Jozef Raskin

Jozef Maria Raskin (21 June 1892 – 18 October 1943) was a Belgian artist, painter, draftsman, and Scheutist missionary who served in World War I and became a missionary in China from 1920 to 1934. Later, during World War II, he was drafted into the Belgian army as a chaplain and was a personal advisor to King Leopold III. While operating under the code name Leopold Vindictive 200 for the Belgian resistance, on 1 May 1942 he was arrested by the Gestapo, tried and convicted, and on 18 October 1943 was guillotined. (Father Raskin in Both World Wars).thumb

Early life and education Jozef Raskin was born in Stevoort, Belgium, in 1892. He was the eldest son of Amandus and Marie Léonie ( Cleeren). He studied in a college in Sint-Truiden and took his vows in 1910 with the CICM Missionaries, a Catholic religious order widely known as the Scheut Missionaries.

Missionary in China After his ordination by the CICM Missionaries on 2 February 1920, he was stationed as a missionary to Inner Mongolia, China, where he became fluent in both the spoken and written Chinese language. While attached to the Apostolic Vicariate of Xiwanzi there, he taught natural sciences. In February 1934 he returned to Belgium and became a writer for his order. He worked with MI14 section "d" (the "Secret Pigeon Service") to convey his intelligence reports to England using the birds. Containers carrying the birds would be parachuted to him in occupied Belgium. His reports were dispatched in small wide tubes attached to the pigeons legs. Although written on ultra thin paper, Raskin wrote in-depth reports which included detailed sketches of enemy positions and up to 5,000-word memos.

Arrest and execution On 1 May 1942, Raskin was betrayed as a spy by a man dressed as a beggar and was arrested by the Gestapo. While imprisoned awaiting trial, he was described by other prisoners as being "a learned man, uplifting, eloquent, a support and an example" who sang every night, told stories of his years in China, and heard confessions from his fellow inmates. On 31 August 1943 he was tried and convicted, offering as his only defense: Im Gewissen und vor Gott habe ich meine Pflicht getan (In conscience and before God I have done my duty). The following day, 1 September 1943, he was sentenced to death and on 18 October 1943, at 1843 hours, he was guillotined in Dortmund Prison.