St. John de Brito, S.J.

(1647-1693)

João de Britto was born to a noble Portuguese family.  His father dies while serving as Viceroy of Brazil; de Britto himself was playmate to the future King of Portugal, Pedro II.  He entered the Society in 1862, and, despite poor health, completed his early studies with a Public Defense of Philosophy, popular entertainment of the time.  Despite this demonstrated talent for academic excellence, his great devotion to St. Francis Xavier urged him to apply to serve in the Madura Mission of India.  His request was granted, despite the strong and sometimes underhanded opposition of his family, and he arrived in India in 1674.

            The Madura Mission followed the tradition and practices of St. Robert de Nobili (1577-1656), who strove to create an indigenized South Indian Church, culturally amenable to the native people and distinct from the practices of the European Catholicism.  In this spirit, de Britto strove to learn several languages, dressed as an Indian sannyasi, ate only one meal of rice and vegetables each day, and respected the caste divisions in Hindi society.  De Britto was immensely successful in his missionary activity, founding a number of Catholic communities.  Together with his catechists, he was extremely careful in the preparation of catechumens and the nurturing of neophytes, hoping that his work would soon bring about an Indian Church with Indian clergy.  All of this was accomplished despite strong and sometimes violent opposition from both the Brahmin elite and native rulers on one side and conservative Catholic elements both in the Society and elsewhere that clung to a European model of Church. 

            Around 1685, de Britto began service in the Kingdom of Marava, located in present-day Tamil Nadu, despite strong opposition by Raghunatha, the Setupati of Marava, a staunch though quite unpredictable protector of Hindu beliefs who also feared growing foreign influence in the south.  De Britto was captured, tortured, and condemned to be impaled but after an audience with the Setupati was set free to leave the Kingdom and not return under pain of death.  After a two-year return to Portugal on business of the Society, de Britto returned to Madura and, within a year to Marava.  He was again captured and suffered terrible tortures.  At his hearing before the Setupati, so many members of the court and common people voiced opposition to de Britto’s execution that the Setupati appeared to merely banish the missionary from the country.  Instead, Raghunatha sent orders with the guard escorting de Britto to execute him secretly near the border, away from the center of support.  De Britto was decapitated at Oriur on February 4, 1693.

            There is great affection for de Britto among the people of Tamil Nadu, where he is known as Arulananda, the name he took as a “Roman sannyasi.”  His place of martyrdom remains a popular place of pilgrimage for Christians, Hindus and Muslims.  Red sand from the spot of his beheading is though to possess miraculous powers.  He is esteemed in the Society of Jesus for his boldness of service and his efforts to build a fully indigenized Church in south India.