Statue of St Francis Xavier

Bukit St Paul, Bandar Hilir, Malacca 75000

The only European left standing on St Paul`s Hill today is a Basque Spaniard and a 1529 Masters degree graduate from the renowned University of Paris. He could have lived it up--his was a family of noblemen and estate holders--but he chose priesthood and spent his adult life converting and trying to convert mankind of Tamil, Malay and Japanese tongues to Roman Catholicism.

His missionary tenure in Malacca was fleeting, just three years, but then his life was short. St Francis passed away in 1552 in Sancian, a desolate island off the shores of China, while awaiting a boat to go to the mainland to preach.

 

Updated On: 05.06.09