Note 14 — EARLY FRANCISCAN MISSIONS

The religious of this convent have not been content with attending to the consolation of the soldiers of those fortresses, and administration of the sacraments to them, as the chaplains of his Majesty, but they have always endeavored to plant the holy gospel in the surrounding kingdoms. Fathers Fray Cristoval del Castillo, Fray Martín de San Juan, Fray Gregorio de San Esteban,14 Fray Pedro de la Concepción, and a lay-brother, Fray Benito Díaz, entered the kingdom of Manados, where at various times they tried to convert that kingdom to the holy gospel. Father Fray Diego de Roxas died there, occupied in the same preaching of the holy gospel, with so much approbation of life that the natives of the kingdom buried his body in a new sepulcher, which they inclosed and preserved with so great veneration and respect that, although our religious of Therrenate have gone there for his bones, the natives have always refused to give them up. Father Fray Bias de Palomino (of whom we made mention above) also returned from this kingdom, to Therrenate, and, since he had already learned the languages of those kingdoms, wished to preach in the kingdom of Tagalanda. He disembarked for that purpose, trusting to those islanders, who, being barbarians, killed him as above stated. Some of our religious of Therrenate have entered the kingdom of Macasar for the same purpose of preaching the gospel, and of offering the word of God on various occasions to the kings of that kingdom. Although the latter did not receive the word, they did not maltreat the religious. On the contrary, some villages, called Meados, which have preserved peace with our Spaniards of Therrenate in the said kingdom of Manados, have been very favorable to our religious. They have aided the forts with what provisions they had there. In the years of the Lord, forty-three and forty-four, some Spaniards who had gone to get provisions were in those villages. The Indians rose up against them. Two religious were also in the said villages, namely, father Fray Juan Yranzo and Fray Lorenzo Garalda,15 who had gone thither to convert the people. The Indians killed some of the Spaniards. Father Juan Yranzo escaped with some Spaniards, but father Fray Lorenço was killed at that time. When father Fray Vicente Argente,16 then the provincial minister of that province, investigated the matter and how it had happened, the witnesses declared that the Indians had refused to kill father Fray Lorenço, but that the priests of their idols insisted upon it, by saying that they were very angry because priests had been admitted into their kingdom who prevented their idolatry. That was the reason why he suffered so many hardships. He died seven days after. His body was found upon its knees, and the Indians hid and kept it refusing to give it up. That religious was always considered a man of excellent spirit and zeal. Father Fray Bartolomé de San Diego17 and brother Fray Miguel de San Buenaventura have been preaching to those islanders in the islands of Calonga. Our religious have been in those kingdoms and in others near Therrenate, on various occasions and at various times, ever trying to reduce people so barbarous to the knowledge of our true God, although always with but little fruit. May the will of God be done in all things! The father reader Fray Ginés de Quesada18 and father Fray Juan Yorillas,19 emulating the holy zeal of so many martyrs as Japón has had, entered that country with remarkable courage, and died there in the year 1633. Although we know that their death is certain, we do not know how it happened. There are many reports, but they are alike only in saying that those fathers were killed by torture.