Today, most Americans under 40 know very little about George Washington’s crossing of the Delaware River on Christmas Day in 1776. They may have seen photos of Emanuel Leutze’s famous painting which managed to capture the American spirit but not accurate physical details of the crossing.
In 1988 Benjamin Hart published Faith and Freedom from which I’ve excerpted his account of Washington’s momentous crossing, which we would do well to remember and to teach our children and grandchildren.
From Faith and Freedom, by Benjamin Hart:
[George Washington had suffered a series of humiliating defeats in addition to backbiting among his men, including Charles Lee, who sought to run down his reputation whenever he had a chance to talk with members of Congress. British General William Howe had executed devastating attacks against the Americans and now had only to cross the Delaware River to capture Philadelphia. But Howe was foiled by Washington, who made his fabled crossing of the half frozen Delaware River that 1776 Christmas night — RMB]
“The Patriot forces had to endure a terrible storm. But … the operation would not have succeeded without help from the weather. The storm actually was a godsend. The British forces encamped in Trenton, mainly German mercenaries, did not believe any army could function under such conditions and so ignored reports that Washington was planning an attack. In sub-freezing and blizzard conditions Washington packed onto a fleet of 40-feet longboats 2,400 troops, in addition to horses, artillery, ammunition, and supplies. Soldiers who got wet found themselves encased in frozen clothing; floating ice chunks in the river threatened to smash the boats; and progress was slow. Washington hoped to attack at night. But it became clear that it would be broad daylight by the time they reached enemy encampments.”
“When the final march actually began, the storm was at its worst. Two Americans dropped and froze to death during the march. But the blizzard and howling winds also concealed American troop movements …. The German (Hessian) mercenary forces were surprised [they never expected the Americans to ‘keep their powder dry’ under such conditions; the battle was actually an anti-climax in comparison to the horrible deprivations of the journey]. Blinded by the snow and unable even to discern from which direction Patriot shots were being fired, 1,500 Hessians surrendered….”
“American casualties: two men had frozen to death on the march, and three more were wounded during the battle. This was a staggering victory for Washington, and greatly boosted American spirits.”
“A week later, Washington repeated the feat, this time in the Battle of Princeton. He crossed the Delaware again and was almost trapped by Lord Cornwallis’ forces. In well-ordered fashion, the British formed their customary battle lines and were about to slice the Patriots into ribbons. Washington, seeing confusion among his ranks, galloped to the front in an attempt to steady the nerves of his wavering recruits. On his huge white horse, with his 6-foot 3-inch frame, he was a conspicuous target. He stopped only 30 yards from the first British line, and directed his men to take aim. Miraculously, he survived the first volley. As historian J. T. Flexner recounts the episode: ‘When the two forces came in range, both fired; Washington was between them. An aide, Colonel Richard Fitzgerald, covered his face with his hat to keep from seeing the Commander in Chief killed. When Fitzgerald lowered the hat, he saw many men dead and dying, but the General was sitting untouched on his horse.”
George Washington has been the object of cowardly attack since the mid-20th century. As Alexander Solzhenitsyn wrote, “To destroy a country, you must first cut off the roots.” And George Washington is very much a part of our roots. So the usual suspects seek to destroy him.
However, the historical record is available for all who care to exert themselves just a bit and see for themselves.
He wrote about his admiration for his men, “Naked and starving as they are, we cannot enough admire the incomparable patience and fidelity of these soldiers.” His exhortations included, “To the distinguished character of a Patriot, it should be our highest glory to add the more distinguished character of Christian.”
The Reverend Henry Muhlenberg had the opportunity to observe Washington’s conduct: “Washington rode around among his army yesterday and admonished each and every one to fear God. This gentleman … respects God’s word, believes in atonement through Christ, and bears himself in humility and gentleness.”
Regarding that Christmas night in 1776, after the ensuing battle the following day, Washington ordered his men to treat the Hessians “with humanity”. This was totally unexpected, for the Germans had behaved despicably toward American farmers and homes and had massacred prisoners just a few weeks prior. The German prisoners wrote letters home to Germany praising the Americans. Many Germans emigrated to America after the war.
In his farewell address, long ignored, but which used to be studied in high school and college, Washington stated what for long was assumed but is now mocked, “Of all the dispositions and habits which lead to political prosperity, Religion and Morality are indispensable supports.”
He also was quoted by Ashahel Green, “Religion and Morality are the essential pillars of civil society.”
Finally, in his speech to the Delaware Chiefs in 1779, he said, “You will do well to wish to learn our ways of life, and above all, the religion of Jesus Christ. These will make you a greater and a happier people than you are.”
This Christmas season, we are grateful for God Who sent forth His Son born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem us from our sins. And we are grateful for our history, in which George Washington played a large and indispensable role and who, as his friend, Henry Lee summarized, was “First in war, first in peace, and first in the hearts of his countrymen.”
His example and faith deserve to be rediscovered and the Christmas season is a good time to ponder thereon.
The American spirit is captured well in Emmanuel Leutze’s 19th Century painting of Washington’s crossing the Delaware on Christmas Day, 1776.
With deep sadness we saw the rapidly deteriorating physical condition of Cousin Louis (Papito) Max Rodriguez. He had been stricken with a type of bone cancer which was unforgiving, but which was also all in the the hand of our Sovereign Lord Who called Louis home early this morning, Tuesday, December 20, 2022, exactly 7 years to the day after the passing of his mother, Aunt Sarah, and one year plus one day after the passing of Cousin Max (Papaito).
Louis, the eldest of the Barnes/Rodriguez cousins, was born in Miami, Florida, July 13, 1949.
His mother, Aunt Sarah, was and continues to be an ever-present influence on us all: dearly loved and honored. I’ve written about her before, such as her insistence on having us faithfully attend church, including Easter sunrise services, as well as participate in outings. These events had lasting emotional as well as educational — not to mention spiritual –impacts on me and I’ll be forever grateful.
Louis was her first child and she loved him as a devoted mother can love her firstborn. He would be the first to tell you he went through some rough patches in life; however, his mother never ceased to pray and to care for him and, over time, Louis remembered the old paths she had pointed to him in times past.
In times like these, memories flood the mind.
His visit with us in El Pao in the early 1960s. One evening, in the early 1970s, he talked garrulously about that visit and the friendships he made with Herman Gerbracht and John Thuoy, both of them among the “big boys” that I looked up to whenever they returned to the mining camp for summer or Christmas.
He also got many years worth of mileage having seen me run to catch a fly ball, going over a steep incline at the end of the field, and promptly slapping a nest teeming with angry picaojos (“stingeyes”). In Louis’ version, I first disappeared over the edge, and then bounced right back and ran like the wind towards the house, slapping my face, yelling at full volume. I know he was concerned, like the rest, but after I went to the hospital and was put on some medication and therapy, knowing all would be well, he began his years’ long, hilarious narrative of the event.
His recollections helped me remember some incidents and relationships centered around El Pao — here again, that mining camp is present with us a lifetime later. I most certainly would have forgotten some of these forever had he not mentioned them on that early 70s evening.
His invitation to visit Fisher Island with him in the late 1980s. Having breakfast in the cafe, we ran into Bryant Gumbel, whom we only knew from sports news broadcasts, but who was right at home doing whatever he was doing on the island. Neither we nor Louis were anywhere near the per capita income levels of the inhabitants, yet Louis was right at home, unpretentious, loquacious, and helpful as always.
His invitation to go sailing with him when we had a one-day layover in Miami in 2001. There were 12 of us then plus a Great Pyrenees puppy. “Bring him on board! Plenty of room!” And so we did, along with Aunt Sarah who had prepared a paella that I can still taste, some 21 years later. We had a ball and the event was stamped on my children’s minds. And mine.
His telling us about Shake-A-Leg charity for children with disabilities, a work he thoroughly enjoyed and for which he was well suited as it combined sailing with working with children.
The last time we saw him was in late 2015, shortly before Aunt Sarah’s death. A small group of us had lunch together at a Cracker Barrel north of Miami. He had been as jovial as always but then suddenly turned to me, and to my astonishment, “Hey, Rick, I wasn’t too hard on you as we grew up, was I? I mean, do I owe you an apology?”
Stunned, I first looked at his face to see if this was a joke, but he was serious. Then I searched my mind and heart to try to remember if I had ever held anything against him. And nothing coming to mind I replied, “No, Louis. You’ve been a good friend and I am enjoying spending time with you today.”
He was content. And that incident said more to me about Cousin Louis than a well written and researched encomium could ever do, not least his childlike inquiry seeking to ensure all is well.
My second to last conversation with him took place about four weeks ago, shortly before Thanksgiving: “I look forward to coming to see you soon when I get out of here…how is Lillie? How are the children?” Over the phone, his voice was strong and energetic. But we both knew the condition was serious.
Then, about a week later, I called him to see if he was OK to have some of my children drop by to say hello as they were in the state. His voice was not as strong and he politely demurred, saying to visit in the clinic was a hassle and it was quite a bit out of their way. Of course, I fully understood and so did my sons and daughters. I wished him well and we agreed to speak again.
The last time I spoke with him, last night, he was unresponsive, but I agree with his sister, Cousin Vivian, who believes that one should assume a patient in such a condition can somehow hear. I spoke to him, assuring him of our prayers and love. And then I prayed with him. Later, Lillie and the children gathered around the phone to sing Silent Night as Vivian had the phone on speaker for him to listen.
My sadness cannot be compared with that of his surviving sisters, Janis and Vivian, and their husbands, Pete and Rick, and their children — Louis’ nieces and nephews — to all of whom I extend my deepest sympathies and love.
This is not an adiós but an hasta luego, for we sorrow not as others which have no hope (I Thess. 4:13).
All is well with you now, dear cousin. Rest in peace.
From left: Sarita Barnes, Janis Rodriguez, Eileen Barnes, Louis (Papito) Rodriguez, Max (Papaito) Barnes, Vivian Rodriguez
Louis (Papito) at left and Aunt Sarah, seated in front of him, along with Janis and Pete, Vivian and Rick and their children
Louis with Charles Barnes (2) and Lillian Barnes, Fisher Island, Florida, circa 1987
(Note: This post largely extracts a letter I wrote 22 years ago, which is even more relevant today)
We’ve heard it said that seeds planted in a given century come to fruition in the next. If so, it may be helpful to look at 19th century seeds which gave the 20th and the 21st (so far) centuries a harvest of depravity unknown to the first 1,800 years of the Christian calendar.
We begin (without seeking to offend our neo-Darwinian friends) with Darwin’s (1809-1882) On the Origin of Species, which purported to explain why some “races” are superior to others (this purpose, actually in its original subtitle, is rarely mentioned today, and new editions omit it. The full title is: On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection, or the Preservation of Favoured Races in the Struggle For Life).
The book was published in 1859; its first 1,250 copies sold out overnight. It was not the common folks, but rather the intellectual elite, which bought it out and began to apply it, for it gave a patina of scientific support (emphasis on patina) to the ancient desire to divorce oneself from the claims of a Creator. Claims seen in political documents until then, such as the Declaration of Independence, which presupposed that we are created men and women with God-given (inalienable) rights. (The authors of the declaration knew pagan history; they knew the pagan idea of the eternity of matter and ascending circles of existence. This preceded Darwin by millennia. Yet, though knowing this, the Founding Fathers rejected it. They knew that inalienable rights could not be grounded on a la-la theory.)
Another 19th century seed, Karl Marx (1818-1883), first dedicated Das Kapital to Charles Darwin, who, in a rare fit of prudence, declined the honor. Darwin could never fully shake off his Christian heritage. His doubts pursued him to the grave. That was not the case with Marx. For more on this monster, known for “howling gigantic curses”, we would recommend Paul Johnson’s Intellectuals. For our purposes, suffice it to say that this seed reaped a more overt harvest than Darwin and Nietzsche (see below). Darwin and Nietzsche’s harvests are obvious to anyone who pauses but a moment. But to see Marx’s harvest doesn’t require a pause; it merely requires that one be sentient. His assertion that man is a mere economic animal fits nicely, as intended, with Darwin’s theory. In both, man is declared to be an animal.
The third seed, Frederick Nietzsche (1844-1900), whose most famous work was Thus Spake Zarathustra, was grossly antichristian. His most salient ideas were a despising of the weak, the mediocre, and the altruistic. He exalted war and chaos as a stimulus for energy and the triumphant life. He was hostile to Christian morality. To him, each individual — not a transcendent Creator — defines his or her identity, not to mention morality. But he did preach a morality of the lords and a morality of the slaves. The former, a superior morality, is characterized by power and dominion; the latter, a weak morality, is characterized by compassion, humility, and patience. He died a madman.
We hardly need to comment on the 20th century harvest from these seeds. The thoughtful reader will recognize how the above philosophies prevail in today’s political and corporate life. As illustration, we will simply summarize that harvest in terms of a basic rule: the good tends to life; the evil tends to death. Clearly the harvest of the 20th century has tended to death. And the progress so far of the 21st has not abated that tendency much.
The following statistics are conservative estimates. More data continues to become available which reflects numbers far higher than these (for example, The Black Book of Communism, Mao: The Unknown Story, Hungry Ghosts, etc.). Nonetheless, the data below will suffice for our purposes. It declares the 20th century tale of deaths caused by deliberate state policy:
95.2 million deaths; 477 per 10,000 population — Communist states (international socialism)
20.3 million deaths; 495 per 10,000 population — Fascist states (national socialism)
3.1 million deaths; 48 per 10,000 population — Partially free
8 million deaths; 22 per 10,000 population — Free
The above figures exclude the 60 million estimated deaths caused by abortions since 1973 in the United States and their territories; the 35.7 million estimated deaths caused by 20th century wars; and the 15 million deaths caused by the state-sponsored Ukraine famine of the early 1930s. Be reminded: the first two state systems in the list above are/were atheistic, antichristian systems, whose first order of business was to suppress the Bible and the Christians. This is well documented and overt, but hardly ever stated in polite company. If the Spanish Inquisition of a few centuries back deserves censure, then surely the regimes alluded to above deserve opprobrium. But the public elite has never been known for consistency … or honesty.
The biggest characters (using that term deliberately) associated with the statistics above, were ALL disciples of the ideas of Darwin, Marx, and Nietzsche.
Is there cause for optimism in the 21st century? Well, if evil seeds can be expected to germinate in subsequent centuries, then surely good seeds will do the same. On that basis, we can be cautiously optimistic, although the harvest may be more fully enjoyed by our children and grandchildren. We’ll mention only one such seed, but a most critical one: the great shift in education from a state sponsored function back to a father and mother duty.
This tectonic redirection was clearly seen in the latter part of the 20th century but was accelerated after the draconian measures imposed by most — though thankfully not all — “First World” governments since early 2020. These mandates — very few were formally passed into law by legitimate legislatures — ironically exposed the philosophies pushed by state education systems to horrified parents who promptly removed their children from government schools and either began to educate them at home or, at great financial sacrifice, in private religious schools.
This is a consequential shift back to first principles. We are already seeing some impact in that major universities are actively seeking home-educated children or at least those whose education has been closely overseen by their parents. In sharp contrast to the Zeitgeist since the mid-19th century, the late 20th and early 21st centuries mindset of many is that the child is on loan to the father and mother by God. And it is the family’s duty, not the state’s, to educate him or her. We are convinced this shift tends to life and, therefore, will result in a more compassionate and a more life-supporting and life-affirming 21st and 22nd centuries. May our children and grandchildren see that day!
Declaration of Independence, original (“engrossed copy”) on display in the National Archives
It would be beneficial to set aside a few minutes to read our first president’s Thanksgiving proclamation.
WHEREAS it is the duty of all nations to acknowledge the providence of Almighty God, to obey His will, to be grateful for His benefits, and humbly to implore His protection and favour; and Whereas both Houses of Congress have, by their joint committee, requested me “to recommend to the people of the United States a DAY OF PUBLICK THANKSGIVING and PRAYER, to be observed by acknowledging with grateful hearts the many and signal favors of Almighty God, especially by affording them an opportunity peaceably to establish a form of government for their safety and happiness:”
NOW THEREFORE, I do recommend and assign THURSDAY, the TWENTY-SIXTH DAY of NOVEMBER next, to be devoted by the people of these States to the service of that great and glorious Being who is the beneficent Author of all the good that was, that is, or that will be; that we may then all unite in rendering unto Him our sincere and humble thanks for His kind care and protection of the people of this country previous to their becoming a nation; for the signal and manifold mercies and the favorable interpositions of His providence in the course and conclusion of the late war; for the great degree of tranquility, union, and plenty which we have since enjoyed;– for the peaceable and rational manner in which we have been enabled to establish Constitutions of government for our safety and happiness, and particularly the national one now lately instituted;– for the civil and religious liberty with which we are blessed, and the means we have of acquiring and diffusing useful knowledge;– and, in general, for all the great and various favours which He has been pleased to confer upon us.
And also, that we may then unite in most humbly offering our prayers and supplications to the great Lord and Ruler of Nations and beseech Him to pardon our national and other transgressions;– to enable us all, whether in publick or private stations, to perform our several and relative duties properly and punctually; to render our National Government a blessing to all the people by constantly being a Government of wise, just, and constitutional laws, discreetly and faithfully executed and obeyed; to protect and guide all sovereigns and nations (especially such as have shewn kindness unto us); and to bless them with good governments, peace, and concord; to promote the knowledge and practice of true religion and virtue, and the increase of science among them and us; and, generally to grant unto all mankind such a degree of temporal prosperity as He alone knows to be best.
GIVEN under my hand, at the city of New-York, the third day of October, in the year of our Lord, one thousand seven hundred and eighty-nine.
(signed) G. Washington
Versión en español (Spanish Translation):
Primera proclamación oficial del Día de Acción de Gracias de parte del Presidente George Washington:
Considerando que es el deber de todas las naciones reconocer la providencia del Dios todopoderoso, a obedecer su voluntad, a ser agradecidos por sus beneficios, y a humildemente rogar por su protección y su favor;
Y, considerando que ambas cámaras del congreso, mediante su resolución conjunta, han solicitado que yo “recomiende al pueblo de los Estados Unidos un Día de Acción de Gracias y de Oración , a ser observado mediante el reconocer con corazones agradecidos los muchos y grandes favores de Dios todopoderoso, especialmente el haberles ofrecido la oportunidad de establecer pacíficamente una forma de gobierno para su seguridad y su gozo.
Ahora pues, recomiendo y asigno el próximo jueves, veintiseis de noviembre, a ser dedicado por el pueblo de estos estados al servicio de Aquel gran y glorioso Ser quien es al Autor beneficiente de todo lo bueno que ha sido, que es, y que será; que podamos todos unirnos en darle a Él nuestro sincero y humilde agradecimiento por su bondadoso cuidado y protección por el pueblo de este pais antes de ser convertidos en una nación; por sus misericordias grandes y multiples; y por las interposiciones favorables de su providencia en el curso y en la conclusión de la pasada guerra; por el gran grado de tranquilidad, unión, y abundancia que hemos disfrutado; —
Por la manera apacible y racional en que fuimos habilitados a establecer constituciones de gobierno para nuestra seguridad y gozo, y en particular la constitución nacional que acaba de ser ratificada.—
Por la libertad civil y religiosa con las cuales somos bendecidos; y por los medios que poseemos de adquirir y difundir el conocimiento util; —
Y, en general, por todos los favores grandes y múltiples que a Él le ha agradado conferir sobre nosotros.
Y también, que nosotros podamos unirnos en humildemente ofrecer nuestras oraciones y suplicaciones al gran Senor y Gobernador de las naciones y rogarle que perdone nuestras transgresiones nacionales y personales – para habilitarnos a todos, o en estaciones públicas o en estaciones privadas, a desempeñar nuestros deberes apropiadamente y punctualmente.; —
Y le suplicamos que nuestro gobierno nacional sea de bendición a todo el pueblo mediante leyes sabias, justas, y constitucionales, ejecutadas y obedecidas discretamente y fielmente;
A proteger y guiar a todos los soberanos y las naciones (en especial aquellas que han demonstrado bondad hacia nosotros); y a bendecirlas con buenos gobiernos, con paz y armonía; a promover el conocimiento y la práctica de la religión y la virtud verdadera entre nosotros y entre ellas;
Y, en general, que Él conceda a todos el grado de prosperidad que Él considere que sea lo mejor.
Dado bajo mi mano, en la ciudad de Nueva York, el tercer dia de octubre en el año de nuestro Senor, mil setecientos ochenta y nueve.
[Prelude I, Prelude II, and The Cristiada I, give brief backgrounds and histories of the much-neglected, covered up, and ignored Cristiada which bloodied our neighbors to the south in the early 20th Century. Given that similar preliminary dynamics have been and are occurring in our own country, we are well advised to be aware not only of the history of the Cristiada but the aggressive atheism that propelled it. This series of posts on the Cristiada concludes with Mike Ashe’s post below. As the reader can see, Mike has a genuine desire and burden to remember those who would rather give their lives than betray the Lord Jesus Christ. Some things are more valuable than life itself — RMB]
The Cristiada II — Mike Ashe
Martyred Religious
The courage of these men is an inspiration to us all. All but a few were born into poverty; many became priests and served their God and their flock with unconditional love. When facing death all forgave their executioners and asked God to forgive them of their sins.
I am blessed to have lived with and among the people of Mexico and am proud that my children and grandchildren are of Mexican descent.
VIVA CRISTO REY
Cristóbal Magallanes Jara (1869-1927) age at death 58
In the Movie “For Greater Glory” Peter O’Toole “Father Christopher” was based on Cristobal Magallanes Jara. Born in Totatiche, Jalisco, ordained at age 30. In 1914 the government closed the seminary in Guadalajara. Magallanes opened a seminary in Totatiche, he wrote and preached against armed rebellion but was falsely accused of promoting violence. Arrested in 1927 while in route to celebrate mass at a farm. He gave away his few remaining possessions, gave them absolution, and without a trial was executed.
His last words to his executioners were “I am innocent, and ask God that my blood may serve to unite my Mexican brethren.”
Agustín Caloca Cortés (1898-1927) age at death 29
Agustin Caloca Cortes was born in a ranch in Zacatecas of simple peasants. He attended the seminary founded by father Christopher and graduated in 1919. In 1923 he was ordained as a priest and was subsequently assigned as parish priest assigned to the Seminary. In December 1926 he had to flee with eleven fifth year students to Cocoatzco. In May with federales approaching he ordered the seminarians to disperse among the towns people. After helping the seminarians escape, he was captured and reunited with father Christopher. A military officer offered him freedom, but he refused unless freedom was also granted to father Christopher.
His last words before execution by firing squad were: “We live for God and for him we die.”
Román Adame Rosales (1859-1927) age at death 71
Ordained a priest in 1890. When Calles forced church closures Roman took his ministry underground. In April 1927 while conducting Lenten services at Rancho Veldones, he was betrayed and arrested the next day, was tortured and jailed on Mexiticacan then marched miles to the town of Yahualica. In jail he received no food or water. Local lay people offered to buy freedom for their priest from Colonel Quinones. The colonel demanded a $6,000 mordida but instead of releasing the priest he executed him and pocketed the money.
Rodrigo Aguilar Aleman (1875–1927) age at death 52
Ordained a priest in 1903, named parish priest of Union de Tula, Jalisco, and subjected to persecution following the suspension of public services by the Calles Government. Due to the harassment he suffered after 1927 he was assigned to the parish in Ejutla, Jalisco, where he continued to serve the spiritual needs of the people.
In 1927 General Juan Izaguirre arrived in Ejutla with a large number of soldiers. Father Rodrigo was alerted along with seminaries of the General’s arrival. Everyone fled except for Rodrigo who stayed behind to burn the list of names of the seminary.
When discovered the soldiers asked him to identify himself, replied, “I am a Priest,” and was taken into custody. Early the next day the General ordered that father Rodrigo be hanged in the town square from a Mango tree. When the rope was tied to the branch father blessed the instrument of his martyrdom, pardoned his executioners, and made a gift of his rosary to one of them.
He was offered freedom if he would shout “Long live the Supreme Government”. So, a soldier asked him again “Long Live who” without hesitation father said “Christ the King and Our Lady of Guadalupe”. They pulled him up and lowered him asking him again. He gave the same answer. The third time, now barely able to speak, he gave the same answer. This time he was left hanging and died.
Julio Alvarez Mendoza (1866–1927) age at death 61
Born in Guadalajara, Jalisco where he studied for the priesthood ordained in 1984. Assigned to the Mechoacanejo, Jalisco parish served with kindness and simplicity the rest of his life. He had the opportunity to leave his parishioners at the beginning of the clerical persecutions but chose to remain their priest. In March 1927 in route to serve mass at a farm he was captured. The following morning, he was taken to San Julian where he was shot after pardoning his executioners. His body was left on the trash heap near the church, where a monument was erected in his honor.
Luis Batis Sainz (1870–1926) age at death 56
Born in San Miguel Mezquital Zacatecas 1870. After his ordination in 1894, he was assigned to the San Juan de Guadalupe, Durango. He was also the spiritual director of a seminary. In 1925 he was named parish priest of Chalchihutes, Zacatecas. In his last public service that he presided he referred to the anticlerical law that would go into effect the next day saying “The author of this misfortune isn’t the Government of President [Calles], but rather the sins of everyone, and so Catholics to rise up in arms; that isn’t Christian behavior.”
The next day a detachment took father Luis and three laymen, Manuel Morales, David Roldan, and Salvador Lara, out of Chalchihutes. Someone shouted as they left “Father, don’t forget us” father replied, “If you are my children, I won’t forget you” and from the vehicle he said “I’m going to give you a blessing and, please do not follow me, nothing is going to happen.”
At the crossroads of Las Bocas and Canutillo roads after walking 500 yards the soldiers fell into a square formation. Standing before the firing squad father asked to speak “I beseech you, for the sake of Manuel Morales’ little children, that his life be spared, I offer my life for his, I will be a victim, I am willing to be one.” Morales replied, “I am dying for God, and God will care for my children.” Smiling, Father Luis gave him absolution and said “I’ll see you in heaven.” The rifle barrage cut all four men down.
Mateo Carrea Magallanes (1866–1927) age at death 61
Born in Tepechitlan, Zacatecas, he attended seminary in Zacatecas and was ordained at the age of 27. As a young priest he gave the first communion to Miguel Pro who was also martyred. Following the government repression of the Catholic church in 1910, he went into hiding. In 1926 he was assigned to Valparaiso. In 1927 while bringing communion to an invalid woman he was arrested and accused of being a part of the rebellion.
Father Mateo was asked by General Euliogo Ortiz to hear the confession of some imprisoned Cristeros members. He agreed to her the sacrament of confession but afterwards Ortiz demanded that father Mateo tell him what the prisoners had confessed. Father Mateo refused and Ortiz pointed a gun a father’s head and threatened him with immediate death. He continued to refuse and at dawn he was shot at the town’s cemetery.
Atlilano Cruz Alvarado (1901–1928) age at death 27
Born in Teocaltiche, Jalisco, as a boy he attended cattle. At the age of 17 he studied for the priesthood and was ordained in 1927 during the height of the anticlerical government crackdown. After being ordained, he was sent to a parish where a priest (Toibio Romo Gonzalez) had been shot to death by soldiers. In 1928 Father Atlilano joined his pastor at a nearby ranch to discuss the parish situation. Government troops raided and gunned down the pastor and father Atlilano waited on his knees for his own execution which came shortly thereafter.
Miguel De La Mora (1874–1927) age at death 49
Born in Tecalitlan, Jalisco, ordained in 1908. He sheltered in place like all of the priests during the Calles period. In civilian clothes and accompanied by his two elder brothers left to mountains where he was apprehended bound and sent to Colima. In Colima, General Flores immediately ordered the execution of the two brothers in a stable in the barracks on the dunk of horses. Father Miguel was gunned down as he was reciting the rosary.
Pedro Esqueda Ramirez (1887–1927) age at death 40
Born in San Juan de los Lagos, Jalisco, at age 15 he entered the seminary in Guadalajara, but in 1914 the Seminary was forcibly seized and closed by the Government. He returned to San Juan de los Lagos and served as deacon. The seminary was reopened and in 1916 he was ordained. His mission was the education of children in the faith. In 1926 during the crackdown on the clergy the town tried to convince him to flee San Juan, but he continued to work, living in several private homes.
In 1927 he was arrested. In a miserable and dark room, he suffered the fierceness of scourges and other cruelties that caused the fracture of both arms. The incessant torture lasted 4 days; battered and full of wounds he was ordered to climb a tree by himself. The tree was to be a pyre for him to be burned alive. He was mercilessly shot by a high officer.
Margarito Flores Garcia (1899–1927) age at death 28
Born in the silver mining town of Taxco, Guerrero, he worked in the fields during his youth to support his poverty-stricken family. He entered the seminary in Chilapa and was ordained in 1924. After being appointed professor at the seminary he was forced to take refuge in Mexico City. He was arrested and released in Mexico City and decided to return to Guerrero where he was appointed pastor for a parish in Atenango. Father Margarito was captured upon his arrival, humiliated and later shot to death.
Jose Isabel Flores Varela (1866–1927) age at death 61
Born in San Juan de La Paz, Zacatecas, he was most distinguished graduate of the seminary of Guadalajara. A long-time friend denounced him to the municipal authorities. He was captured en route to a ranch to celebrate Mass, imprisoned, and offered his freedom in exchange for allegiance to Plutarco Elias Calles. Upon his refusal he was beheaded.
David Galvan Bermudes (1882–1915) age at death 33
Born in Guadalajara, Jalisco, he entered the seminary at age 14. Because of his love for the poor and for workers, he organized a worker’s union. Defender of the sanctity of marriage, he helped a young woman pursued by a married soldier by pretending to be her spouse, thereby earning the virulent enmity of the soldier. He and another priest, Jose Maria Araiza, were arrested as they ministered to wounded soldiers. Lieutenant Colonel Enrique Vera, the married soldier whose enmity Galvan Bermudez had aroused earlier, had both of them shot.
Pedro de Jesus Maldonado Lucero (1892-1937) age at death 44
Born in Chihuahua, he was one of seven children. At age 17 he entered the seminary, which was shut down in 1914 due to the revolution. He continued his studies in El Paso, Texas. He was ordained in 1918 in El Paso and celebrated his first mass there. In 1924 he became the parish priest of Santa Isabel. He and other priests were targets of anti-Christian violence. The town’s name was changed from Santa Isabel to General Trias as part of the effort to erase references to Christianity from the state. He again fled to El Paso, returning to Boquillas del Rio not far from Santa Isabel. He continued to carry out his ministry until his death.
On Ash Wednesday 1937 (after the “official end” of the war) a group of drunken armed men discovered his location at a nearby ranch. He was brought barefoot to the town hall, where he was pistol whipped, fracturing his skull and dislodging his left eye from its socket. The next day Father died on the 19th anniversary of his First Solemn Mass. The death certificate recorded death due to severe brain trauma and injuries throughout his body caused by beatings. In 1937 was anyone charged with his beatings? That should have been Plutarco Elias Calles who was exiled into the US in 1936 and should have been charged with war crimes against his own people.
Dedicated to helping the poor and disadvantaged he was raised and educated as a poor orphan. He also worked with the Tarahumara people in Chihuahua. Farmers would ask him to bless their fields.
Peter of Jesus Maldonado is a patron of the Archdioceses of Chihuahua and the Diocese of El Paso, Texas. His individual feast day is February 11th the day of his death.
Jesus Mendez Montoya (1880–1928) age at death 48
Born in Tarimbaro Michoacan, he completed seminary studies in Michoacan and was ordained in 1906. At the time of his death, he was pastor of Valtierilla, Guerrero. Federal troops entered Valtierilla to suppress a small group of Cristeros in 1928. The soldiers found the house where Father Jesus was hiding. He was taken to the town Square and executed him by firing squad.
Justino Orona Madrigal (1877-1928) age at death 51
Born in Atoyac, Jalisco, he was the son of an extremely poor family. He entered Guadalajara’s Seminary and was ordained in 1904. When the persecution began, he decided to remain with his flock in Cuquio, hiding in a ranch in Las Cruces with his brothers, Jose Maria, and Toribio Ayala. In 1928 federal troops and the mayor of Cuquio entered the ranch. Father Justino opened the door and shouted, “Viva Cristo Rey!” and he was shot. His body was then deposited in the town square.
Sabas Reyes Salazar (1879-1927) age at death 48
Born in Cocula, Jalisco, into a poor family. He entered Guadalajara’s Seminary and was ordained in 1911. During the persecution he continued his priestly duties in Tototlan. When returning from a baptism during Easter Week, he was captured and treated with sadistically, being tied extremely tightly to a temple column and tortured for three days with no food or water and burning his hands with fire. On April 13, 1927, he was taken to the cemetery where they began riddling his body with bullets but still was heard faintly, “Viva Cristo Rey!”
Jose Maria Robles Hurtado (1888-1927) age at death 39
Born in Mascota, Jalisco, into a devout Roman Catholic family. He was ordained in 1913 at the age of 25. A few years later he founded the sisters of the Sacred Heart. He was called “Madman for the Sacred” for his preaching and personal example and great devotion to the Eucharist.
The Constitution of 1917 prohibited public devotional practices. Father Jose proposed the creation of a huge cross to be placed in the geographic center of Mexico. The cross would represent Mexico’s devotion to Christ as its king (The Sacred Heart). In open defiance 40,000 Roman Catholics made their way to the site for groundbreaking services.
At that point the government decided to crack down or intensify persecution of the Church including Father Jose for his actions. He was arrested and was found guilty and sentenced to be hanged from an oak tree. Upon arriving at the tree, he forgave his executioners. He took the noose into his own hands and said “Don’t dirty your hands” to the man who brought it, he kissed it and placed it around his own neck.
Toribio Romo Gonzalez (1900–1928) age at death 27
Born to peasant farmers in the countryside near Jalostotitlán, Jalisco, he was one of three siblings that became religious. He was ordained in 1923. During the persecution he hid with his religious brother and sister. He sent is brother away to safety and he and his sister remained in hiding where soldiers found him and shot him in his bed getting up from the bed a second shot mortally wounded him and he fall into the arms of his sister, who cried out, “Courage, Father Toribio! Merciful Christ receive him. Long live Christ the King!”
Jenaro Sánchez Delgadillo (1886-1927) age at death 40
Born in Agualele, Jalisco, he entered the seminary in Guadalajara and was ordained in 1911. His focus was on teaching religion to the children. In 1923 he was appointed vicar of the village of Tecolotilan. In 1927 he was out hunting with friends in the village when he was arrested by soldiers and hanged from a tree. He was later brought down from the tree and one of the soldiers stabbed him in the chest with a bayonet killing him.
Tranquilino Ubiarco Robles (1899-1928) age at death 29
Born in Zapotlan el Grande, Jalisco, he was ordained in 1923. Five years later, as he prepared for a nuptial mass, he was captured by soldiers and was hanged. His cadaver was guarded by his sister, Teodora, and later, a lady arranged to have him buried in her property.
David Uribe Velasco (1888–1927) age at death 39
Born in Buenavista de Cuellar, Guerrero, David was the seventh of eleven children. He enrolled in the seminary in Chilapa and was ordained in 1913.
In 1927 he was taken prisoner and incarcerated in Cuernavaca, Morelos, from whence he was later taken to San Jose Vidal, Morelos where he would be shot.
Driven to his place of execution, he knelt and begged God for forgiveness of his sins and for the salvation of Mexico and its church. Standing in front of his executioners he asked them to kneel down for his blessing. “With, all my heart I forgive you and I only ask that you pray to God for my soul. As for me, I will not forget when I am before him.”
He firmly raised his right hand and delivered the sign of the cross. He distributed his watch, his rosary, a crucifix and other objects among the men and was then shot to death.
Martyred Laymen
Anacieto Gonzalez Flores (1888–1927) age at death 38
Born in Tepatitlan, Jalisco, into a very humble family, his vocation was not in the priesthood, so he left the seminary and entered law school where he was an outstanding student. In 1922 he married Maria Conception Guerrero and they had two children. Anacieto was a prolific writer and engaged in non-violent protest against Plutarco Calles. When that failed, he supported armed resistance, not taking up arms but delivering speeches encouraging support for the Cristeros. His speeches were seasoned with remarks such as, “A return to Christ is inescapable if one expects to live in a civilized manner.” And, “Civilization is the result of the Truth applied to its ultimate consequences.” In 1927 he was captured, brutally tortured, and martyred by firing squad.
Manuel Moralez (1898–1926) age at death 28
Born in the village of Mesillas, Zacatecas, he entered the seminary in Durango but had to drop out to support his poor family. After leaving the seminary he became a baker, married, and had three children. After leading the National League for the Defense of Religious Liberty, he was arrested along with the priests Luis Batiz Sainz, David Roldan Lara, and Salvador Lara Puente. All were beaten and tortured and taken into the mountains to be executed. Father Luis pleaded with the soldiers to spare Manuel since he was the father of three children. Manuel answered that he was dying for God and that his children would be protected by God. All four were executed by firing squad.
David Roldan Lara (1902-1926) age at death 24
A year after his birth in Chalchihuities Zacatecas, his father died leaving his mother to raise him and an older brother. He entered the seminary in Durango but dropped out to support his struggling family. He was arrested and shot along with his cousin after witnessing the assassination of their pastor Batis and Manuel Moralez (see above).
Salvador Lara Puente (1905-1926) age at death 21
Salvador was a martyred youth who had abandoned his studies at the Durango seminary in order to assist his family financially. While working as a miner, he remained active in pastoral work with Mexican Youth for Catholic Action (president) and the National League Secretary. He was arrested and shot along with his cousin after witnessing the assassination of their pastor Batiz and Manuel Morales (see above).
Jose (Joselito) Sanchez del Rio (1913-1928) age at death 14
José de Jesús Sánchez del Río went to visit the tomb of a Cristeros martyr in 1927, and asked God to let him also die in defense of the faith.
Despite being just a boy, Joséito joined the Cristeros, a movement trying to defend religious liberty in the country. He carried out simple tasks, such as helping with the logistics for those who were fighting the battle for the faith
Captured and tortured by cutting off the skin from his feet he was led to a cemetery, where he was stabbed by the soldiers. With each strike, he shouted, “Long live Christ the King!” Then a military leader shot him twice in the head, put his lifeless body in a small grave and covered him with dirt in 1928.
“Blessed José Sánchez del Río should inspire us all, especially young people,” Cardinal José Saraiva Martins said during the homily of his beatification in 2005 in Guadalajara, “to be capable of giving witness to Christ in our daily lives.”
