Missionary Society of St. Columban
Encyclopedia
The Missionary Society of St. Columban (Latin: Societas S. Columbani pro Missionibus ad Exteros) (SSCME), also known as "The Columbans", is a missionary
, Catholic religious order
, founded in Ireland
in 1916 and approved by the Vatican
in 1918. Initially it was known as the Maynooth Mission to China.
Members may be priests, nuns or lay missionary workers.
, Korea
, Burma, Japan
, Peru
, Fiji
, Chile
, Taiwan
, Pakistan
, Brazil
, Belize
and Jamaica
. The current international headquarters is in Hong Kong.
Missionary
A missionary is a member of a religious group sent into an area to do evangelism or ministries of service, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care and economic development. The word "mission" originates from 1598 when the Jesuits sent members abroad, derived from the Latin...
, Catholic religious order
Religious order
A religious order is a lineage of communities and organizations of people who live in some way set apart from society in accordance with their specific religious devotion, usually characterized by the principles of its founder's religious practice. The order is composed of initiates and, in some...
, founded in Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
in 1916 and approved by the Vatican
Holy See
The Holy See is the episcopal jurisdiction of the Catholic Church in Rome, in which its Bishop is commonly known as the Pope. It is the preeminent episcopal see of the Catholic Church, forming the central government of the Church. As such, diplomatically, and in other spheres the Holy See acts and...
in 1918. Initially it was known as the Maynooth Mission to China.
Members may be priests, nuns or lay missionary workers.
Extension of the mission
From 1929 onwards, the Society extended its mission to further countries; the PhilippinesPhilippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
, Korea
Korea
Korea ) is an East Asian geographic region that is currently divided into two separate sovereign states — North Korea and South Korea. Located on the Korean Peninsula, Korea is bordered by the People's Republic of China to the northwest, Russia to the northeast, and is separated from Japan to the...
, Burma, Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
, Peru
Peru
Peru , officially the Republic of Peru , is a country in western South America. It is bordered on the north by Ecuador and Colombia, on the east by Brazil, on the southeast by Bolivia, on the south by Chile, and on the west by the Pacific Ocean....
, Fiji
Fiji
Fiji , officially the Republic of Fiji , is an island nation in Melanesia in the South Pacific Ocean about northeast of New Zealand's North Island...
, Chile
Chile
Chile ,officially the Republic of Chile , is a country in South America occupying a long, narrow coastal strip between the Andes mountains to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. It borders Peru to the north, Bolivia to the northeast, Argentina to the east, and the Drake Passage in the far...
, Taiwan
Taiwan
Taiwan , also known, especially in the past, as Formosa , is the largest island of the same-named island group of East Asia in the western Pacific Ocean and located off the southeastern coast of mainland China. The island forms over 99% of the current territory of the Republic of China following...
, Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
, Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
, Belize
Belize
Belize is a constitutional monarchy and the northernmost country in Central America. Belize has a diverse society, comprising many cultures and languages. Even though Kriol and Spanish are spoken among the population, Belize is the only country in Central America where English is the official...
and Jamaica
Jamaica
Jamaica is an island nation of the Greater Antilles, in length, up to in width and 10,990 square kilometres in area. It is situated in the Caribbean Sea, about south of Cuba, and west of Hispaniola, the island harbouring the nation-states Haiti and the Dominican Republic...
. The current international headquarters is in Hong Kong.
Columban mission in Pakistan
Columbans first went to Pakistan in 1979 at the request of the Bishop of the Diocese of Lahore, Punjab Province. In 1983, the Columbans began to work in the Diocese of Hyderabad in Sindh province. There are presently thirteen ordained Columbans assigned to Pakistan, two Lay Missionaries and five Columban Sisters.Notable Columbans
- Bishop Edward J. GalvinEdward GalvinBishop Edward J. Galvin was founder of the Missionary Society of St. Columban and first Bishop of Hanyang, China.-Early life:...
(founder) - Father John Blowick (co-founder)
- Father Shay CullenShay CullenFather Shay Cullen is an Irish missionary priest and the founder of the PREDA Foundation. He is a member of the Missionary Society of St. Columban...
, campaigner for the elimination of child prostitution in the Philippines http://www.preda.org/frcullen.htm and defender of human rights https://www.columban.org/content/view/316/1/, co-founder of the PREDA FoundationPREDA FoundationPeople’s Recovery Empowerment Development Assistance or Preda is a charitable organization that was founded in Olongapo City, Philippines in 1974... - Father Francis DouglasFrancis Douglas (priest)Vernon Francis Douglas was a priest of the Missionary Society of St. Columban who was killed in the Philippines by Japanese soldiers in 1943. Douglas was from Wellington and trained for the Catholic priesthood at Holy Cross Seminary, Mosgiel. Within a few months of his ordination, at the end of...
(1910-1943), New Zealand missionary murdered by Japanese soldiers the PhilippinesPhilippinesThe Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
. - Father Brian Gore, Australian missionary to the Philippines who suffered false imprisonment
- Father Rufus HalleyRufus HalleyRev. Rufus Halley was a Roman Catholic missionary of the Society of St. Columban who spent more than 20 years promoting ecumenical dialogue between Christians and Muslims in Asia...
, missionary to the Philippines who was murdered in 2001 - Father Robert McCulloch, missionary to Pakistan for more than 27 years
- Father W. Aedan McGrath, missionary to the China who suffered false imprisonment in the early 1950s
- Father Nguyen Van Hung, anti-human trafficking activist in Taiwan
- Father Niall O'BrienNiall O'Brien (Columban missionary priest)Niall O'Brien was an Irish Columban missionary priest, notable for being falsely accused of and detained in the Philippines in the 1980s on charges of multiple murder...
, missionary to the Philippines who suffered false imprisonment - Father Sean Nolan, founder and former president of Saint Columban CollegeSaint Columban CollegeSaint Columban College is a leading Private Catholic educational institution run by the Roman Catholic Diocese of Pagadian, founded by the Missionary Society of St. Columban in consortium with the Sisters of St...
, Pagadian CityPagadian CityThe City of Pagadian is the provincial capital of Zamboanga del Sur in the island of Mindanao, Republic of the Philippines.-Overview:The city had its beginnings as a...
and co-founder of other Columban schools in the Philippines. - Father James Stuart saved the lives of many refugees and American airmen in Northern Burma during World War II. In appreciation of the valuable service he rendered British and American Intelligence, the "Fighting Father", as he was referred to afterwards, was awarded the O.B.E.Order of the British EmpireThe Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...
- Archbishop Patrick Cronin D.D., second archbishop of Cagayan de OroRoman Catholic Archdiocese of Cagayan de OroArchdiocese of Cagayan de Oro is an Archdiocese of the Roman Catholic Church in the Philippines. It is a metropolitan see in the island of Mindanao which comprises three civil Provinces of Misamis Oriental, Bukidnon and Camiguin. Today, it is headed by Archbishop Antonio J...
and founded the St. John Vianney Theological Seminary, located in that city. - Archbishop Harold Henry, D.D., first Roman Catholic Archbishop of Kwangju (1962-1971).
Sources
- St Columban's Missionary Magazine - The Far East
- Liturgical Calendar - Columban Calendar