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 Raoul Follereau: 110th Anniversary of Birth 60th World Day of Leprosy Scott 1541 (2013) On January 30, the VPS Website Team presented a Daily Email and a Page 2 article, both of which focused on the disease of leprosy. The Daily Email introduced us to Raoul Follereau, a journalist responsible for calling attention to the United Nations efforts to combat leprosy. The stamp illustrated above honored Follereau's efforts to increase understanding about leprosy, and recognized World Leprosy Day. The Page 2 article identified two Catholic saints who fought the stigma of leprosy in Hawaii during the 19th century: Father Damien of Molokai and Sister Marianne Cope. These two saints, both canonized in the early 21st century by Pope Benedict XVI, helped bring a sense of normalcy to the victims of leprosy, who were stigmatized and isolated in leper colonies, the standard treatment for lepers over the years. Our good friend Patrick Moore adds the following insights regarding the legacy of leprosy treatment in Europe: "Good morning from Bonn. Outside the historic city walls in many German, Dutch and Belgian towns, one can find centuries-old buildings that once housed leper colonies. Today the structures are used for all manner of public and private purposes, but there is usually a marker on the wall explaining that the building housed lepers in the Middle Ages and later. The much-venerated 19th century Belgian priest, Saint Damien, gave his life to the care of lepers. He died in Hawaii of the disease. Leprosy and the practices and attitudes associated with it in the early 20th century played a central role in James Michener's epic novel 'Hawaii'."Thanks to Patrick for once again providing another layer of information to our daily offerings. We invite all our readers to contact us with information to enhance our Daily Emails and Page 2 articles—we all can learn a little extra from each other! Technical Details: Scott Catalogue - 1541 Date Issued - 07 November 2013 Face Value - €1.25 Perforations - 13.65 x 13.77 Printing Process - Offset Printer - Printex (Malta) Max Printed - 200,000 |
