Father Gabriel Sanchez, in another letter to the father-visitor, writes thus: "Glory be to our Lord, Christianity in this island is receiving much increase. They all frequent the most holy sacraments with great fervor at Christmas, Epiphany, and other leading feasts. So many were the confessions and the communions that it seemed to me like Holy Week. They possess great confidence and faith, and through the most holy sacraments and the sacramental offices they are sure to receive (and his Majesty does bestow upon them even in temporal affairs) most signal favors. An old woman, a good Christian, was so reduced by sickness, and brought so near to death, that she no longer possessed her senses, or power of speech; in short, there was no hope that she would live. The sacrament of extreme unction was administered to her, and at once she began to improve, and at last regained entire health. A few days ago they brought to us a sick man, so tormented and harassed by a severe malady that he could not even raise his head; he therefore made his confession while reclining, and with great difficulty. But, as soon as he had ended it, he began to feel better, with the result that in two days he came to the church to render thanks to our Lord for the mercy that he had received, which he attributed to the holy sacrament of penance. A few days ago a child of four years—not realizing, as he was so little, what he was doing—waded into the sea, and, despite the haste with which he was taken from the water, was almost drowned. They brought him in haste to our house, that we might repeat the gospel over him, for they had no hope of preserving his life by natural means. When they brought him to us he showed almost no sign of respiration, his face was black, and his stomach much swollen with the water which he had swallowed. The gospel was read for him, and he was sprinkled with holy water; and then, in the presence of the many people who had assembled, he straightway recovered consciousness and became entirely well, in return for which they all gave many thanks to our Lord. Another incident, which occurred quite recently, I cannot refrain from relating. Our Lord has this day exercised His accustomed mercy in the case of two old men, very venerable and more than a hundred years old. The greater part of their long lives they had spent in diabolical acts of outrage, murder, cruelty, and lawlessness; and yet our Lord had waited for them until now—when, illumining them with His divine light, they were marvelously converted. I was astonished at beholding the fervor, sincerity and grief with which they expressed abhorrence for their past life and sought baptism, which they received today after careful instruction. To see the perseverance and constancy of this people has given great consolation to me. I shall relate in brief a few things which certainly give strong evidence of that constancy. An unmarried Indian woman was persecuted by a soldier with innumerable plots, yet she always resisted him valiantly. Once in particular, he sent her by a servant some twenty escudos; but she drove the servant away, and threatened that if he should come again she would fling him and his money through her window. The soldier, rendered bold by the fury of his passion, as he had a headstrong disposition, and realizing that he could not gain his damnable purpose by bribes, had recourse to threats. As these did not suffice, he laid violent hands on her, seriously hurting her; but our Lord came to her assistance, and she emerged victorious from the struggle, leaving the wretch in confusion and shame. Another woman was no less persecuted, a man offering her, among other gifts, a gold chain that was worth more than thirty escudos; but she rejected all his gifts with Christian courage. Then, fearing the fury of her persecutor and her own great danger, she persuaded her mother to accompany her, and they fled to some grain-fields, where she remained in hiding until he who was molesting her had left the village. Another, a young girl hardly eighteen years of age, and so poor that she could procure only a little rice for her support, was persecuted by many men, who offered her large sums of money to relieve her poverty; one of them offered her more than forty eight-real pieces. But she made answer that our Lord, in whom she trusted, would relieve her need; that she did not care to live by any means that would offend Him, but in serving Him was well content in her poverty; and that she was confident that our Lord would not abandon her. Another poor woman resisted with equal courage no less vexatious importunities, refusing a quantity of gold worth more than eighty escudos, thus leaving her persecutor in amazement. Another woman, fearing that she would have to defend her body by force from so many and violent importunities, removed it from danger, and herself from any occasion of offending God, by fleeing to the mountains, where she wandered about for almost four months, suffering, although with much satisfaction, many hardships and privations; nor did she return to the village until she learned that he who had brought her to such a plight had departed thence."
The good conduct of the Christians of Botuan. Chapter LVI.
I shall, continuing as I began, relate the prosperous condition of Christianity in Botuan in the same words which Father Valerio de Ledesma and his companion, Father Manuel Martinez, used in writing this year to the father-visitor. The letter of Father Valerio gives the following account: "Glory to our Lord, the inhabitants of this town are well instructed. There are nearly eight hundred Christians, and nearly all the rest of the people are catechumens, engaged in learning the necessary truths. We hold back these persons that they may prize more highly the mercy which God is showing them, and understand more thoroughly the Christian doctrine and acquire good habits. All the rest of the people have the best possible inclination to receive our holy faith and come on every Sunday and feast-day to hear the sermons and discourses; a large audience always assembles, and all of them, even the infidels, entertain a great affection for holy things. Of their own accord they bring their children to be baptized, and their sick people, to hear the gospel read. They erect crosses in their grain-fields, and sing the Christian doctrine with the Christians, of whom there are usually some in every house. In times of sickness they come at once to be baptized; and as they are universally well instructed, and have sufficient knowledge of the things of our faith, it is easy to succor them upon such occasions, so that hardly any one dies without having first received holy baptism. An Indian, seeing himself afflicted by a violent disease, asked to be baptized. They went to call the father for that purpose, but in the meantime the malady had gained such headway, that when he arrived he found the house in confusion and everyone bewailing the sick man as one dead. The father, seeing that he could not speak and seemed unable to hear, assured himself that he had asked for baptism; and, knowing that he was one of those who frequented the church, he asked for water to baptize him. Then, speaking in a loud voice, he persuaded him to try to say 'Jesus.' It seems that at the sound of that most sweet name the sick man recovered somewhat, and, making a great effort, pronounced the word. He soon regained breath, and made answer to the questions of the catechism, to the great wonder of all who were present. He received holy baptism, and soon afterward our Lord granted him complete health. His parents, who were pagans, astonished at his recovery, attributed it to the virtue of the holy name of Jesus, and to holy baptism. Through the mercy of God, there is constancy among the faithful. In all the time I have resided here I do not know of any Christian who has been present at a pagan sacrifice, although living among so many of them. The corregidor of this town related to me, with surprise, that although he had investigated many cases pertaining to this matter, he had never found any Christian guilty therein. This same man related that he had [on official journeys] taken in his company, among other Indians, some Christians of this town; that in some places which were unsafe, on account of enemies, he placed sentinels; and, when it was the turn of the Christians to go on guard, they were found praying, and singing the doctrine. He noticed, besides this, that they never let a day pass without reciting the rosary; and he greatly valued and praised such solicitude among persons so new in the faith."
To this account Father Manuel Martinez adds the following: "The esteem in which they hold holy baptism is universal. Consequently, those who have not received it, and some who in health refused it, when they become sick ask at once for the sacrament, confident that by this means they will acquire health, not only for their souls but for their bodies, inasmuch as our Lord has many times granted this to them. A little boy, the son of a chief of this town, was brought so low by sickness that he was thought to be dead; and as such they were weeping for him when an Agnus Dei and some holy water were sent to him from our house. Our Lord was pleased to restore him very soon to health, and his parents related it to every one, ascribing this result to the efficacy of the Agnus Dei and the holy water. A Spaniard was exhausted by a violent pain that had been afflicting him for some time. Seeing himself in such distress, he sent for one of our fathers, who read the gospel to him. Immediately he began to improve, and in less than a quarter of an hour felt entirely well. He then gave thanks to God, and made it publicly known that he had recovered his health by means of the holy gospel. In Advent and Lent the practice of discipline has been maintained in the church, in which participate the Spaniards who are wont to come to this town. Sometimes public and bloody flagellations took place; and on Holy Thursday and Friday there were two admirably arranged processions, in which many people accompanied the flagellants with torches. I will conclude this letter with two incidents, omitting many others, to avoid prolixity. The first concerns a pagan, who was grievously wounded by a wild boar while hunting. Thinking that the hour of death was at hand, and remembering to have heard in the church that in our necessities we should invoke the most holy name of Jesus, he fell upon his knees, and, folding his hands, repeated, 'Jesus, have mercy on me.' Our Lord heard his prayer; and, soon healed of his wounds, he came to recount this experience, and asked to be at once baptized. With great devotion he relates to others this act of God's mercy, and says that he received it through having heartily invoked the most holy name of Jesus. Another pagan, affrighted by some terrible thunder, and fearful that some flash of lightning might strike him, invoked many times with confidence the sweet name of Jesus, accompanied by all the people of his household; and all were protected and encompassed by one cross. A brilliant flash of lightning burst forth, accompanied by a frightful peal of thunder. The pagan, in his fright, fell to the ground, and all believed that their hour had come, and that they would be consumed by fire on the spot. But they noticed only a bad odor of something burning, and in the morning found that a palm-tree which grew close to the house was completely burned by the lightning. This incident filled them all with wonder, and they rendered thanks to our Lord, who by means of His own sweet name and holy cross had delivered them."
The number of people who were gathered into villages in the district of Alangalang, and the result of our labors therein. Chapter LVII.
At no time did the Filipinos have any form of towns with civic order and political government, such that at least one island, or a number of villages, recognizing one person as their lord, might live under his protection and rule; but he who was most powerful conquered others, and ruled over them. As there was not only one such, but almost all the chiefs asserted their authority, and conquered and ruled, the general result was that each chief remained apart from the rest, having his own followers, and fortified himself, keeping up an attitude of defense. Consequently, they were usually at war with one another, neighbors against neighbors—perpetually engaged in petty warfare, with ambuscades, violence, robbery, murders, and captures.
Very seldom, if ever, did any of these bands become friendly and live in the same neighborhood or village, and aid each other and combine against enemies. Even rarer were the lords who ruled large towns, such as Sebu, Manila, Cainta, and a very few others. To this must be added the fact that those who were able to remove from the vicinity and danger of such turmoils, and flee to the mountains to spend their lives, would there build their houses and, close by, cultivate their groves and fields. As a result, in places and at times favorable to the enjoyment of this tranquillity, many persons migrated; and soon the country districts abounded with homes—so that in some districts, and even in many today, one may journey many leguas, all the way through dwellings and plantations (which are cultivated and divided into fields), in the same manner as, here in Europe, the farm-houses and cottages are wont to stand. This was the condition of all those islands, and, in particular, of this island of Leite; the greater part of the people everywhere divided and scattered in rural hamlets, in rugged, inaccessible, and mountainous localities. Besides these, there were houses at considerable distances from one another, without any order, or any trace of streets or village, placed along the banks of the rivers, and surrounded by their grain-fields and groves. On account of these conditions, the first concern of Father Cosme de Flores, upon entering the district of Alangalang, was to gather all these settlements into one village, which he did; and this policy has been followed by those who have succeeded him in the charge of that mission field. This measure has been of no small advantage to those people; for in the year one thousand six hundred alone, two villages were established, containing each three hundred houses, and a third one with five hundred—all amounting to about four thousand five hundred souls, of whom more than a hundred were baptized in that year. During Lent all the Christians attended the services with eagerness, especially in Holy Week, when the people of the other villages joined them. They attended the divine services which were celebrated in as fitting a manner as possible. On the morning of Holy Thursday a sermon was preached to them concerning the holy sacrament; and in the afternoon the superior of that house washed the feet of a dozen poor persons (explaining in a brief sermon the signification of that holy ceremony), by which they were all greatly edified. Toward evening a well-ordered procession was formed containing a large number of flagellants, with other persons who carried some large crosses. This procession was repeated the next day, after the sermon on the passion.
On Easter the people from other villages assembled, and, after the mass and sermon, celebrated the occasion with all the tokens of rejoicing that they could display. A very graceful dance was performed, and all the people made merry in the court of the church with dancing according to their custom. What especially pleased us was, that in so great a concourse of people, who amused themselves and feasted after their own fashion, there was not one person who was known to have taken wine, although formerly this was a very ordinary vice among those people in their feasts and merry-making.
The condition of Christianity in Carigara. Chapter LVIII.
Our church here, although no older than five years, was both served and attended as if it were a church in Europe. Its services were rendered more magnificent by the choir of music, especially on feast-days; the musicians not only celebrated divine worship in consonance with the organ, but accompanied it with motets and other compositions in their own Bissayan language. These latter were sung, some to the leading of the organ, others in the musical mode and the manner of the country. Both methods greatly attracted the people, moved them to devotion, and caused them to learn willingly and with pleasure our sacred mysteries, thus couched in their own meter and style of music. In short, these were affected in the same way which the glorious doctor St. Augustine mentions concerning himself; and we all experienced the same emotions. By these means those Christians became fervent, and frequented with profit the holy sacraments. The fruit of their devotion was apparent in their lives, as Father Francisco de Enzinas relates in one of his letters; therein he continually praises, as one who keeps this matter in his mind, and is personally concerned in it, the good disposition of those people, their readiness to accept the teachings of virtue, and their service to God, concerning which he relates the following: