Fr. Bertrand Saubolle, S.J.

By Fr. John Locke, S.J.
(From the Nepal Region’s 50th Anniversary Book, 2001)

Fr. Saubolle was born in 1904 in Orissa of French and Irish parents. After attending the Christian Brothers schools in Kurseong and Shillong, he went for his college studies to St. Xavier’s College in Calcutta. From there he entered the Society in 1924. After novitiate and juniorate in Shambagenur he went to Louvain for his philosophy. He returned after three years to regency at North Point in Darjeeling and theology at Kurseong. After theology he served as parish priest in Hazaribag and then at St. John’s in Kurseong. From there he went to North Point College as minister and parish priest.

When the Nepal venture began In 1951, Fr. Saubolle volunteered for work in Nepal. With his knowledge of Nepali and his multiple skills, he was God’s gift to the Nepal mission. In 1952 he went to Godavari where he spent the rest of his life.

For ten years he served as minister at Godavari and teacher in the school. As a teacher of Moral Science he had a gift of enthralling the boys with his stories. A master of many trades, his teaching extended far beyond the classroom. He was a master photographer and a gardener. Mass wine was impossible to get In Nepal, so he took up the task of making it and produced a book on the subject.

He was a pioneer in the use of gobar gas and built the first prototype plant in Nepal. When solar energy was first mooted, he made a prototype which provided hot water. He created an energy conserving stove and taught people how to use it. Early on in Nepal he became interested in bee keeping as a science. He introduced the raising of rabbits for food and profit so that people in the village might increase their Income. He wrote booklets on all these skills and distributed them to people. In his later years the poet in him emerged and he wrote two small volumes of poetry.

Above all, he was a friend not only to the members of the community and the servants who worked for him, but to everyone in the villages around Godavari. Every afternoon he would take a walk through the villages. To this day people around Godavari say, “Since Fr. Saubolle died nobody cares for us.” What they mean is that nobody will take the time just to be with them, listen to their troubles, and share life with them. When he died in 1982 virtually the whole village came to pay their last respects.