St. Peter Claver

Peter Claver is known as “the Apostle of the Negroes” who gave his life for the conversion of slaves brought to the New World.  Born near Barcelona, Spain, he was the son of a farmer. After studying at the University of Barcelona, he entered the Society of Jesus at Tarragona in 1602. Sent to study at Majorca, he came under the influence of St. Alphonsus Rodriguez, who convinced him to embark on missionary labors in the new World.  In 1610, he reached Cartagena, in modern Colombia, where he found vast numbers of West African slaves who had been brought to the Americas to work in the Spanish colonies. Their plight was so frightful and the conditions of their slavery so inhumane that Peter pledged himself to be “the slave of the negroes forever.” He spent his remaining years working on their behalf. He endured humiliations and resistance from local officials and members of the Spanish colonial society. He regularly rowed out to the crowded, disease-ridden slave ships to bring food and solace to the afflicted slaves. He also defended their rights as human beings. It is estimated that he baptized as many as three hundred thousand Africans. Beatified in 1850 by Blessed Pope Pius IX, he was canonized on February 15, 1888, by Pope Leo XIII; in 1896 he was named patron of Catholic missions among the blacks. His feast day is September 9.