Sarugani and its Holiness

SARUGANI

Sacred Heart Church, Sarugani 

Sarugani Parish is unique in the sense it has the privilege of enjoying the great works of two saintly missionaries. The first parish priest of Sarugani, from the year 1736 – 1774 is Fr.James De Rossi, from Italy we call "Chinna Savariar" one of the missionaries.The impact of the work of Fr. De’ Rossi was so powerful, the faith of the people in this area is still strong and the memory of the priest is still fresh.

Fr. James De Rossi

He was Born in the year 1701 at Nalavoor in Italy, right from the early age he developed interest in missionary work. His admiration for St. Xavier brought him to India and join the Madurai Mission. His missionary work in that part of the region was on a rough road and resisted by some misguided, powerful natives. The ruler of the region the Rajah of Ramnad was not very much enthused about a foreigner preaching a different faith and converting the natives to Christianity. At one stage his work came to a stand still on account of destruction of Church building and confiscation of church properties. Even the Christianconverts were threatened. All was not well  with Fr.  James and he was even deported to Pattukkottai, a big town  now in Thanjavur district, Tamil Nadu When the ruler's consort - queen came to know about all these,   sheregretted very much  and  invited Fr. James to her Ramanad palace and  not only to honor him but also give him freedom to spread his faith.

Marudu Pandyars were literally ruling the area  for the Queen Velu Nachiyar. They  hated the British and their dubious dealings and were the ones among the early freedom fighters who rebelled  against the British. Once  Fr. De Rossi tricked the British and saved the lives of the Mardu brothers. As a token of their gratitude to Fr. Rossi, the village of Sarugani was gifted to the church of Sarugani. In the year 1773, a beautiful church was built dedicated to Jesus and Mary. The Church was known as Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary was  blessed by the bishop of Cochin. Fr. De Rossi built  he Rosary church at Madurai and modified the Church at Oriyur where St. Britto was martyred. St. Sebastian at Kokkoorani owed a lot to Fr. Rossini.

Another surprising fact about him was he was quite comfortable with the local language - Tamil and wrote many works in scrolls. His seven bookswere about 365 miracles, life history of Saints  and recorded the history of many villages. His works in Tamil were were well respected and on par with another Italian priest settled near Thanjavur, Trichy cities. He worked with dedication like St. Xavier and did a lot of miracles and so fondly called 'Chinna savariar, [Little Xavier]. After his death here he was  was laid to rest at Sarugani with much  reverence. He could have led a happy, easy going life in 'Naples.' Even now, two and half centuries  after his death, he is a source of inspiration to numerous people there.

Till his last breath, he cared about the natives around him and being a foreigner he never felt lonely because he became a part of them, lived for them and at last died for them all in the name of Christ, embodiment of love, affection and care. 

Fr. Maria Louis Leveil

Fr.Louis Mary Leveil was born on Palm Sunday in the year 1884 in France as the 10th child in his family. The child was so frail and was given holy baptism on the same day. He joined the jesuit novitiate and left for India in 1908 leaving the country, and his relatives never to see them again. The parting was really hard for all mainly for his relatives and siblings. But he decides to go to a distant land, a country completely different in food, culture, language and climate, never to return. He spent 52 years in the land of 'Maravas' in the madurai mission amidst the unknown and poverty stricken folk.

It was a pleasant surprise that he was able to build 30 chapels and churches and many schools with the help of people and the donors.     To summarize his long vocation in a nutshell as he puts it "IT IS LIKE A FISH IN THE WATER" because he knows in whom he has faith".Alleviating the poverty   of the people dominated his activities. Wherever he went people were attracted to him and listened to whatever he said to them. His love for the people knows no caste or creed. People had the faith that the palm leave with the prayer written on it by Fr.Leveil is more powerful than the pesticides. 

After his tireless and strenuous missionary work at Andavoorani and Ramnad, towards the twilight of his life, he came to Sarugani, advised by his superiors to take rest. But he had a new definition for that word. People thronged sarugani to meet him, get his blessings, and go back happily removed of their sickness, sins and burden. "Come to me those who are burdened". People who came were relieved of their burden or their back was strengthened. People came to him from all walks of life believing that his prayers and blessings brought down the grace of God.

Sarugani was a centre for the priests of the diocese for their monthly retreat and many religious functions. The epic center for their religious renovation was no wonder Fr.Leveil.  Priests renewed their prayer- life through those retreats .On 13th January 1970 he had the great joy of celebrating the golden jubilee of his priestly ordination at Sarugani.  Added to his happiness his niece had come from France to wish him. She brought with her the love of her family, her community and the country.Father had been in India for 62 years and had never seen any of his kith and kin nor visited France - not even once 

As the days came close Fr.Leveil chose his own place for the burial [the present cemetery] and conveyed the message that life is not an end but only a passage. Till the end of his days he was cherished as a holy priest and a most beloved father. It was on 21st March 1973 the soul of the faithful servant went to his creator and Lord. The burial was glorious and attended by thousands of people who came from far and wide. It was Fr.Leveil who started the practice of pilgrimage to Oriyur, the place where St.Britto was martyred and it is still practiced by both the diocese of Sivagangai and Madurai under the leadership of the bishops on 4th February every year.The people still consider it a miracle that a palm leaf containing the prayer of Fr.Leveil is enough to remove the insects of destruction from the field .Even now the miracle continues. People gather the sand from his cemetery and take home as a blessing with the belief that no evil can harm them.

 No wonder Sarugani the place where Fr.Leveil is buried also is visited by thousands of pilgrims especially on 21st March every year, the day Fr.Leveil left this world to his creator. All the people who come on the feast day are fed by the parish with the help of the donors who  contribute generously. No wonder  the number of beneficiaries crosses a few thousands.