St Joseph Vaz was born in 1651 in Goa. Ordained a priest in 1676, he became a popular preacher and confessor. In 1687 he travelled to Ceylon (now Sri Lanka) which was occupied by the Dutch, who had imposed Calvinism as the official religion. St Joseph travelled throughout the country, bringing the Eucharist and the Sacraments to clandestine groups of Catholics. In 1692 he moved to Kandy. He was permitted to minister openly to Catholics in the area and was responsible for many conversions. He was beatified in 1795 and canonised in 2015.
Written by Paul Cavadino