The Philippine Islands, 1493-1898 — Volume 21 of 55 / 1624 / Explorations by early navigators, descriptions of the islands and their peoples, their history and records of the Catholic missions, as related in contemporaneous books and manuscripts, showing the political, economic, commercial and religious conditions of those islands from their earliest relations with European nations to the close of the nineteenth century.

by Unknown

Royal Orders Regarding the Religious

Regulating their privileges

The King. Inasmuch as the king my sovereign and father (whom may holy Paradise keep) was informed that the religious who resided in the Philipinas Islands, busied in the instruction and conversion of the Indians, were meddling in things that did not concern them, he ordered Gomez Perez das Mariñas, then governor and captain-general of the Philipinas Islands, or the person in whose charge the government might be—by his decree, dated June eleven, of the former year five hundred and ninety-four—not to allow the religious to have prisons or jails, or to make arrests or condemn, unless they have commission from the bishop for the things in which he can give it in accordance with law; or not to appoint as fiscals others than those whom the bishop might assign them, together with other declarations contained in the said decree. Afterward the king my sovereign and father, who is in glory, by another decree dated May six, six hundred and fourteen, ordered the aforesaid to be obeyed and observed, according to its contents, without violating or exceeding its tenor and form, as is contained more at length in the said decree and its reissue, which are of the following tenor:

“The King. To Don Juan de Silva, my governor and captain-general of the Philipinas Islands and president of my royal Audiencia of them, or the person or persons in whose charge may be their government: The king my sovereign and father, who is in heaven, ordered to be issued and gave the decree of the following tenor:

”’The King. To Gomez Perez das Marinas, my governor and captain-general in the Philippinas Islands, or the person in whose charge may be the government of them: Inasmuch as I have been informed that the religious who reside in those islands, busied in the instruction and conversion of the Indians, meddle in matters that do not concern them, I order you not to allow them to have prisons or jails, or to arrest or condemn, unless they be those who have commission from the bishop for those things in which he can give commission in accordance with law; that they do not appoint or have other fiscals than those assigned them by the said bishop; and that they take no fees for burials, marriages, or baptisms, other than according to the appraisement and declaration of the said bishop. And inasmuch as I have been informed that they have proceeded in the exercise of their privileges, with an excess prejudicial to the suitable progress of the instruction, and that it would be advisable to declare what privileges be conserved and what revoked, in order to remove confusions and doubts—for they confess the Indians without the bishop’s authorization, and, although not curas, perform marriages, which is in direct violation of the ordinance in the holy council of Trent, incurring risk that the confessions and marriages are invalid: I order you likewise that you shall communicate with the superiors of the orders, and command them to examine the said privileges; and, unless they have such privileges, not to proceed in the matters here specified, because of the doubts and scandals that may result. Given in Madrid, June eleven, one thousand five hundred and ninety-four.

I The King
By order of the king our sovereign:
Juan de Ibarra‘

“And now it has been represented to me on the part of the archbishop of that city that none of the contents of the said decree are observed or obeyed with the exactness that would be fitting and expedient to the service of God and to my service. He petitioned me to order that it be strictly observed, as a remedy for the troubles that arise from it. Inasmuch as it is my will that this be done, I order you to observe, and to cause the said decree above inserted of the king my sovereign and father to be obeyed and observed, exactly according to its contents and declarations, without violating or exceeding in any part of it. This I shall regard with approbation; but by the contrary I shall consider myself as disserved. Given in Madrid, May six, one thousand six hundred and fourteen.

I The King
By order of the king our sovereign:
Don Juan Ruiz de Contreras”

And now Don Juan Çevicos, treasurer of the metropolitan church of the city of Manila of the said Philipinas Islands, has informed me in the name of the archbishop of the city that, petition having been made in behalf of Licentiate Don Diego Barquez de Mercado, while archbishop of the said church, and of the suffragan bishops, in my royal Audiencia of the said city, for the execution of the said decree, because it was not observed by the religious of the Order of St. Francis, and an edict to that effect having been despatched, the provincial of the said order was notified. He—under pretext of two other decrees of the sixteenth of March of the said year six hundred and fourteen, despatched at the petition of the said religious because they had represented that the said archbishop had tried to make innovations in the missions by appointing fiscals in them (as in fact he did do, so that information should be made of what had been done in this), and that in the meanwhile no innovation or change should be made in what had been the usual practice at the time when he entered the said archbishopric—opposed the said edict, and petitioned that the said decree of the sixteenth of March, six hundred and fourteen, be observed. The same was done by the other orders in the said islands. After the cause had been prosecuted in the said Audiencia, after some questions and answers, it was ordered by an act lately issued, on the first of August the past year, six hundred and twenty-two, that the said decrees be observed and obeyed, and that notice be given to the president, governor and captain-general of the said islands and to the said archbishop, as was done, so that they might investigate on what was ordered and charged to them. The determination in the said cause was sent to my royal Council of the Indias. Until other provision should be made, there was to be no innovation and the execution of the said edict was to be suspended, as was evident and appeared by the testimony of the records, which was, in accordance with the above said, presented and examined in the said my Council. I was petitioned to order that the commands of the said decree of June eleven, five hundred and ninety-four, and its reissue of May six, six hundred and fourteen, above inserted, be executed; and that, in accordance with them, the said archbishop and bishops should appoint and name the said fiscals—as pertains to them, in accordance with law—and try judicially the crimes and causes of the said Indians; and that the said religious, who arrest and punish them, as appears, [should not do this]. Having been examined by the members of the said my Council of the Indias, it was agreed that I ought to order this my decree to be given. Therefore I desire, and it is my will, that the above decrees, above inserted (of June eleven of the said year five hundred and ninety-four, and May six, six hundred and fourteen), be observed, obeyed, and executed exactly according to their contents and declarations, notwithstanding the contents of the said decrees of March sixteen of the said year six hundred and fourteen, ordering that the said archbishop make no change in the usual practice in the appointment of fiscals, and that the said governor investigate. And, since this is necessary, I render those decrees to be null and void, and without effect. I order the president and auditors of my royal Audiencia of the said islands not to violate or exceed the contents of this my decree, or consent that they be violated or exceeded, now or henceforth, and in no manner. On the contrary, they shall give the protection and aid that may be necessary for its execution and observance. This I shall regard with approbation. Given in Madrid, August thirty, one thousand six hundred and twenty-four.

I The King
By order of the king our sovereign:
Juan Ruiz de Contreras
Signed by the members of the Council.

[Endorsed: “In order that the decrees above inserted, ordering that the missionaries of the Filipinas Islands have no prisons or jails; that they may not condemn, except those who have commission from the archbishop; and that they appoint no other fiscals than those whom he shall assign them; notwithstanding the decrees that were given ordering no innovation in the former practice, be followed in the appointment of the said fiscals.”]

Letter to the archbishop

The King. Very reverend father in Christ, archbishop of the metropolitan church of the city of Manila in the Filipinas Islands. The letter which you wrote me on the thirteenth of August of last year, 1623, has been received and considered in my royal Council of the Indias. In regard to your statement that, on account of the haste in which were sent from Mexico the ships which arrived that year at those islands with assistance, the archbishop did not send you the papers for convening the council, and that you therefore did not carry out your plan for doing so, but that the necessary measures for it would be taken this year: I command you, on receiving the despatches, to execute the orders contained therein with the care and punctuality that is desirable, and that I expect from you.

I appreciate the diligence which you exerted in preventing the attempt to nominate for provincial of the Order of St. Augustine a person who did not possess the qualifications which are necessary and requisite. You should always be on your guard against such things, and attempt to preserve the desirable peace and concord among the orders.

You advised us that it was necessary to have some ecclesiastical person to be charged with the guardianship and the mode of governing the seminary of Santa Potenciana, and to examine the persons who are to live there. It was resolved to order the president of the Audiencia, jointly with you, to inform us of what takes place, and that in the meantime you were both to join in providing the most effective way of administering the said seminary, with regard to both the persons who enter it and those who leave it, with this justification, that it be necessary. Accordingly, you will endeavor, for your own part, to have these orders executed.

Your statements regarding the foundation that was being established so that the youths of those islands might be graduated without going to the university—which foundations were to be under the patronage of the most pure conception of Mary most holy, our Lady—have been considered, and you may proceed.

As to your proposition that my royal exchequer in those islands should be inspected, the necessary provisions have already been made.

You advise us that in the execution of the measures contained in the decree of August 9, 1621, you have warned the heads of the orders that they shall not receive in those islands the religious from Yndia, and that you caused several clerics to embark who arrived at that city from that country. You will continue to do so, fulfilling your orders contained in this memorandum.

The other points mentioned in your letter have been considered, but answers to you are not yet ready. [Madrid, October 3, 1624.]

I The King

Countersigned by Juan Ruiz de Contreras.

Ordering the correction of abuses against the Indians by the Dominicans

Don Phelipe, by the grace of God, king of Castilla, Leon, Aragón, Jerusalem, Portugal, Navarra, and the Indias. To the reverend and devout father-general of the Order of St. Dominic: It has been learned from letters received and examined in my royal Council of the Indias from Don Alonso Faxardo de Tenza, my governor and captain-general of the Philipinas Islands, and president of my royal Audiencia resident therein, that, although the religious of the Order of St. Dominic who reside there are most exemplary and protect their parishioners so well, it generally results that there is anger at their encomenderos, and they do not attend to the affairs of my service as is advisable. On the other hand, the Indians consider the treatment received from the religious as severe, for they do not allow even the women to wear shoes, while they force the men of the province of Nueva Segovia to guard the church in rotation and turn. For whatever annoyance the Indians cause them, they question them with regard to the Christian doctrine, and their questions exceed those that persons with more reason and education can answer. And thereupon, if they fail in the least to meet these requirements, the religious have the chiefs and their wives whipped, and cut off their hair. That has resulted in causing among the Indians so great resentment that the insurrection of the Indians that occurred may be attributed to that. Inasmuch as that is a matter in which it is advisable to apply a remedy; and inasmuch as the harsh treatment practiced by the said religious toward their parishioners has appeared excessive, and not in harmony with what they should do, since their purpose in going to the said islands is to instruct and teach the natives in the articles of our holy faith, and with all love and mildness, because they are, as is a fact, people without reason and so newly converted (for which reason it is so expensive to my royal revenues, from which everything necessary is given): I request and charge you to give what order is advisable so that the aforesaid evils be remedied, as may be most necessary to the religion that they profess. What remedy you shall furnish, you shall send to the said my Council, with all haste, so that it may be remitted to the said islands; for if that be not done with the promptness required by the case, the relief that seems most effective will [not] be applied. Madrid, November twenty-seven, one thousand six hundred and twenty-four.

I The King

Countersigned by Joan Ruiz de Contreras, and signed by the Council.

[Endorsed: “To the father-general of the Order of St. Dominic, directing him to remedy the excesses, committed on the Indians by punishing them, by the religious of that order, who have missions in Philipinas.”]