A Priest who ‘Finished the Race’

On the feast of All Souls, we remember our loved ones, friends and also priests and religious who have made a difference in our lives. COLEEN CONSTABLE recalls one such priest, Father Nazaire Vantomme, who died just a few weeks ago.

The recent death of Norbertine Father Nazaire Vantomme, a much-loved parish priest who served the People of God in the diocese of Oudtshoorn for 35 years, brought sadness to the close-knit parish communities of Worcester.

Less than a month after his death on October 3, the community will have cause to pray for him, and for his intercession, on the feasts of All Souls and All Saints.

Fr Vantomme was the parish priest of St Maria Goretti in Worcester and Immaculate Heart of Mary in Zwelethemba, and of St Joseph’s in De Doorns.

Clergy, religious and parishioners from Oudtshoorn diocese gathered at his Requiem Mass at St Maria Goretti to mourn the loss of a beloved priest and celebrate a life well lived to the glory of God.

Different emotions challenged the close-knit communities as they come to terms with his death: disbelief, pain, regret and joy. He was a priest and a friend: he was “family” to many of his parishioners.

The priest’s death caused some to say: “It is unbelievable, it is so strange.” For others tears flowed from the moment they first heard about his passing.

Some responded to offer immediate prayers for the repose of his soul. Others felt the sharp pain that accompanies the loss of a family member.

Some felt regret: “I thought of him for the past two weeks and wanted to call, but never got to do it.”

And others recognised the joy that his death brought: Fr Vantomme is with Jesus, the High Priest whom he served wholeheartedly and now he can pray for us.

Fr Karel Stautemas, the superior of the Norbertine religious community in the Abbey of Grimbergen in Belgium, where Fr Vantomme entered the order, delivered a eulogy. It marked the pride that the Norbertine community cherished as they reflected upon Fr Vantomme’s mission.

He made a profession as a Norbertine in 1973 and was ordained a priest in August 1978. Five months later, on January 27, 1979, he came to South Africa as a missionary priest.

It was an assignment he boldly and courageously heard as a young man, leaving behind family and country to serve God. It was a call he bravely accepted, although at the time he could only speak “Vlaams” (Flemish).

Fr Vantomme developed his language skills in South Africa and became “more South African than Belgian”.

Fr Stautemas said the death of Fr Vantomme marked the end of an era for the Norbertine religious community. His priesthood was exemplary: a priesthood of love.

In an emotional tribute Fr Ashley Orgill, a fellow Norbertine priest, emphasised Fr Vantomme’s outstanding character.

“Pride, arrogance and selfishness did not exist in him. He was a humble man who would give himself completely to others, at whatever cost.

“He would kneel with his people and pray their devotions. He was ‘meek, humble of heart’—the type of person we all want to be, the example we would like to follow, to show us what it is to be a priest.

“He built in the hearts of his people respect and love for the priesthood. He did not build buildings or write books. He never wanted more than what he had. He was happy with what he had: a big heart — there was room for everybody.

“He did not care about worldly things: he had a few possessions. He was always an example of what it is to be a priest.”

Fr Orgill concluded: “Our joy is that he ‘finished the race’ and is happy in the arms of Jesus. We ask him to speak for us before the throne of God. Jesus said, ‘Learn from Me for I am meek and humble of heart.’ We have learned from Fr Vantomme.”

Father Vantomme is hailed as a model priest of our time: a true servant of the people of God and a “humble servant of the Lord”. He served the People of God with much love. He set an example of what humility and poverty in the priesthood mean; what a serving, caring and loving priesthood entails: a priesthood that tells us God is with us.

It is this beautiful reality of what exactly the priesthood represents in a modern world and how it is lived out that now sets the benchmark for priests in the Oudtshoorn diocese and elsewhere.

In a befitting tribute, Bishop Frank de Gouveia of Oudtshoorn said: “Fr Vantomme served God well. If someone came to him with an issue he would always ask, ‘What is the good news?’ He saw it not as another problem, but as a person. He was a ‘person’s person’.  He lived what Pope Francis told us to do: he was helping people to look at their problems differently. Always begin with the goodness of God.”

The bishop noted that Pope Francis has said: “I know with dogmatic certainty that God is present in each person’s life.”

Fr Vantomme shared that certainty, as Bishop de Gouveia reminded us.

“Fr Vantomme believed that God is present in each person. It did not matter who you were, whether the courts sent you to prison when you were a youth. Fr Vantomme had a passion for teaching people catechism and helped people to see. Young people were able to open themselves to him. They felt safe with him and he treated them with dignity. Pope Francis says, ‘God is present in the love of all people. See Christ in every person’. Fr Vantomme did it. He was what we are all called to do,” the bishop said.

In reviewing the life of Fr Vantomme, “we celebrate his faithfulness and his dedication. He left his family, his people to go to a country far away to spread the Gospel, to help us see within ourselves the image of God”, Bishop de Gouveia said.

“People described him as ‘humble’. He was humble as he allowed God to work through him. He brought the ‘consolation of the Risen Christ’ to people. He knew God is gazing on us, especially the young people he loved so much. Death is swallowed by the victory that God gives us through Jesus Christ,” said Bishop de Gouveia.

The principal of the local Catholic primary school, Hubert Titus—who is a member of another denomination—fondly recalled how he first met Fr Vantomme, dressed in what was to become his trademark gear: black trousers, grey shirt and white collar.

Fr Vantomme taught catechism at the school. He became a ‘‘father figure”, a great listener, an empathetic person, “someone you can trust to talk to over a cup of tea”.

He had a good sense of humour and knew when to laugh. And he was a “priest of prayer”: Fr Vantomme taught Mr Titus and his wife “silent prayer” after the death of their child.

Many might have wanted to pay tribute to Fr Vantomme, but of course that is not always possible. So much can be said of him as many people encountered Jesus through him.

He became my spiritual director in 2004, a time when I became deeply inspired by the devotion to the Divine Mercy. Later he became spiritual director of the Divine Mercy Apostolate in the western deanery of the diocese of Oudtshoorn. He journeyed with us as the apostolate grew from a prayer group to a Divine Mercy Prison Apostolate, supporting our mission as much as he could.

He prayed with us, sat through three hours of Adoration of the Eucharist with us every week and ran retreats for the group.

On Divine Mercy Sunday in 2007, the feast day was celebrated with Fr Vantomme presiding over Mass in the Worcester Rehabilitation Centre: it was the first time that the feast of Divine Mercy was ever celebrated in a South African prison.

On that day Catholic inmates had the opportunity to receive the sacrament of reconciliation before attending Mass.

Fr Vantomme made time for our active apostolate in the same way that he set time aside for the sodalities and other lay ministries in all his parishes. He was available 24/7 to every person who needed him: that is how much he loved the people of God—that is how much he loved Jesus Christ.

He was a spiritual director who understood human failures and the weakness of human beings. He taught us there is always a second chance. We saw how he loved and respected people. He taught us patience: to accept others just as they are. We saw his strong faith in God and his love for the Church and her teachings.

Many converts to Catholicism in his former parishes credit him for the manner in how he introduced them to the Catholic faith.

He lived out mercy through his words, deeds and actions everywhere. He taught us that ministry work is not easy, but you never give up. He reminded us how he received his calling at a young age, while working in a bakery in his home country, but could not escape. He taught us that he responded without looking back.

In bidding their final goodbyes through an expression of affection, the women from different sodalities and lay ministries formed a guard of honour, singing and dancing around his coffin minutes before the hearse left the church for the final rest place. It was the African way of letting go.

Fr Nazaire Vantomme is now with Jesus, the High Priest.