St. Jozef Damien De Veuster was born in Tremelo, Belgium on January 3, 1840. In 1864, Jozef sailed to Hawaii and began working with lepers who had been exiled to the island of Molokai. Jozef would go on to spend 16 years working with lepers and eventually contracted the disease himself, dying in 1889. He was canonized on October 11, 2009, and is the patron saint of lepers. His feast day is celebrated on May 10.
Questions for Reflection:
- What people do you feel are rejected from society?
- How can you better reach out to and help those people?
