Diet of Worms, Father Damien, David Livingstone

Christianity is a faith with a long and detailed history, with numerous events of lasting significance occurring throughout the ages.

Each week brings the anniversaries of great milestones, horrid tragedies, amazing triumphs, telling tribulations, inspirational progress, and everything in between.

Here are just a few things that happened this week, April 15-21, in Church history. They include the interring of a famous missionary at Westminster Abbey, the death of a notable priest, and the arrival of Martin Luther at the Diet of Worms.

Father Damien Dies — April 15, 1889

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This week marks the anniversary of the death of Father Damien, a Catholic priest who famously lived and ministered among a leper colony in Hawaii.

Born in Belgium as Joseph de Veuster in Tremelo, Father Damien traveled in 1873 to the leper colony in Molokai and proceeded to do various things for the community, from overseeing the construction of chapels and bandaging wounds.

In late 1884, Father Damien was found to have leprosy himself and five years later he passed away…