where Fr. Wieczorek, a famous Salesian missionary, asked me why we were not establishing a Niepokalanów in China (in Hong Kong). We also stopped in Singapore, where the Fathers of the Congregation of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary pointed out a site in China where a Niepokalanów could be nestled, about an eight-hour train journey from Peking (which is not far, considering average distances in Asia).

‘From there, we then crossed the Indian Ocean up to Colombo, on the island of Ceylon, which had belonged to India in the past. The crossing was rather miserable, though. The winds, called “monsoon,” blew day and night, and the ship, apparently forgetful of its thousand-ton weight, listed horribly forward, backward, or sideways. Eventually, with a one day delay due to our struggle against the winds, we landed in Colombo, where I stayed a few days over at the Oblate Fathers of the Immaculata, who are involved in missionary work there. I intended to rest and re-gain my balance, to be ready to face the sweltering heat of train cars in the rays of the tropical sun.’

[ Source: Searching for a New Niepokalanow July 1932: The Writings of St Maximilian Maria Kolbe, Volume II Various Writings, No: 991 H, Daily Notes, Notebook IV (1930-1933)page 1737,1738, Nerbini International 2016

He rested for a few days at the House of the Oblate Fathers of the Immaculate in Colombo to regain his composure, before he travelled to Ernakulam in India by train. Commenting on the train journeys from Colombo to and from India, St. Maximilian wrote to Fr. Kornel Czupryk, his superior from Colombo on July 04, 1932:

‘The journey here and back by train I did in second class. For the outward leg, in fact, at the Cook agency, where I had bought the ticket, I was told that the third class is prohibited (for a European), although later I became convinced that it was possible; but not for the return, because otherwise, before leaving India to go onward to Ceylon, I would have had to spend a five-day quarantine period in a field in countryside, in the midst of other indigenous people who might be infected with infectious diseases (malaria, cholera, and the like). Just spending any time in a situation like that, in a warm, foreign climate would be more than enough to bring down some kind of illness on me. In addition, the cost of spending that time there. Instead, I could sleep during the night and was not quite so hot, because there were electric fans. I think even our own, at least at the beginning, must travel the great distances across India in second class.’ ….

‘Nevertheless the Immaculata, who had very lovingly assisted me all through my journey, helped me in this journey as well, so that my health was not made overly feeble over the day and two nights I spent on the train. The one thing I could not do was eat.’

‘A notice had been posted on train car doors warning against infectious diseas-es: malaria, cholera, etc. Also, I was beginning to ache here and there. What to do? At a station, I clung to hot coffee and drank: I swallowed quite a bit. It did me good. Then I threw out the “molangon”” (Indian fruit) to the monkeys that were roaming along the pavement, because I realized that that type of fruit did not agree with me. I trundled on, trying somehow to get to the end of the journey, to the town of Ernakulam, located in the Indian principality of Cochin, on the Malabar Coast.’

[Source: St. Maximilian Kolbe’ s Letter to Fr. Kornel Czupryk July 1, 1932 from Colombo: The Writings of St Maximilian Maria Kolbe, Volume I, Letters, nr 443, page 948, Nerbini International 2016]

Visit in September 1933

In 1933, he visited Sri Lanka for the third time, whilst in transit and staying aboard the ship, the Conte Rosso, anchored in the port of Colombo for about six hours. He gives a fascinating and vivid account of this brief visit in his article ‘ Colombo: Impressions of a Trip to the Mission of Japan’ published in Rycerz Niepokalanej, September, 1934, as follows:

‘Toward midday’ our ship Conte Rosso was nearing the port of Colombo, and at midday we could disembark. It was announced onboard that there would be meat for lunch, even though

it was Friday. Moreover, until the time of departure, at six, there was not much time; so,

having eaten some bread, cheese, and two green Indian oranges each, we went on land by

motorboat, paying half a Ceylonese rupee, and headed toward the city.’

‘First of all, we went, on the Borella tram, toward the episcopal palace. The conductor and the driver, thankful for the two medals of the Immaculata that we gave them, decided to drop us in front of the bishop’s palace. What good Hindus! The Immaculata will reward them for this. After visiting the small humble church situated beside the bishop’s house, we walked on foot along the paved road-full of spat-out gobs of red gum, which the inhabitants chew untiringly-toward the house of the Missionary Sisters of Mary, to procure some hosts and candles. Along the way, we walked in the cooling shade of the trees, since it was really hot. In front of us, a lot of shops with bananas of different colors and thickness, coconuts, and other tropical fruits.’

‘The small church of the sisters is very sweet, more so since Jesus, exposed all day long in the Blessed Sacrament, welcomes people all day long. Coming out of the church we found a girl who kindly invited us to go into the parlor. It was clear that our Franciscan habits, somewhat foreign to Ceylon, had already been noticed. On the principal wall of the parlor, Jesus looked down from the cross, whilst at his feet there was a big and beautiful picture of the Immaculata crushing the infernal serpent’s head with her immaculate foot. Evidently in the spirit of Niepokalanów.’

‘Soon after, two nuns dressed in white greeted us. They were the Franciscan Missionaries of Mary. The superior explained thoroughly that the aim of their institute is to go on mission in order to lead souls to Jesus, always through Mary, and that they belong to Mary, Mary is their Patroness and they are the property of Mary. She spoke to us about the numerous blessings bestowed by Mary,….’

‘We gladly accepted some soda water with ice: only he who travels in such tropical countries could appreciate its utility and value.’

‘In addition, we received both the hosts and candles; the sisters even wanted to take us to the ship, all this without our making any payment, for the sake of the Immaculata.’

‘Then, we again took the Fort tram to the last stop, at the harbor. Both the conductor and the driver accepted medals of the Immaculata. The tram driver explained to us that his conductor was Buddhist; however, his dark face, shining with joy, showed us that the medal would not go to waste.’

‘Here and there, the street was blocked by two-wheeled carts covered with a roof of palm leaves and drawn by small oxen with large humps. A large group of Hindu [in some places in his writings, St. Maximilian Kolbe refers to the native inhabitants of the Indian Subcontinent as’ Hindus’ not necessarily meaning their adherence to Hinduism] workers, dressed in a cloth that covered half of their bodies or in just a loincloth, was repairing a section of the tramline. Their dark bodies moved heavy picks. [Along the way we saw] the streets, always larger, the train station (from which we had left last year in search of the Indian Niepokalanów), and the harbor.’

[Visit to Nippon Restaurant – now Nippon Hotel]

‘We wanted, however, to visit also a Pole who had been residing there for a long time, Mr. Roszkowski, proprietor of the Nippon Restaurant. We left the harbor, therefore, turned right, and, after some minutes of walking in the midst of the continuous importuning of the merchants, we arrived at a row of small, waiting buses. We looked for one of the fullest-close, therefore, to departing-marked Slave Island, and we climbed up through the back door, into the middle of dark-skinned people, more or less dressed, residents of the area. Barefoot and indistinguishable from the other travelers, the conductor or the owner collected three cents from each person, and so, without losing time bothering with tickets, which in any case are a sign of mutual distrust, we get off in front of a recently constructed church, and from there, after barely 15 steps, we reach the Nippon Restaurant.’

Vases of flowers in front of the restaurant. We entered. On the wall, a picture of Our Lady of Częstochowa, and in front of it a small lamp; it was clear that it was the house of a Pole. Then, on top of a small cabinet, there was a statue of the Immaculata sent over from Niepokalanów: he was, therefore, also a reader of Rycerz. The proprietor was seated at a table and was finishing his midday “dinner” (the evening meal is called “supper”), a red dish of a gelatinous type. He immediately stood up: we greeted him and he invited us to eat with him. We drank coffee, ate some sweets, and lost ourselves in conversation. He tells us that he had just returned from hunting.

[When asked] “What kind of game is there in Ceylon?”

[Mr. Roszkowski, proprietor of the Nippon Restaurant had replied]:

“The most diverse. Yesterday evening, the house I was at, we captured a small boa in the kitchen. A boy crushed its head and it made such a noise. Fortunately, it was not a poisonous serpent. I gave it still alive to the Japanese consul. After four in the evening, the reptiles come out of their hiding places; they bask in the heat of the setting sun, and then in the dark of the night they go hunting. At dawn they again enjoy the warmth of the sun, until about eight, when the heat forces them to find shelter in the shady forests.

“In the evening or morning it is easy to spot crawling serpents in the countryside. Some time ago I saw a white serpent, a rarity; I was taking aim with my gun, but a Hindu put his hand on my arm, preventing me from shooting because it was a sacred serpent. There is also a great quantity of wild cats of several sizes: some lurk in the trees, leaping from high onto the necks of passers-by. There are also many bears, leopards, and antelopes. The proprietor of the reserve where I went some time ago to hunt had ordered a boy to bring down something heavier: so, he killed an enormous crocodile.”

‘We listened with astonishment to the stories of the old man, since we had never imagined the woods and shrubs we had so admired from the ship could hide so many dangerous surprises.’

‘Meanwhile, Mrs. Roszkowska, Japanese by birth, brought us a Japanese delicacy, “mochi” (pastries made of rice flour) with “hashi” (the chopsticks that Japanese use to eat). We greeted the lady and while we talked about religious matters regarding Japan, we ate some of those “mochi,” one of us two using the chopsticks, the other a fork.’

‘She thanked us in Japanese for Kishi, which pays her a visit every month. In this house, midway between the Polish Niepokalanów and the Japanese one, Polish Rycerz meets with Japanese Kishi every month. Only in the local language, does the Knight still not exist… May the Immaculata guide everything.’

‘The Polish man and the Japanese lady said goodbye to us on the porch of the restaurant, while we left to make our way back to the harbor.’

‘On our way there, we entered the recently constructed church. It is absolutely beautiful and it is dedicated to the Blessed Mother. Then again to the bus. In the harbor zone, we come across our Polish crows-only they had forgotten how to croak.’

‘Immediately after, to the ship by motorboat. During the crossing, a Hindu, working as assistant on the boat, showed us some signs on the skin of his hand, which were supposed to mean that he belonged to the Catholic Church, and for this, he wanted… money. Poor con man, scrounger! These kinds were not lacking there either!’

‘At about six the ship moved out of the harbor, passing by the breakwater, pitching to the movement of the waves that hit uselessly against the barrier that prevented them from entering the harbor; foaming, they rose several meters high and broke and fell back into the sea, to rise immediately and hit again, and again, fall, breaking.’

‘The city lights grew fainter. Only the lighthouse still saluted us with its strong and intermittent streaks of light.’

[Source: The Writings of St Maximilian Maria Kolbe, Volume II, Articles, No: 1189, page 948, Nerbini International 2016 pp 2053- 2056]

Conclusion

When World War II broke out in 1939, St. Maximilian Kolbe was in charge of Niepokalanów. The Nazis invaded Poland. According to the Nazi doctrine, the Poles were racially inferior to the Germans. In their invasion of Poland, Nazi forces launched mass killing operations against the Polish civilians and intelligentsia. Upon capturing Poland, the Nazis took over the Polish banks, businesses and properties. They forced about 1. 7 million Poles out of their homes. The Nazi forces soon took control of Niepokalanów, and used it as a temporary internment camp for 3,500 Poles forcibly displaced by them.[ the photograph of the Nazi Officers which appeared in first part of this article in last Sunday’ s issue of this newspaper was a photograph taken in front of Niepokalanów].

Nazis first arrested St. Maximillian Kolbe in September 1939, and released him in December, 1939. He refused to sign the Nazi declaration Deutsche Volksliste, which would have granted him rights similar to those of German citizens. His family name ‘ Kolbe ‘ sounded German (though he was not an ethnic German), and he was fluent in the German language. Upon his release, St. Maximilian Kolbe resumed his work at his monastery at Niepokalanów. He received limited permission from the Nazis to continue publishing religious literature, albeit on a significantly reduced scale.

Some of the articles published in the publications of Niepokalanów were critical of the Nazi regime and its activities. On February 17, 1941, St. Maximilian and four other friars were arrested. On May 28, 1941, they transferred him to Auschwitz as prisoner 16670, where he died on August 14, 1941 in the supremely heroic act of love and sacrifice to save the life of a fellow prisoner as we already read in the first few paragraphs of this article.

His vision for India which also included Sri Lanka began to be realised 50 years later in 1980, when at the invitation of the Bishop of Kanjirappally (Syro-Malabar rite), OFM Conventual friars from Malta arrived in Kerala to establish the Order in India. At the 2007 General Chapter, the work of the mission in India was elevated to the administrative status of a Province (Province of St. Maximilian M. Kolbe in India). The work of the Province, in addition to its work in Kerala, today, comprises a Delegation in Andhrapradesh-Telengana (the Delegation of St. Joseph of Cupertino), a mission in Calcutta and another mission in Sri Lanka. Currently under its jurisdiction, there are 123 solemnly professed friars, 58 simply professed friars, 17 friaries and seven filial houses. In Sri Lanka, the Order of Friars Minor Convectual has four friaries in Katana, Battaramulla, Kandy and Jaffna and two Minor Seminaries.

The Militia of the Immaculata which St. Maximilian, founded in 1917 with six other friars, has spread throughout the world. It is today present on five continents and in 46 nations with a membership of around four million. It received its first official approval from the Church in 1922. On October 16, 1997, the Holy See erected it as an International Public Association of the Faithful. The MI International Centre has its headquarters in Rome, Italy. Its membership is open to the clergy, consecrated and laity. Whilst prayer is its main weapon in the spiritual battle with evil, members of the Militia Immaculata ‘also immerse themselves in apostolic initiatives throughout society, either individually or in groups, to deepen the knowledge of the Gospel and Christian Faith in them and in others.’ St. Mother Teresa of Calcutta was among its notable Knights of the Immaculata (as its members are called)

In Sri Lanka, there is one church consecrated to St. Maximilian Kolbe at Vishaka Watta in Ja Ela

[Acknowledgement: The writer expresses his sincere gratitude to Fr. Krzys Flis, Editor of Rycerz Niepokalanej, MI Niepokalanów, in Teresin, Poland and Miss Annamaria Mix, Archivist, Archiwum, MI Niepokalanów, Teresin, Poland for providing him with access to the writings of St.Maximilian Kolbe relating to his visits to Sri Lanka and the photographs with permission for reproduction]

By Prabhath de Silva ✍️