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3 July 1843 – Father Jérôme Grange to Fr Jean-Claude Colin, Tonga

Summary

His thoughts about the mission.

Lack of good food a major problem – they have enough to keep alive, but not enough to allow them to do the work needed to develop the mission. Heavy soutanes unsuitable for tropical heat. The Bishop had given them nothing, and didn’t want them to buy anything because they had to match the Protestants, but Grange believed they were doing this by their medical help given gratis, something the Protestant missionaries demanded payment for.

Difficulty of communication with NZ meant that a local Vicar-Apostolic needed, particularly now that the Bishop had sold his schooner. Suggests an arrangement with a ship-owner in France be made to service the missions – a fee of 30,000 francs likely, but hardly greater than what transport alone was already costing the Society of Mary. Lists the material needs of a three-man station for a year. Brothers really needed too – in early stages of mission they are more valuable than priests.

Goes on to assess the possibilities of the islands – better than in NZ: populations more concentrated than scattered Maori in NZ. Given the fickleness of claims to belief, it’s dangerous to claim figures of converts. Believes that a better way of “matching” the Protestants would be by teaching farming skills etc to the Tongans, which the Protestants have not so far done. Bibles also needed – a press needed and someone to work it.

As a P.S. he lists a variety of personal needs – for himself and his mission work.

Based on the document sent, APM OC 208 (Tonga) Grange.

Two sheets of "Bath" paper, forming eight pages, three of which are written, the fourth containing only the address and Poupinel’s annotation, followed by four written pages. In the letter register, ED 1, it was numbered 133. Translated by Merv Duffy, February 2025

Text of the Letter

[p. 4]

[Address]

France / To Monsieur / Monsieur Colin (him alone) / Montée Saint-Barthélemy No. 4 / Lyon

[In Poupinel’s handwriting]

Tonga, July 3, 1843 Father Grange

[p. 1]

Jesus, Mary, Joseph

Tonga Tabou, July 3, 1843

My Most Reverend Father,

[1]

All the letters I address to private individuals are to be understood as addressed to you, since I am convinced that you read them all. I proceed in this way to fulfill at once the duty of gratitude and that of a faithful and obedient son. If you think this is wrong, I ask you to tell me, and I will act differently. However, in all cases, I will always have a separate letter for you, to inform you of matters that you should particularly know and sometimes that you alone should know.

In this letter, you will allow me to express clearly and frankly my perspective on what is beneficial for the mission, always leaving it to your wisdom to judge according to insights different from my own.

[2]

I therefore think that the mission will never flourish, or at least not as well as it could here and in similar stations, because we lack essential resources—though I believe we can obtain them. We would need to work day and night, but we can accomplish very little because physical hardships overwhelm us. The food we have is enough to keep us from dying of hunger, but not enough to provide the strength we need, and even then, we are bound to die slowly. You can judge for yourself from the food available to us: it consists of eating a root that is less nourishing than the potato, and even that is not always available, since the natives themselves often lack it.

I am also surprised that our predecessors did not mention the necessity of having light clothing. We have only thick woolen cassocks here, which would already be burdensome in France at 20 degrees of heat; here, we endure 30 degrees for three to four months, and for the rest of the year, the temperature remains between 18 and 20 degrees.

[3]

His Lordship has given us nothing and does not even want us to purchase anything because, as he says, we must counterbalance the heretics. But I think we could counterbalance them quite effectively by freely providing remedies to the natives whenever they need them and administering them without charge, always ready to serve them without demanding anything in return. The Protestants, on the other hand, charge them dearly for all these things.

I also believe that we could counterbalance them through our daily conduct. And if, despite all this, they still prefer to go to the heretics—who beat them with rods and consume their meager produce—then one could say that they are utterly foolish and unworthy of grace.

In truth, given the proud spirit of this people, I believe we would appear greater in their eyes if we could live without relying on what they bring us. Otherwise, if we continue using only the means employed until now, the mission may soon lack personnel. The dear brother is at his limits, and the two fathers are very weak. In all honesty, with the current conditions, I do not believe I would have survived two months in France.

Let me now tell you about the only means I believe can remedy this situation.

[4]

I have already spoken to you about the necessity of having a bishop for these islands. I am now more convinced of this than ever, given the difficulty of communicating with New Zealand. His Lordship had a ship but took four years to visit our islands, and now that he no longer has one, when will we be visited? Yet, the frequent presence of a bishop is essential here.

I would add a second solution, which I already mentioned in my last letter. Here it is:

[5]

The Society could arrange with a shipowner who would take responsibility for visiting all the stations of our mission each year and bringing all the necessary personnel and supplies. You will find shipowners in France who would do this for the sum of thirty thousand francs, an amount that barely exceeds what the Society currently spends on transportation alone. And that is just for a single destination, from which additional large sums and long delays are then required to reach the various mission stations.

If we could come to an agreement with the Picpus Society, which operates in nearly the same regions, our Society would certainly benefit in every way. Through this means, we could also supply food provisions to the Bay of Islands, which currently spends enormous sums on this. Additionally, if this ship were to visit us once a year, it would establish a more regular and closer communication between the father and his children—something which, I am sure, you would consider of great value.

Now, here is what I believe is necessary for a station of three or four persons:

1. One barrel of biscuits weighing 200 to 300 pounds.

2. One barrel of flour of the same weight.

3. One barrel of oil for soup and food preparation.

4. One barrel of wine (take note that a barrel of wine bought in France would cost less than 25 bottles purchased in New Zealand at 4 to 5 francs per bottle).

5. One barrel of rice and barley, and if possible, some sugar, chocolate, and various medical supplies.

All of these items, if purchased in France, would not exceed the sum of 600 francs. This is a small expense for four missionaries.

As much as possible, each station should have as many brothers as priests; I consider this point to be of the utmost importance. A brother, especially in the early stages of a mission in the islands, is more useful than a priest. In fact, if Wallis has been converted, it is more due to Brother Joseph than to Father Bataillon.

[6]

The island of Tonga Tabou, along with Eua^[1] (which is only seven leagues away), has a population of about 18,000 souls. I am convinced that in this mission, four priests and four brothers can accomplish more than 20 priests and 20 brothers working among the 50,000 inhabitants of New Zealand. This is because, here, we can gather the people, whereas in New Zealand, they are widely scattered.

Moreover, the constant influx of people from all over the world into New Zealand will always be a significant obstacle to the mission there. Also, my most reverend father, consider that we are in a mother island where there are natives from all the neighboring archipelagos, particularly from Fiji, which is waiting for us with its 1,500,000 inhabitants. There are 200 Fijians in Tonga, and some of them have already turned to our side.

Oh, my most reverend father, let your burning charity, without neglecting other lands, turn towards our islands. I believe that in pleading the cause of our mission, I am also pleading the cause of humanity and of religion.

[7]

Let me tell you everything, my Reverend Father: the people we have come to evangelize are like children—they change easily but just as easily forget their promises. They are a people who are greedy and proud, who will turn one way or another for a piece of clothing, a bit of tobacco, or a word that flatters their self-esteem. So, when you hear that we have gained such and such a number of followers, I believe we should not be too quick to take it as certain or to rejoice excessively.

If we wanted to use the same arithmetic that some have used, we could perhaps already count 1,000 people, but I believe there is a difference between a native who claims to belong to our religion because he has received a gift or some medicine, and one who truly renounces his bad habits and begins to practice the duties of the faith. However, I fear that later, I may have to announce some setbacks to you—setbacks that others will also be obliged to report, I believe.

But let us not be surprised, my most Reverend Father. To take people as we find them—immersed in every vice and every kind of superstition—and to make them true Christians is not the work of a single day. It requires patience, the grace of Jesus Christ, and perseverance on the part of the missionaries.

Our forefathers in France did not convert so easily, and history teaches us that it was only when the land had been watered with the sweat and even the blood of its first apostles that our France truly became Christian. Before we can have good Christians, we must first make them into good men.

Would you think, after all, that people given over to shameful idleness and all the crimes that come with it could become good Christians? Do you believe that men who are starving three-quarters of the time—often due to their own negligence—can be good Christians? I have always noticed that those who live in extreme poverty tend to believe that everything is permitted to them.

Do you think that men who go about nearly naked, living together in the same hut day and night without distinction of sex or age, can have the morals that religion requires? You do not think so.

I therefore believe it would be good, even necessary in a way, to teach them some agriculture, to teach them how to feed themselves, to clothe themselves, and to house themselves decently—and I believe this would be an easy task. These people are more intelligent and polite than one might think in Europe.

But for this, we would need resources that we do not have—seeds, farming tools, and skilled brothers. This, I believe, would also be the most effective way to counterbalance the Protestants, who for twenty years have done nothing for them in this regard. That is why they have only nominal followers, who are abandoning them daily.

With these resources and some initial support, we would soon transform these islands. They are not, as you may have been told, particularly predisposed to conversion, but neither do they offer strong resistance to receiving the truth—and that is all we need.

But the most urgent need right now is for a bishop for these archipelagos, and that he bring with him a printing press, or at least a lithographic press with a skilled worker. This point is of the utmost importance for countering the Protestants, who, with their numerous printing presses, flood these islands with Bibles, which they sell at exorbitant prices.

Furthermore, I repeat, this is urgent because the efforts they are making since our arrival are incredible. Their leader, aboard a fine ship, is traveling through all these islands, and as I write to you, three more have already received emissaries of heresy.

Yet, despite all this, it must be said to the glory of the truth: these people receive the Protestants reluctantly, whereas they welcome us gladly. Their influence is waning day by day in the eyes of the natives, and I have no doubt that with the means I am suggesting—along with a few additional remedies that I will outline in a separate list—the Protestants, no longer able to sell their medicines or their books, will soon abandon the field to us.

They care only for bodies; when they can no longer control them, they will abandon them to us—and we will have both their bodies and their souls. Our mission will then be fulfilled.

[8]

As for us, stripped of everything in these distant lands, among people who are still incapable of understanding the sacrifices that religion makes for them, all we can do while awaiting help is to endure our hardships with patience and offer them to God for the salvation of our people, who are also your people.

We are like lost sentinels; others will come to replace us, and they will be more fortunate than we (secundum hominem dico).^[2]

Do not think, however, my most Reverend Father, that I am complaining. No, I do not complain. Misery rises above our heads, but we know that we are disciples of the One who brings joy even in the midst of the greatest tribulations.

Be assured that your dear children will live and die, with the help of grace, in the joy of the Lord.

Do not forget to pray for us.

Your most respectful son,

Grange, Apostolic Missionary, Priest of the Society of Mary

[9]

Here, my Reverend Father, are the things I am in great need of personally. I am not referring to items that are common to all the others. Please believe that all of these items are of great importance.

[10]

1. A pair of silver-framed glasses, size No. 15.

2. A calendar showing solar and lunar eclipses with all their details.

3. A Greek New Testament along with a grammar and dictionary—newest edition.

4.Half a bushel of wheat called marsais or tramois, the same of barley. Well-packed for sea transport. A collection of various vegetable and flower seeds.

5. A terrestrial and celestial globe.

6. Incense.

7. Summer cassocks, shorter than the ones made for me before my departure.

8. A magnifying glass for starting a fire with the sun.

9. Tobacco with a snuffbox—I use about six pounds per year.

10. Some soft writing paper.

11. Galoshes or wooden clogs.

12. A few rolls of printed paper with religious subjects, along with fabric for applying them.

13. A large supply of medicines, but especially laudanum, opium, Eau de Cologne, blue vitriol, calomel, and Elixir of the Grande Chartreuse.

14. Annals from 1842 onwards.

There are many other things I would like to ask for, but I lack the time. Please, if you find it appropriate, have these items sent to me directly, as well as any small gifts given to me by various people. When everything is sent to the Bay of Islands, very little actually reaches its intended recipient.

As you know, I have only received half of the chapel that was given to me. I could ask you for candlesticks, a holy water font, etc. Father Chevron has repeatedly asked for an umbrella from the Bay of Islands, but always in vain.

You understand why I wish for these donated items to reach me directly—it is so that I may acknowledge them in my letters to those who have given them, which will certainly help to maintain their generosity. Moreover, it is a great consolation for me.

Here, we have very few church ornaments, though we are in great need of them to make an impression on the natives. I leave all of this to your discretion.

Father Chevron has already informed you of many things concerning our present situation. I will conclude by humbly throwing myself at your feet to ask for your paternal blessing.

[11]

I ask you to send the letters exactly to the addresses as they are folded. Each one has a specific purpose.

I am suffering much less now and have begun to speak the language.

Your most respectful and obedient child,

Grange, Apostolic Missionary, Priest of the Society of Mary

To Monsieur Colin, Superior General—him alone

[On a piece of paper attached to page 8]

[12]

In speaking of medicines, I forgot to ask you for a nurse, along with a small scale. Here, if one is not at least somewhat of a doctor, the mission struggles greatly.

Notes

1. ↑ The island of ‘Eua is located about thirty kilometers southeast of Tongatapu.
2. ↑ Romans 3:6 (Vulgate); Ecumenical Translation of the Bible: Romans 3:5: "I speak according to human logic."