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31 December 1843 - Father Auguste-Joseph Chouvet to Father Denis Maîtrepierre, Opotiki

From the fair copy, APM Z 208.

Sheet, "Bath" paper, measuring 222 x 170 mm when folded, forming four written pages; the address and Poupinel's annotation appear on the fourth page.

[p. 4]

[Address:] To the very reverend Father Maîtrepierre, Provincial of the Society of Mary, at Lyon, France, Europe.

[In Poupinel's hand:] New Zealand - Opotiki, 31 December 1843.

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[p. 1]

New Zealand. Opotiki, 31 December 1843

To the Very Reverend Father Maîtrepierre, Provincial

Ad majorem Dei gloriam

Beataeque Virginis Mariae sine labe conceptae.

My very reverend Father,

[1]

Blessed be Mary for the graces which her mediation with Jesus has obtained for me for the flock entrusted to me. This Queen of Heaven, our Mother, has poured out her favors with full hands upon the first fruits of my apostolic ministry. I arrived on 13 August of this year now ending at the station of Opotiki, having until then heard only distressing news for the faith. Heresy had reigned for many years in this corner of New Zealand and seemed there to defy the pure and holy doctrine to prevail over it. Though deeply afflicted over the fate of the poor natives, nourished on poisoned teaching, I did not allow my courage to fail, and I went willingly to the post to which obedience called me. I felt a lively confidence in Mary, often saying to myself: if she takes in hand the cause of these souls redeemed by the blood of her Son, who will raise his head against her and not be humbled? And if I do not tire of praying to her for peoples who have been placed in so special a way under her protection, how could she fail to hear me? ... It was with these sentiments that I began my labors. I also had, as it were, a presentiment that I would gather the fruit of the prayers and sweat of my predecessors in this mission. Nevertheless, I had submitted in advance to the divine will, if my ministry was to be without fruit for souls. Man plants and waters; but God alone gives the increase, and man must bless Him when he does not even reap what he has sown, as when he has an abundant harvest.

[2]

Glory and love to Mary. She has already begun well to show here that it is rightly that the Church tells her to rejoice in her triumph over heresies. From the very eve of my arrival, a new portion of the natives had joined the little flock that persevered in Catholic prayer. Since then, every day I have seen the number of those who have embraced the faith of the Church increase. In so short a time I have had four occasions to write to Bishop Pompallier, and the news was always more and more consoling for his apostolate.

[3]

At the sight of this progress, the enemy has not fallen asleep. The natives of the party of error have trembled; they have conferred together, questioned their false prophets, and have vomited more than ever horrors and impieties against the spouse of Jesus Christ, who has never been and can only be one, holy, catholic, and apostolic. All their learning consists of calumnies and sayings they have learned from their teacher. Two of the most learned, although I am sure they are ignorant of what is necessary as a means for salvation, came to find me with the intention of converting me. They especially urged me to abandon prayer to images and the holy sacrifice of the Mass. It would be strange if I had come so far to seek light from two men who perhaps do not know how to distinguish their right hand from their left. [p. 2] They are truly furious to see the natives of their tribe and family turning toward the Catholic Church. One would take them for demoniacs, so wild are their eyes and so troubled their faces when they speak against the Church. It is plain to see that children inherit the character of their fathers. But it is entirely in vain that they plot and set all the springs of envy in motion. In vain they gnash their teeth and are carried away with rage. The Epikopo - this is what those who make the bishop's prayer are called here - remain firm and unshakable against all the assaults of the Mitinere, a name meaning missionary, which the disciples of the ministers of error have taken. It was at the very time when invectives against the Epikopo were most widespread that their number increased most. Quare fremuerunt gentes, et populi meditati sunt inania.

[4]

With vigilance and prayer, I have succeeded in baptizing about 140 children in four months, several of whom are already in heaven. I baptized both those who belonged to hurai or rewera parents - Jews or devils, names given to natives who have remained neutral, that is, who practice neither Catholic prayer nor Protestant prayer - and those who belonged to Epikopo parents. During the first two and three months of my residence at this station, I had much difficulty baptizing these little creatures, created for heaven and redeemed by Jesus Christ. I baptized two, three, four per week by dint of searching and by the indirect approaches I took in order to win the parents' consent. Several even of those who had begun attending my exercises either did not grant me permission to baptize their children, or granted it only after a long delay. They often told me that baptism made them die. A child of a great chief had died after being baptized. For that reason, when I proposed to his father that he let me baptize another child he had, he raised against me the same objection that Clovis raised on the same subject against Saint Clotilde. I answered him that I myself was baptized one day after my birth, and that nevertheless I had not died. I added that baptism could not harm the bodies of children, and that it infallibly did great good to the soul, since it delivers it from the power of the demon and raises it to the dignity of a child of God. Because of this fear, and for other motives of superstition, I learned from time to time that one of these noble creatures had died without having been washed in those waters of regeneration. How I groaned then! How I suffered! I can tell you, my very reverend Father, that I complained in some way to Mary. I often offered the holy sacrifice in order to obtain from the Father of mercies baptism for these children. At last, God, no longer fixing His gaze on my unworthiness in order to dispense to them through my hands the greatest of graces, but remembering only His infinite mercy, and Mary also having interceded for them with her Son, they were baptized in crowds. In a single day I baptized as many as 17. Never had I experienced such sweet consolation. I shall add here that the small gifts from the faithful of the dear parish I left in order to come to so distant a country were of great use to me for the baptism of these children. There are a good number whom I would not have baptized if I had not displayed before the mothers' eyes trifles that these faithful, in a true spirit of piety, had given me for the savages. I showed them in order to arouse the mothers' desire and induce them to allow their children to be baptized, making them understand that I would give them what they wanted. These were needles, cases, rings of no value, or chrysocale earrings, etc., etc., objects that pleased them singularly. By this means I soon gained their consent.

[5]

I am now awaiting Monsignor's visit. I am preparing a good number of adults to receive confirmation together with baptism on that occasion; and several will even receive the holy Eucharist. This visit will surely produce great good for the flock entrusted to me. It is only unfortunate that His Lordship is making himself waited for too long. But his great labors are the cause of this, and he himself expressed to me in his last letter his keen regret at not being able to come as soon as he wishes, and that it would only be in about two months.

[6]

On Christmas Day, in order to speak better to the heart of this people while preaching on the mystery of a God become a child and born of a virgin, I placed a beautiful statue before the eyes of my poor listeners. It was Mary holding the child Jesus in her arms. This sight, joined to the account of the Savior's nativity, made a happy impression on the minds of the sheep. They did not tire of contemplating the image of her to whom our mission is entrusted, and they admitted to me that they had never seen anything so magnificent. I then seized this occasion to speak to them a little of the beauty and greatness of her who has above her only her Creator. The divine Child was, together with the Mother, the object of admiration. "It is Jesus Christ, it is Jesus Christ, ko Hehu Kerito, ko Hehu Kerito," they kept crying out. But what delighted me myself was the respect with which they looked at the statue and spoke of it. This spectacle served to stir up faith in souls, and this respect was, in my opinion, a happy omen for the future of this people. They understand perfectly the meaning of prayer and the veneration of the various images, and despise the endless clamor of the missionaries who attack them on this point. These missionaries also wanted to celebrate Christmas Day, but for them it was only a humiliating feast. They were very few in their assembly. All that was solemn for them was the sound of their bell, which is quite fine, and above all finer than mine, which is only the iron of a spade on which my natives strike with a stone to announce the religious exercises. This is indeed humiliating for us. Nevertheless, the Epikopo already outnumber the missionaries. The teacher of the latter is extremely rich. He has a thousand human resources for mastering a people eager for goods that come from Europe. Moreover, he has lived at Opotiki for many years already, and yet he does not triumph. Why? Because he does not have the grace of God for him and the protection of Mary. Hi in curribus et hi in equis; nos autem in nomine Domini. Psalm 19.

[7]

My letter is already long enough, my very reverend Father, for me to dispense with entering into further details. I want only to tell you still that God has greatly favored me by giving me a catechist endowed with excellent qualities, which grace has greatly raised in him. He has a very enlightened piety; he is of exemplary moderation. Moreover, it is a marvel to hear him speak on religion and refute the objections of adversaries. He handles speech so well that those who hear him have admitted to me that he is beyond comparison the most capable among them. He does not speak much, or, better said, he expresses much in few words. What subtlety of mind, what soundness of judgment! Whatever argument I propose to him against the adversaries, he need only hear it once for him to repeat it perfectly to me. [p. 4] I cannot understand, my very reverend Father, such capacity in a native baptized only two months ago. He assists me in my ministry as well as could be possible. Oh! how I long to have the sacrament of confirmation administered to him, to make him stronger and more perfect. There, my very reverend Father, are the marvels of grace that have already accompanied my first steps in the apostolic career. How good and merciful the Lord is to make use in this way of the vilest instrument for such great things! Pray for me, that I may know Him, that I may know myself a little, and that He may see in me a humble heart, a heart dead to itself and living no longer except in Jesus Christ and in Jesus Christ crucified.

I am, with profound veneration,

your very humble and very obedient son in Jesus Christ,

Chouvet, apostolic missionary