Molokai: The Story of Father Damien Quiz

Answer: David Wenham

Father Damien was played by David Wenham. The other actors named also had key roles in the movie. David Wenham is well-known to Australian audiences as "Diver Dan" in the popular television series "Sea Change". He has also played the character Faramir in the "Lord of the Rings" movies, "The Fellowship of the Ring" (2001) and "The Two Towers" (2002), and Audrey in "Moulin Rouge!" (2001).

Answer: Belgian

Father Damien was born at Tremeloo, Belgium, on January 3, 1840. His real name was Joseph de Veuster. He was beatified (declared Blessed) by Pope John Paul II in 1996. He is currently being considered for canonisation as a Saint in the Roman Catholic Church.

Answer: America

Hawaii consists of a chain of 122 islands. Molokai is one of the larger islands. Hawaii became a possession of the United States in 1898, a U.S. territory in 1900 and America's 50th state in 1959. However, in Father Damien's time (1873-1889), Hawaii was an independent country under U.S. protection. Father Damien's leper colony was located at Kalaupapa, on the Makanalua Peninsula. Surrounded on three sides by the Pacific Ocean and cut off from the rest of Molokai by huge cliffs, Kalaupapa provided the geographical isolation which was thought to be necessary for the lepers.

Answer: Molokai

"Molokai" was filmed on location and the scenery is breathtaking. Molokai still has a leper colony and many of the movie's "extras" were actual patients still living on the island.

Answer: Hansen's disease

Leprosy, or Hansen's disease, is caused by a bacterium, Mycobacterium leprae. The term leprosy is derived from the Greek word "lepros" meaning scaly. It was given the name Hansen's disease in honour of Gerhard Hansen, a Norwegian doctor, who discovered this bacterium was the cause of leprosy in 1871.

It is not a highly infectious disease and the method of transmission is still unknown. It is most commonly contracted after prolonged close contact with an infected person, however, it is not inevitable that this will happen.

Some people appear to be immune.

Answer: syphilis

Because it was believed to be linked with syphilis, and therefore with promiscuous behaviour, lepers got little sympathy from the community in general. When Father Damien contracted the disease, his morals were also called into question. After his death, an inquiry exonerated him from the charge of immorality.

Answer: obedience

Father Damien was instructed by his superiors not to have any physical contact with the lepers, or anyone else on the island, an order he disobeyed immediately upon his arrival at Molokai. Father Damien ate with the lepers, dressed their wounds, made their coffins, dug their graves and buried them when they eventually died.

He worked tirelessly to arrange medical care and housing, despite the obstacles presented by the church and the government.

Answer: 8 months

When the Church sent Father Damien to Molokai, it was intended that he would stay only three months. At his request, however, he stayed on. Because of the fear associated with leprosy, visitors to the island were subject to strict control. Damien was not allowed to return to Honolulu despite his insistence that he needed to make his confession.

Other priests were unwilling to take the risk of going to Molokai. Eventually Bishop Maigret (played by Leo McKern) made the trip to Molokai. Father Damien met the ship in a small boat but the Captain would not allow Damien on board and would not allow the bishop to disembark (or more accurately, if he disembarked, the Captain would not allow him back on board). Eventually, Damien had to make a public confession to the Bishop in front of everyone on board.

The only concession to privacy was that the confession was conducted in French.

Answer: Princess Liliuokalani

Talented Australian singer and songwriter Kate Cerebrano played Princess Liliuokalani. Father Damien worked tirelessly to improve the quality of life for the lepers. Unable to obtain what he wanted from the church or the government, he appealed to Princess Liliuokalani for help.

In this role, Kate Cerebrano delivers a stirring rendition of "Aloha Oe", Princess Liliuokalani's signature song.

Answer: influenza

Father Damien died on Molokai on April 15, 1889. Influenza is sometimes an "opportunistic infection". This is a medical term used to describe an infection which flourishes because the body's defence system is compromised, which gives the infection the opportunity to cause disease in an individual who would not normally be susceptible.

This sometimes happens when an individual suffers from some other medical condition which lowers resistance.