(ANS - Hyderabad) – Fr John Lens SDB died on 28 November last at 93 years of age,  67 years of Salesian profession and 61 years of priestly ministry. The Province of Hyderabad has lost a veteran missionary, the last of the foreign missionaries in the Province.

by Vincent Castillino, SDB

John Lens was born on 5 October 1921 in Borgerhout, Belgium. He grew up in a traditional Catholic family where the seeds of his priestly vocation germinated and grew. Despite World War II, he was able to accept God's call to be a missionary. He made his first profession as a Salesian in 1947 in his hometown. Then he left for India and completed his theological studies in Mawlai, Shillong. He was ordained  priest on 1 August 1953 and assigned to Poonamalle.

He served in Kotagiri, Katpadi, Negombo (Sri Lanka) and Tirupattur, and in 1975 came to the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. On 22 August 1975, at the invitation of Archbishop Saminemi Arulappa of Hyderabad, Fr Lens, with Fr Jospeh Kottekarote, took charge of the parish of St Teresa  in Sanathnagar, Hyderabad. Here he also founded the Don Bosco school. He did two terms as Rector of the aspirantate in Gunadala before being assigned for the last seventeen years of his life to the novitiate at Manoharabad. Here he was confessor, and took on various other assignments for other religious communities.

His enthusiasm was tangible and remained undiminished  until his last breath, forever full of love for Don Bosco. He was a true Salesian in his relations with his confreres, the young and the laity. His love for Don Bosco can be seen in his writings: Autobiography of Saint John Bosco: Memoirs of the Oratory; Don Bosco in his times; A Drop of Honey; Mamma Magaret: The Mother of Don Bosco and Four volumes of the Annals of the Salesian Society – to mention but a few!

Fr Lens lived a holy life. He had  a simple piety with an exceptional devotion to the Blessed Sacrament and a filial love for Mary. His was also a disciplined life. His deep spirituality was manifest in his devotion to duty through hard work, and his warmth and compassion. He maintained a cheerful attitude as could be seen from the stories he used to tell his confreres and students. He lived a simple and austere life, keeping very few belongings for himself. He gave away unselfishly everything he received from others. During his last visit the Provincial asked him: "Father, do you need anything?" He replied: "I do not want anything. I want to close my eyes soon. I want to go up there. "

The funeral of Fr Lens was celebrated on 1 December at the Don Bosco post-novitiate in Karunapuram, with Bishop Udumala Bala of Warangal presiding. A Mass had already been offered in suffrage at the parish of St Teresa in Hyderabad, where Fr Lens had been the first Salesian priest. Many Salesians, men and women religious and the faithful paid tribute; among them also former Provincials  Fr Medabalimi Balaswamy and Fr Noel Maddhichetty. The Rector Major, Fr Ángel Fernández Artime, and the Councillor for Southern  Asia, Fr Maria Arokiam Kanaga, sent messages of condolence, recalling his missionary vocation and urging Salesians to imitate his selfless service.

Published 18/12/2014