Fray Diego Aduarte

Jesus, Mary

Father Fray Antonio de Santo Angel, procurator-general of the order of the discalced friars of our father St. Augustine, declares that in the year 1608 your Majesty gave permission to father Fray Pedro de San Fulgencio, of the said order, to return to the Philipinas Islands, taking with him thirty religious of his order, and six servants for their service.  In the said year he was obliged to go to Rome to secure some favors and jubilees from his Holiness; but an illness attacked him, and our Lord saw fit to take him unto Himself.  For this reason his embarkation for the Philipinas did not take place, as he died on the way; and the funds that were given him for the purpose were lost.  Since it has pleased the divine Majesty that the discalced Augustinian religious who are in those parts [61] should succeed in so satisfactory and exemplary a manner, preaching the holy gospel and giving the light of our holy Catholic faith, and so earnestly striving for its increase—­as your Majesty is informed by the archbishop of Manila, and the city and cabildo, and the bishop of Santissimo Nombre de Jesus.  For all point out to your Majesty the great importance of sending religious of this holy order to the Philipinas; and that it is better to maintain there those who have been discalced, than those who enter from among the calced and are not instructed in the austerity to which the discalced are obliged.  For this reason our very holy father, Paul V, separated and divided us from the calced fathers; and accordingly our father-general sent them a notification that his Holiness had separated them, and had sent an order that they should form a chapter and appoint a provincial—­as will appear from the papers which I present, and from the letters of the archbishop of Manila, and from the bishop of Santissimo Nombre de Jesus, and from the letter from the city of Manila.  From the letters of the religious it will be plain to your Majesty how important it is for the service of our Lord to have a head and superior of the same penitent mode of life, so that this reformation may be preserved, and they may with fervor continue to gain souls for heaven and the increase of our holy Catholic faith.  I therefore beg your Majesty to grant us the same despatches that were given to us for the said voyage, so that we may receive the favor of it.  I likewise present the letter written by the Audiencia of Manila, in which your Audiencia states what are its intentions when anything is asked on the part of the Recollects.

Bibliographical Data

All the documents contained in this volume are obtained from original MSS. in various foreign archives—­excepting only that the Relation of Maldonado (1606) is from a printed pamphlet.  Most of them are from the Archivo general de Indias, Sevilla, their pressmarks as follows.

1. Complaints against the archbishop.—­(a) Letters from Acuna and the Augustinians:  “Simancas—­Secular; Audiencia de Filipinas; cartas y expedientes del gobernador de Filipinas vistos en el Consejo; anos de 1600 a 1628; est. 67, caj. 6, leg. 7.” (b) Letter from the Audiencia:  “Simancas—­Secular; Audiencia de Filipinas; cartas y expedientes del presidente y oidores de dicha Audiencia vistos en el Consejo; anos de 1600 a 1612; est. 67, caj. 6, leg. 19.”