Misioneros Columbanos

The Columban Fathers began with the vision and zeal of Fr. Edward Galvin. Fr. Galvin entered the Catholic priesthood in his native Ireland, and soon thereafter worked as an assistant in the Holy Rosary parish of Brooklyn, New York. It was here that he dreamed of traveling to China as a missionary. Through circumstances guided by providence, Fr. Galvin's dream was realized when he arrived in Hangchow, China, in 1912 to begin the defining work of his life. Fr. Galvin was shocked at China's poverty and wretchedness, but he was even more appalled by the spiritual poverty of its millions of people. Without missionaries to teach them, the Chinese knew nothing of Jesus Christ and His message of salvation.

But one man among the masses could do little to spread God's word. He wrote his friends, seeking their help. In 1916, two diocesan priests joined him. The new arrivals urged him to travel back to the West to organize a mission society. When he hesitated to follow their advice, a novena of Masses was suggested.

"The novena completed," he later wrote, "we knelt down in my room... I cut the leaves of our Bible and on the top of right-hand page read the following verse: 'I command you: be firm and steadfast! Do not fear nor be dismayed, for the Lord, your God, is with you wherever you go.'" (Joshua 1:9).

Thus inspired, Fr. Galvin returned to the United States in June 1916 to share his plans with priests and bishops. Encouraged by their support, he sailed to Ireland and attracted his first recruits from Maynooth, the seminary where he studied.

One of these priests was Fr. John Blowick, who helped established the mission to China. By October 1916, eight priests had joined the society, and with the blessing of Pope Benedict XV, the following year was spent planning and laying the foundation for the mission. On June 29, 1918, the society was formally approved and placed under the patronage of St. Columban.

This sixth century mission monk led the re-evangelization of much of Europe, an immense task comparable to the work facing the fledgling society. The society became known as the St. Columban's Foreign Mission Society.

Soon after, the first Columban seminary was opened in Ireland, and a few months later, the U.S. headquarters for the society were established south of Omaha, Nebraska. By 1920, the society already had 40 priests and 60 seminarians. That year, Fr. Galvin led the first band of Columbans to China and Fr. Blowick devoted his energies to sustaining this new organization.