Opinion of the Franciscans
Jesus
I have read the papers which your Grace sent me, Page 216and although, at first reading, the justification of this proceeding was not apparent, I wished, on account of its being so serious a matter, to study at leisure the doctors who have discussed this subject. It is important for me to know if what I have heard is true—that the Zambales have, upon various occasions, been molested by the Spaniards. To be sure of this point is a matter of much importance, because if we have injured or provoked them, first, by wrongs, or by exacting from them tributes which they did not owe, such action on our part would ill be justified. But, since I am not certain on this point, I first find, according to the account which I have read and examined in the papers which your Grace sent me, that they have been persuaded and invited with offers of peace, and pardon for the injuries which have been done; and that for this purpose, the governor, using mild and conciliatory measures, sent religious with the military, to whom the said Zambales promised to be peaceable. They made similar promises to former governors, but have kept none of them; on the contrary they have been bolder and more lawless than ever, robbing and killing many persons on sea and on land. For these offenses I consider that all the malefactors should be punished, and that means should be provided to protect the highways for the benefit of the Tagalos, Panpangos, and Ilocos, and of all others who pay tribute—since it is for this purpose, together with the teaching they receive, that they pay their tributes, and have placed themselves under his Majesty's protection and favor. If this punishment cannot be accomplished without war, then I consider war justifiable, for the reasons above stated. Without doubt the authority of the king is Page 217the first condition to be established, observing faithfully in all things the spirit of uprightness and Christian moderation—which is justice, charity, and freedom for the innocent, according to the saints, particularly St. Augustine and St. Thomas, and other doctors of the church—seeking the common weal. Since the cause for just war is the injury received, war against them would be unjust, if they are innocent of the charges against them. This is my opinion, in view of the aforesaid report, in the absence of better judgment. Issued from this convent of San Francisco at Manila, January twentieth, 1592.
Fray Pedro Baptista[24] Page 218
[1] The quotation from St. Augustine is cited in Gratian's “Decretum,” in Corpus juris canonici; it reads thus, in English: “The natural order, fitted to promote peace among mortals, demands that the power to wage war, and the direction of it, rest in the sovereign.” The other citation is from St. Thomas Aquinas's Summa theologica, part ii, div. ii, qu. 40, art. i.—Joseph Fitzgerald.
[2] “One may repel force with force.”
[3] “Just wars are defined to be those which avenge wrongs; if a nation or a state is to be punished either for neglect to punish the evil deeds of their people, or to make restitution of what has been taken wrongfully.”
[4] “He concedes all who refuses what is just.”