Peter Claver was born in Verdú (in Urgell, Catalonia) in 1580. Educated by the Jesuits in Barcelona, he entered the Society of Jesus in 1602 and made his novitiate in Tarragona. He spent some time in Girona, then studied philosophy in Mallorca. There he came under the influence of Saint Alphonsus Rodríguez, the humble Jesuit porter, who encouraged in him a deep desire to go to the Americas to evangelize and serve the indigenous peoples.
Peter began his theological studies in Barcelona and completed them in Santa Fe de Bogotá, Colombia. Ordained a priest in Cartagena de Indias, he quickly devoted himself—both spiritually and materially—to the service of enslaved Africans.
Cartagena was the main port where enslaved men and women, captured in Africa, were brought and sold. From Peter’s own letters, we know of the inhuman conditions in which they lived and the cruel treatment they endured. His ministry among them bore extraordinary fruit: with gentleness and heroic charity, he cared for them, winning their hearts. Over forty years he baptized some 300,000 enslaved people arriving in Cartagena.
For this reason, Peter Claver is justly honored as the Apostle of the Africans.
He died in Cartagena on September 8, 1654. Canonized by Pope Leo XIII in 1888, he was also declared patron of the missions among people of African descent.
