Return of Archbishop Don Fray Hernando Guerrero from his exile in Mariveles; and the end of the relation commenced.
Stripped of all consolation, the archbishop, Don Hernando Guerrero, remained twenty-six days in the island of Mariveles, where he endured perforce privations, both because of his advanced age, and because of the dreariness of the island—which is very great, as it is nearly deserted, and contains only some few Indian huts. Those Indians have charge of scouting those seas, and of advising Manila of what they discover, by the greater or less number of fires which they light—in the manner that the Persians were wont to do, who gave advice by means of those fires, which they called angaros, as is mentioned by Bardayo in the first chapter of his Argenis. The climate [of Mariveles] is very unhealthful, and the location is not a pleasant one as the island is shut in on all sides by thick forests, and because of the continual beating of the sea. There lived the venerable shepherd, meditating on the ingratitude of his sheep, venting his feeling in gentle sighs, and relieving his afflicted breast with tears. Thus was he found by four prebendaries of the Manila cabildo who went to console him, and to propose to him certain matters in behalf of the governor, which we shall detail later.
The church at Manila remained during that time as a flock without a shepherd. All was confusion and disorder. The new provisor, the bishop of Camarines, had readily raised the interdicts and the suspension of religious functions. He ordered the bells to be chimed for the feast on Saturday, the eve of the festival of the Holy Ghost. The prelates of the orders, with the exception of him of the Society, thought that the provisor who had been intruded could not legitimately raise the interdict and the other censures. For no mention of this is made in the chapter Alma Mater: de Sententia Excomunic. in 6; and having held a conference in regard to this matter, with the university of Santo Tomás, which always maintained a firm attitude in defense of the immunity of the Church, they determined to close their churches, and to observe the orders imposed by their legitimate prelate. They did so until after the feast of Pentecost was over. The Audiencia summoned them to act in accordance with the cathedral, but they paid no attention to it until they had despatched a suitable person to the archbishop. The latter, fearful lest greater disturbances should originate, gave heed, as a true father, and sent an order for them to raise the interdict; and they did so on May 20.
The orders and the two universities held various meetings and consultations with the governor, when they saw that the troubles which had originated from the archbishop’s exile were increasing, because of the acts of jurisdiction enacted by the provisor who had been intruded, invalid procedures in the administration of the sacraments, and scandals which had been occasioned to these new fields of Christendom. This last was not the point least worthy of consideration, since that precedent did more damage than was realized, both in the new fields of Christendom, and in the report of this matter among the foreign nations who surround these islands on all sides, for they note our actions carefully. They rendered various signed opinions for this; and they also drew up another, counseling the archbishop to yield certain things in order to avoid greater troubles which were indispensably necessary to restore the peace of that church, which was exposed to greater disturbances; and that, to assure his right, he should make a protest regarding it. They despatched the aforesaid prebendaries with this commission, who, on their arrival, laid the determination of the cabildo, orders, and universities before the archbishop, as well as the decision of the Audiencia in regard to the recalling him from exile, if the archbishop would concede three points, to wit:
“That he would consider as lawful, and confirm, all the acts of jurisdiction performed by the bishop of Camarines.
That he would place in possession of their posts Don Andrés Arias Xirón as archdean, and also the chaplain of the royal hospital.
That he would not proceed in any ecclesiastical trial pertaining to the archiepiscopal government, without the advice of the counselor who would be assigned to him.”
The archbishop resented greatly the proposition of such points to him, and preferred to remain in exile, where he had greater quiet than in Manila; but considering the decision and advice of so erudite persons, which were sufficient to discharge his conscience, he agreed to all the points proposed—first having made a protest that he was doing this to relieve himself from molestation, and to obtain the peace of his church and repose for the consciences of his sheep, until the decision of the matter should come from the royal and supreme Council of the Indias, in whom it inhered.
The governor and Audiencia determined to restore Don Fray Hernando Guerrero to his church, and on June 6, 1636, they withdrew him from the island of Mariveles. He entered Manila amid the great rejoicing of all, who could not look enough at their beloved shepherd; and commenced to govern his church. But it was not with the peace that he ought to have had, for new contentions and new causes for anger arose daily with the governor, who was ever despotic in his actions.[15] The archdean Don Andrés Arias Xirón took possession of his prebend, but God did not permit that he who had been the origin of so many disasters should obtain much; for in a short time he sickened with dropsy and other bad complications, and died in the flower of his age. The greatest evil was that he died impenitent, refusing to be absolved from the excommunication and censures by which he was bound, although the archbishop, as a pious shepherd, sent a priest to his house to persuade him to be absolved. The soldiers who took the archbishop into exile all died within two years, by quick and sudden deaths. The auditor Zapata died suddenly, being found dead in his bed, although he had retired in perfect health. The governor lost his nephew, Don Pedro de Corcuera, whom he loved dearly; and another nephew, named Don Juan de Corcuera, perished while going as commander of the ship “Nuestra Señora de la Concepción,” which was dashed to pieces in the islands of the Ladrones (today the Marianas), where many people were lost, and where the governor lost a great quantity of riches, which his greed (which was great) had amassed during his term. At this same time, Don Pedro de Francia, brother-in-law of Don Pedro [de] Corcuera, died; and so that no branch of that house might be left, God took to himself Don Pedro de Francia, son of Don Pedro Corcuera and Doña Maria de Francia. The same year the governor received news of the death of his brother, Don Iñigo Hurtado de Corcuera. His entire government was fatal and unfortunate; and later, in his residencia for it, he suffered many troubles, for he was kept prisoner for five years in a castle, and all his property was confiscated. Misfortune followed him into all parts, for having returned to España, where he was corregidor of Córdoba, they tried to kill him, and he got out of it by the skin of his teeth. Finally, when he was governor of the Canarias, it is said that he died suddenly. I write here only the results; I shall not consider what so many disasters together demonstrate. I leave the generally-known things which these islands still bewail, since the universal knowledge of them frees me from it; and in the following chapter, another and better pen [will take it up.][16]
But it does not seem to me fitting to neglect to mention in this place a testimony of what, it seems, Divine justice must have executed; so that we may conjecture from it how great an offense to the divine Majesty was the scandalous manner in which the exile of Archbishop Don Hernando Guerrero was carried out; so that we may know that if He displayed his temporal punishment in regard to what was pardonable and not guilty, how great will be the punishment which His Divine Majesty will mete out in His just tribunal to those men who were the cause and instrument of so sacrilegious and scandalous a desecration, unless they first hastened to atone for it by works of true penitence, in order to be deserving of His infinite mercy.