1. Early life and education

2. World War I

3. Missionary in China

4. World War II

5. Arrest and execution

6. Statue and grave

7. References

8. Bibliography

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,^[1] he was drafted into the Belgian army as a chaplain and was a personal advisor to King Leopold III.^[2] While operating under the code name Leopold Vindictive 200 for the Dutch resistance, on 1 May 1942 he was arrested by the Gestapo, tried and convicted, and on 18 October 1943 was guillotined.^{[3] [4]} A statue honoring his service stands in Aarschot. After World War II, a book about Raskin's exploits in both world wars was written by Jozef De Vroey, himself a Catholic priest and survivor of both these conflicts, under the title Pater Raskin in de beide wereldoorlogen^[4] (Father Raskin in Both World Wars).

Early life and education

Jozef Raskin was born in Stevoort, Belgium, in 1892. He was the eldest son of Amandus and Marie Leonie ({{nee}} 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.^[5][6][7][8]

World War I

After becoming a deacon on 25 July 1914, Raskin was mobilized into the Belgian army where, due to a shortage of uniforms, he continued to wear his cassock. He was captured on the front lines with the Germans giving him an automatic death sentence, as soldiers disguised as priests were suspected of carrying secret documents, but he successfully escaped from his captors. As a front-line soldier and observer of enemy lines, his skills in drawing were particularly noted.^[6][7][8][9]

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 Diocese of Xiwanzi there, he taught natural sciences. In February 1934 he returned to Belgium and became a writer for his order.^[6][7][8][9]

World War II

At the outbreak of World War II, Raskin was drafted as a chaplain into the Belgian military, celebrated Mass for King Leopold III, and was the personal adviser to this monarch. He used the code name Leopold Vindictive 200 while working for the Dutch resistance. His knowledge of radiography allowed him to hear conversations, among other things, from the Nazi German forces occupying Belgium; his spying activities consisted primarily in locating the German positions on the Belgian coast.^[10] He became widely known for his use of pigeons to carry his intelligence reports to England. His missives were contained in a small 3{{nbsp}} mm tube using thin paper, whereon he compiled detailed sketches of enemy lines with up to 5,000 words of explanation.^[5][6][7][8] One such message from Raskin flown by pigeon to the British during World War II, now archived in the National Archives of the United Kingdom under the heading of "Source Message No.{{nbsp}}37", reads:

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.^{[3][12][6][7][8]}

Statue and grave

He is buried in Stevoort.^{[13][6][7][8]} A statue was erected in his honor in Aarschot.^{[14][15][16][17][18][19][20][6][7][8]}

References

Bibliography

• {{nl icon}} Pater M.-J. Raskin (memorial edition). Davidsfonds: Stevoort-Wijer, 1993
• {{nl icon}} Pater Raskin in de beide wereldoorlogen, J. de Vroey, Hertogelijke Aarschotse Kring voor Heemkunde, 1992.
• {{nl icon}} De eeuw van de ekster. Een Belgisch levensverhaal, Brigitte Raskin, Amsterdam: Meulenhoff, 1994.
• {{nl icon}} {{cite newspaper | title=Pater Raskin krijgt beeld in geboorteplaats Stevoort | newspaper=Het Belang van Limburg | date=29 September 2008 | language=Dutch}}
• {{nl icon}} {{cite book | title=Raskin Jozef / Leopold Vindictive – uit: Stevoort ... warm aanbevolen: Vroeger en nu | location=Hasselt | pages=20–22 | url=http://hasel.be/raskin-jozef-leopold-vindictive-uit-stevoort-warm-aanbevolen-2002 | date=2002 | via=hasel.be | accessdate=22 March 2016 | language=Dutch}}
• {{nl icon}} {{cite book | title=Wandelen in Stevoort: Wijkwandelingen Erfgoedcel Hasselt | date=2006 | author=

Maarten Snoeks | language=Dutch}}

• {{nl icon}} {{cite newspaper | url=http://hasel.be/file/186539/download?token=E8N0qJIJSntzy2lurtG8EHMFhG7CRP0JdR9GBeMiqIs | title=Pater Raskin krijgt beeld in geboorteplaats Stevoort | location=Hasselt | format=PDF | accessdate=21 March 2016 | language=Dutch }}{{dead link|date=January 2018 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}

• Upton, Slough
• Upton-upon-Severn
• Upton upon Severn
• Upton, Warwickshire
• Upton-West Upton, MA
• Upton-West Upton, Massachusetts
• Upton, Wirral
• Upton, WY
• Upton, Wyoming
• Up to symmetry
• Uptown
• Uptown Arena
• Uptown (band)
• Uptown Catholic Parish (Dubuque, Iowa)
• Uptown Charlotte
• Uptown, Chicago
• Uptown Girl
• Uptown Girls
• Uptown Houston
• Uptown, Memphis
• Uptown, Minneapolis
• Uptown Minneapolis
• Uptown (newspaper)
• Uptown Pittsburgh
• Uptown Records