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A Modern-Day Jesus.
John Bradburne's life was so extraordinary, the Catholic Church is considering him for sainthood.
Born in England in 1921, he served in the British Indian Army during World War ll. The brutality he witnessed seared his soul, setting him on a lifelong search for meaning.
For sixteen years, John wandered through England, France, Italy, Greece, Israel and the Middle East with only a Gladstone bag, the size of a gym bag.
On this journey, he lived as a hermit and a musician, studied scripture, and wrote prolifically, as his search for God guided everything he did.
His faith then took him to Africa, to embrace the mission that would define him: devoting himself to leprosy sufferers.
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In 1969, John arrived at the remote Mutemwa Leprosy Settlement in Rhodesia, where he was given responsibility for 80 Black men, women and children, forsaken by society.
His belongings were few: some clothes, a blanket, a Bible, and a rosary. He refused a salary.
"Lepers," there survived on scarce food, threadbare clothes, limited medical supplies and fragile huts.
While the fear of leprosy frightened others away, John lived with them, ate with them, bathed them, treated their ulcers, and cleaned and dressed their infected wounds. He called them, "friends," and prayed with those seeking prayers.
John also demanded the authorities treat leprosy sufferers with kindness and dignity. But the authorities tired of his pleas and expelled him from Mutemwa.
So, living in a tin shack next to the compound, without running water or sanitation, he remained dedicated to their care.
In July 1979, the Rhodesian Bush War, in its 15th and final year, was approaching Mutemwa. His friends and his leprosy patients urged John to flee, but he refused.
On September 2, 1979, guerrillas of the Zimbabwe African National Liberation Army, seized him, and three days later, executed him because of his skin color. He was 58 years old.
Although violence silenced his voice, John's faith rose like a flame no darkness could extinguish.
Among the many commemorations held each year, a memorial service at Mutemwa, draws as many as 25,000 people, to honor the man who devoted himself to the world's outcasts.
Editor's note:
To learn more wikipedia.org and johnbradburne.com/.
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