Photograph: Father Tavis Abadie and Carroll Lafleur answer questions from the large crowd in attendance at Theology on the Bayou held near Arnaudville on Friday evening.
A large crowd gathered on Friday evening at Bayou Tech Brewery on the Bayou Teche near Arnaudville for a continuation of Theology on the Bayou. The lineup for this third Friday evening of Theology and fellowship included information of What is a Cause? presented by Father Tavis Abadie, plus a presentation on the life of Father Verbis Lafleur by Carrol Lafleur of Opelousas, wife of Fr. Lafleur’s nephew and head of the Friends of Lt. Father Joseph Verbis Lafleur group.
Theology on the Bayou, sponsored by St. Bernard Catholic Church of Breaux Bridge and Arnaudville Catholic, is held every other week on Fridays through August 4th this year. The summer series is free and open to the public. The series covers the topic of the Communion of Saints, with a special focus on the three Servants of God from the Diocese of Lafayette whose causes are in process for canonization!
The next two presentations will be on Friday, July 21st featuring Stages of a Cause – Nonco Pelafigue; and Friday, August 4th featuring Causes FAOs – Charlene Richard.
To learn more about Theology on the Bayou, please visit the website: https://www.stbernardcatholicchurch.com/tob
Servant of God Reverend Father Joseph Verbis Lafleur
Born in Ville Platte, LA on January 24, 1912, Joseph Verbis Lafleur was the son of Valentine Lafleur and Agatha Dupre Lafleur. He later moved with his family to Opelousas, the seat of St Landry Parish in Louisiana.
As a young boy Verbis Lafleur always expressed his desire to become a priest. During his teenage years, he entered the seminary, completed 11 years of studies at St. Joseph’s Seminary in St. Benedict, LA and Notre Dame Seminary in New Orleans and was ordained a priest for the Diocese of Lafayette on April 2, 1938, at St. John the Evangelist Cathedral in Lafayette.
Following ordination, Father Lafleur was assigned to St. Mary Magdalen Catholic Church in Abbeville, LA. While he was serving at that church, in the summer of 1941 he felt the call to also serve his country. He asked to join the military, and after first being refused, he was eventually given permission by his bishop and became a chaplain in the Army Air Corps.
After reporting to Albuquerque, New Mexico, Chaplain Lafleur was sent to Clark Field in the Philippine Islands, arriving just a few weeks before it was attacked by the Japanese on December 8, 1941. He became a prisoner of war for approximately two and a half years including stays at Davao and Lasang. On September 7, 1944, Father Lafleur gave his life while helping others to escape a torpedoed hell ship carrying over 700 POWs.
Because of his efforts during the war, Father Lafleur was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross (twice), the Purple Heart and the Bronze Star. His Cause of Canonization was opened by the Diocese of Lafayette on September 5, 2020, and he became a Servant of God in 2021.
