Isidore Ngei Ko Lat
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Isidoro Ngei Ko Lat (17 September 1918 – 24 May 1950) was a
catechist Catechesis (; from Greek language, Greek: , "instruction by word of mouth", generally "instruction") is basic Christian religious education of children and adults, often from a catechism book. It started as education of Conversion to Christia ...
from
Myanmar Myanmar, officially the Republic of the Union of Myanmar; and also referred to as Burma (the official English name until 1989), is a country in northwest Southeast Asia. It is the largest country by area in Mainland Southeast Asia and has ...
who was killed in 1950. He was beatified in 2014.


Biography

Isidoro Ngei Ko Lat was the son of
peasants A peasant is a pre-industrial agricultural laborer or a farmer A farmer is a person engaged in agriculture, raising living organisms for food or raw materials. The term usually applies to people who do some combination of raising f ...
and the priest Dominic Pedrotti
baptized Baptism (from ) is a Christian sacrament of initiation almost invariably with the use of water. It may be performed by sprinkling or pouring water on the head, or by immersing in water either partially or completely, traditionally three ...
him on 7 September 1918. His parents died when he was young and both he and his younger brother were cared for by their aunt and uncle. By 1925, he began attending
primary school A primary school (in Ireland, India, the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica, South Africa, and Singapore), elementary school, or grade school (in North America and the Philippines) is a school for primary ...
in his village. As he grew older, he expressed a desire to serve
God In monotheistic belief systems, God is usually viewed as the supreme being, creator, and principal object of faith. In polytheistic belief systems, a god is "a spirit or being believed to have created, or for controlling some part of the un ...
and his vocation led him to the
minor seminary A minor seminary or high school seminary is a secondary day or boarding school created for the specific purpose of enrolling teenage boys who have expressed interest in becoming Priesthood (Catholic Church), Catholic priests. They are generally ...
of Saint Teresa where he studied for six years until
World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
started. During the war, he returned to his village and became a teacher where he opened a school for the village children. In 1946, Mario Vergara arrived for his mission in Myanmar, and he met Ko Lat. He ultimately decided that Ko Lat would join him in his missionary work. After the 1948 independence of Myanmar, he and Vergara were threatened by the guerillas in Myanmar and the two were murdered.


Beatification

The
Congregation for the Causes of Saints In the Catholic Church, the Dicastery for the Causes of Saints, previously named the Congregation for the Causes of Saints (), is the dicastery of the Roman Curia that oversees the complex process that leads to the canonization of saints, passi ...
approved the cause of beatification which commenced on 23 October 2001. This bestowed upon him the title of
Servant of God Servant of God () is a title used in the Catholic Church to indicate that an individual is on the first step toward possible canonization as a saint. Terminology The expression ''Servant of God'' appears nine times in the Bible, the first five in ...
.
Pope Francis Pope Francis (born Jorge Mario Bergoglio; 17 December 1936 – 21 April 2025) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 13 March 2013 until Death and funeral of Pope Francis, his death in 2025. He was the fi ...
approved his and Mario Vergara's martyrdom on 9 December 2013, thus, allowing for their beatification. Cardinal
Angelo Amato Angelo Amato, Salesians of Don Bosco, S.D.B. (8 June 1938 – 31 December 2024) was an Italian Cardinal (Catholic Church), cardinal of the Catholic Church who served as the Prefect of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints between 2008 and 20 ...
represented the pope at the beatification on 24 May 2014.


References


External links


Hagiography CircleSaints SQPN
{{DEFAULTSORT:Isidoro Ngei Ko Lat 1918 births 1950 deaths Beatifications by Pope Francis 20th-century venerated Christians 20th-century Roman Catholic martyrs People from Kayin State Burmese Roman Catholics