ST DANIELE COMBONI | KAIROS GLOBAL | MAY 2024

Author: Jisha John

My spiritual father had been on mission in North India during the Holy Week.

We spoke on a call on his journey back and he said that he would be returning there again.

Hmm! I wasn’t very happy to hear that, concerned about his poor health and the unfavourable situation at the mission place. I asked Jesus to change his decision. But, do you know what Jesus did?

He not only convinced me but also kindled a fire in me to proclaim his love.

It was that night a friend in Christ told me about St Daniele Comboni.

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Daniele Comboni was an Italian. He was born to Luigi and Domenica, in 1831. He was the only surviving child of his parents, who had seven other children all of whom died young. His parents were poor gardeners. 

Daniele had to go away to Verona for his studies. It was during his years in Verona that he discerned his call to priesthood. Deeply moved by missionaries, he decided to be a missionary in Africa. In 1854, Daniele was ordained a priest, and a few years later, he left for Africa. He went away, blessed by his mother’s good words and accompanied by a few fellow missionaries.

It took around four months for them to reach Khartoum, the capital of Sudan, where things weren’t welcoming. It wasn’t what Daniel had imagined – unbearable climate, poverty, sickness, and the death of his fellow missionaries. It was more than enough for anyone to turn back. But to my surprise, Daniele wasn’t shaken. He became determined. He said, ‘O Nigrizia o morte!’ Yeah, ‘Africa or death’. Nothing could shatter his resolve. He wrote to his parents, ‘We will have to labour hard, to sweat, to die: but the thought that one sweats and dies for love of Jesus Christ and the salvation of the most abandoned souls in the world, is far too sweet for us to desist from this great enterprise.’ Adverse trials helped him confirm his choice. He was for Christ. He was for Africa.

Save Africa through Africa! That was his mission. He travelled to Italy and the other European countries to gather handouts for Africa. Spiritual and material aid was necessary. He stretched out his hands to quench the thirst of the Africans. He was kept alive for them. 

Daniele launched a missionary magazine, the first of its kind in Italy as a missionary weapon. That might have secured him people’s assistance as well as the opportunity to educate the world about missions. He could show them that the gospel was yet to reach every nook and corner of the world. 

He founded two missionary establishments for men and women, the Comboni Missionaries and the Comboni Missionary Sisters, respectively. He took part in the first Vatican Council and got seventy bishops to sign a petition for the evangelisation of Central Africa. He was made the Vicar Apostolic of Central Africa and later the bishop. He had a tough time when drought and starvation hit Africa in 1877-1878. The population was halved and the mission suffered greatly. But he did not rest. He continued to work for Africa, proclaiming the Good News.

His life was quite short. The overwhelming struggles, burdens and labours made him sick. Daniele Comboni died in Khartoum, among his flock, just fifty years old. It was October, 1881.

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Who was Comboni? Who did he live for? Whom did he die for? How can one become that selfless?

I had many questions. It was difficult for me to find parallels with my own reality. This saint, who was unknown to me until recently has struck my life when I sat before Him at adoration the next day. A revelation hit me when I glanced at the Host. When love compels, you can’t stop it. You can’t help yourself from proclaiming Him. You can’t hold your tongue. You go on, just like your Master.

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I messaged my spiritual father, ‘When are you going again?’

Waiting for the blue ticks and the reply!