A life dedicated to the mission
Born in San Martino di Colle Umberto (Treviso) in 1893, Fr Vendrame arrived in Shillong in 1924. From the very beginning of his frontier apostolate, he distinguished himself through his total dedication to the local people, who felt loved by him with the heart of Christ. For Vendrame, the mission was not the imposition of rules, but the communication of a love that had changed his own life. In his missionary apostolate we find the hallmarks of great heroism, not only in how he lived it, but also in the fruits of faith and adherence to the Gospel among the people he encountered. For him, God came before anything else. The words of Pope Francis in Dilexit Nos suit him perfectly: “Mission, as a radiation of the love of the heart of Christ, requires missionaries who are themselves in love and who, enthralled by Christ, feel bound to share this love that has changed their lives. They are impatient when time is wasted discussing secondary questions or concentrating on truths and rules, because their greatest concern is to share what they have experienced. They want others to perceive the goodness and beauty of the Beloved through their efforts, however inadequate they may be. ” (no. 209).
The Mawlai Shrine: a dream come true
The most tangible sign of his work is the Shrine of the Sacred Heart in Mawlai, Shillong. To build it, he sought the help of Italian benefactors; yet, being a man of the utmost modesty, he wanted everything there to be beautiful, for a church to shine as a sign of Catholic truth and a visible centre of unity. A touching detail concerns the choice of name: it was a child who suggested he dedicate it to the Sacred Heart, and the missionary listened to him. The opening on 13 April 1935 represented for Fr Costantino the fulfilment of a prophetic dream: years earlier, a woman had described to him a great church on top of a hill surrounded by an immense crowd. On the walls of the altar, even today, stands the invitation that guided his entire inner life: “fili, praebe mihi cor tuum” (son, give me your heart).
To mark the culmination of those days, there was also “a solemn consecration of all the participants to the Sacred Heart of Jesus”. In just over ten years of missionary life, they had succeeded in building that important centre of faith and prayer, through which the Sacred Heart would reign in the hearts of so many.
It was the extension into souls of the Kingdom of that “King of Love” for whom Fr Costantino had set out in 1924.
His spiritual legacy
Fr Vendrame conceived of his own existence as a fragrant sacrifice for the Church and for the world, writing that “thus we break our life, it perfumes the mystical body of Jesus… and purifies the air”. Before leaving for India, he had sealed his commitment on the back of a small image dedicated to the Sacred Heart: “I have entrusted everything to you, I have hoped for everything from you, and I have not been disappointed.”
He passed away on 30 January 1957, on the eve of Don Bosco’s feast day, having expended every ounce of energy for his brothers. Today his remains rest in the Mawlai Shrine, next to the Salesian Theological College, remaining a “living stone” and a source of inspiration for the many vocations that continue to flourish on Indian soil.
Fr Pierluigi Cameroni
Postulator General
{gallery}RMG – Vendrame Apostolo Sacro Cuore 2026{/gallery}
