St. Luigi Versiglia
Feast day: Feb. 25
St. Luigi Versiglia was a Salesian priest and bishop born in Italy in 1873 and martyred in China in 1930. As a young boy, he wanted to be a veterinarian; although he was an altar server, he had no interest in becoming a priest. His heart changed during his years as a student at the Salesian school in Valdocco, Turin, where he encountered St. John Bosco. Luigi decided to become a Salesian and hoped to be a foreign missionary. He obtained a degree in philosophy, was ordained a priest in 1895, and was appointed director of novices at just 23 years of age, a job he held for 10 years. He was known for his firmness, but also his patience and kindness.
In 1906, Father Luigi finally got the opportunity to become a foreign missionary when the rector major of the Salesians appointed him head of an expedition to Macao, a Portuguese colony on the southern coast of China. Arriving with six other Salesians, Father Luigi established and managed an orphanage, and with his compassion became known as the “father of the orphans.” Eventually, he turned the orphanage into a professional arts and crafts school to train orphans for employment.
In 1918, the Salesians received the mission of Shiuchow, China; a few years afterward, it was elevated to a Vicariate Apostolic and Luigi Versiglia was ordained its bishop. He was a true pastor who tirelessly visited the Catholics under his care, sleeping on the decks of boats and in dilapidated hotels in order to administer the sacraments, visit the poor and comfort the sick. He gave the vicariate a solid structure, with houses of formation for catechists and residences and hospitals for the elderly and those in need. He built churches, schools, dispensaries and an orphanage.
Bishop Luigi Versiglia believed that “the missionary who prays a lot achieves a lot.” Throughout his years of work in China, he endured famine, epidemics, apostasy and slander with intense and constant prayer. He continuously encouraged his priests to be in dialogue with the Lord and the Virgin Mary. But he also did not shy away from manual work, taking on humble jobs such as printer, sacristan, gardener, painter and even barber.
In 1918, when a group of Salesian missionaries set out for China, the order’s rector major, Father Paul Albera, gave them the chalice he had used for the golden jubilee of his ordination. Receiving it, Bishop Versiglia recalled that St. John Bosco had had a dream that when the Salesians came to China, “a chalice would be filled with blood.” He said, “You are bringing me the chalice our father saw. It is up to me to fill it with blood to fulfill the vision.”
These decades were a time of extreme political instability in China. In 1911, the thousand-year Chinese monarchy had been overthrown and a republic established. However, fighting between various warlords continued for years, and piracy and looting flourished. The republican government sought help from Russia, which sent Bolshevik propaganda as well as weapons. Western missionaries such as the Salesians came to be seen by some as enemies who had to be driven out.
On Feb. 25, 1930, Bishop Luigi Versiglia was en route to the Linchow mission with another Salesian priest, Father Callistus Caravario, and several young boys and girls when Bolshevik pirates stopped the bishop’s boat, intending to take the girls. Bishop Versiglia and Father Caravario tried to stop them, but they were taken ashore by force and ultimately shot. The bishop begged the pirates to spare the life of the younger priest, but they refused. Before they were killed, the two priests heard each other’s confessions. After their execution, one of the soldier-pirates is said to have exclaimed that he had seen many die but none as unafraid and happy as these two priests. Both men gave their lives to defend their flock as good shepherds. They were canonized Oct. 1, 2000, by Pope St. John Paul II, with 118 other martyrs of China
Reflection
Dear Lord, thank you for the many priests and bishops you have given us to guard our souls. We pray for their protection as we express our love for them.
Prayer
Almighty ever-living God,
by whose gift blessed Luigi fought
for righteousness’ sake even until death,
grant, we pray, through his intercession,
that we may bear every adversity for the sake of your love
and hasten with all our strength towards you who alone are life.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
God, for ever and ever.
