Mexico – The Pull Of The Land

The Cristiada II — Mike Ashe

November 9, 2022November 9, 2022 Richard Barnes

[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 19^th 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 11^th 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.”

The Cristiada I–Mike Ashe

November 3, 2022November 3, 2022 Richard Barnes

[Prelude I and Prelude II documented the historical background of events leading up to the appalling years of the Cristiada in Mexico. The Cristiada did not appear spontaneously; its seeds were sown after the French Revolution, its first sprouts were seen in 1810, the trees took root in 1914 with the Carrancistas and their “constitution”, and the conflagration exploded in the 1920s.

The 20th Century saw several Cristiadas, for example, see The Black Book of Communism which documents the atheistic hatred and intolerance of Christianity and its resultant tens of millions of unspeakable tortures, desolations, and deaths. Mexico suffered this a century before Russia and Eastern Europe and China and sundry lands in between, in many of which the faithful died, as in Mexico, proclaiming “Christ the King!”

As you read the preludes and as you read Mike’s documentation below, surely you can see ourselves, as in a mirror, in places clearly, in places blurrily.

Our awakening must be spiritual; a living desire to recognize that man was created in the image of God and his choice remains the same as in the Garden: God or man. The First leads to liberty and life, the latter, to tyranny and death — RMB]

La Cristiada (Viva Cristo Rey!)

This is dedicated to Jesus Perez Mendez, my father in law, from the State of Zacatecas, and my mother in law Maria Luna de Perez from the state of Guanajuato. Both states were in the epicenter of the Cristiada during their early childhoods.

Prologue:

The forces of good and evil collided in Mexico during the 1920’s. Surprisingly this catastrophic event is not part of the country’s memory. Few modern day Mexicans are even aware how this all played out or why [and few Americans are aware as well — RMB]

They also are not aware of the consequences of the “liberal” dictatorships of the Partido Revolucionario Institucional (PRI).

These liberals exercised power in a cruel and arbitrary way for decades. Aiding this tyranny are the liberal media and their historian cohorts, all of whom have blood on their hands.

Public education in Mexico is run by the government with liberal propaganda taught from K-12 and beyond in the public Universities (that are supposedly autonomous). Even comic books are loaded with left wing heroes [the same is true of Venezuela today — RMB]

Many Mexicans migrated to the US during these decades to escape the oppressive liberalism of Mexico.

The War’s Beginnings

The Cristeros Rebellion was a war of ideologies between the Catholic Church (stable force) and the Mexican Government (unstable liberal force). Wide scale violence (guerrilla warfare) began in 1926 and lasted for three years. The large scale outbreaks were confined to the States of Jalisco, Michoacan, Guanajuato, and southern Zacatecas. Moderate to minor outbreaks were also felt thoughout the Republic. The de facto end of the conflict did not occur until the election of Avila Camacho in 1940 (center right politician) after the disastrous left-wing presidency of Lázaro Cárdenas.

Root Causes of the conflict

Liberalism took root in Mexico during the mid 19^th century among the ruling elites including Benito Juarez. In 1857 the Constitiution formally limited the power of the church and in 1859 reform laws separated the church and state. The revised constitution and reform laws proved to placate the liberals while at the same time being ignored by the government, this was particularly the case during the Porfiriato [the years of peace noted by William F Buckley, Sr. in his House testimony in 1919 — RMB].

The 20^th Century Revolutionaries

Madero — The first ruler after Diaz was Francisco Madero, who had committed to cleanse the corrupt federal and state governments. The Church gave Madero its cautious support, but held it up, when he refused to acknowledge the church’s unifying influence. The church then ended her support for Madero, which was followed shortly thereafter by Huerta’s seizing power and allegedly having Madero killed [see Prelude I for further discussion and detail — RMB]. Afterwards, the church’s further supported Huerta which enraged the liberal revolutionaries.

Zapata — Stance towards the church was ambiguous. He discribed himself as a conservative catholic, but at the same time would shoot a priest without hesitation. The US liberals lionized Zapata, even making a movie portraying him as a champion of the people, while ignoring that he was a killer and mostly ignorant/illiterate. In spite of all his shortcomings he was a champion for agrarian reform which turned out to be his legacy. The commander of the Southern Army, Zapata was a formidable figure in Mexican history.

Villa — Believed in God, but not religion and was a clerophobe. After his break with Carranza, unsurprisingly, he became a defender of the Church. Villa often times played the US by trying to draw them into Mexican internal conflicts. Villa folklore ignored the fact that he murdered countless asians including walking them off the roof of the highest building in Chihuahua. A cold blooded killer, the commander of the Northern army (the most feared army in Mexico during that time), and a governor who carried out significant land reform in the north.

Carranza — The leader most associated with persecution of the church. His presidential victory in 1917 was the death knell for an independent church. Francisco Mujica speaking to the Constitutional committee in Queretaro signaled the government’s new stance:

“I am a foe of the clergy, because I consider it the most disgraceful and perverse enemy of our people. What has the clergy given…our nation? The most absurd ideas, the greatest contempt for our democratic institutions, the most unrelenting hatred for the very principles of equity, equality, and fraternity taught by the first democrat, Jesus Christ…. What sort of morality, gentlemen, will the clergy teach our children? We have seen it —the greatest corruption.”

The Constitution of 1917 — Although guaranteeing freedom of religious beliefs, it severely restricted religious practices. Article 24 stated that every religious act must be performed inside the churches which were under the supervision of the government. Article 130 restricted every aspect of religion in Mexico. No longer could priests hear confession, perform marriages; the number and assignments of the clergy were now controlled by the Mexican government; the church was not allowed to own land without the government’s consent [in effect, the Mexican constitution expected religion to remain, in word and deed, in no public place, but only between the two ears of the faithful. Is that not what the left desires in America also? — RMB]

Church leaders did not accept the new Constitution, and began to mobilize support in the US and in Rome.

The Mexican anticlericalism was the work of a small radical minority. Most Mexicans were Catholics and had no desire of seeing religious rituals changed. The Catholic majority response was the only true revolutionary during that period.

Obregon –– Presidency was supposedly to be a period of conciliation which gave way to a strict revolutionary law. However, in 1925 many state legislatures began implementing Article 13 (stripping civilian human rights). Obregon hand-picked his successor, Plutarco Elías Calles.

Calles — The true enemy of the church gained power in 1926 and began attacking the church on two fronts. First the leader of Church opposition, Jose Mora y del Rio was placed on trial; second, Calles immediately implemented Article 130 and Article 3 which prohibited schools operated by the Church. Calles actions prompted the church to suspend all church services until the anticlerical laws had been amended. The church went on strike, which was called by the Archbishop Mora y del Río who was promptly exiled by Calles. They also called for economic boycotts which did not hold because of economic issues throughout Mexico at that time. The 1917 constitution was amended in 2015 with little substantive change.

Calles did not count on popular opposition that resulted from these actions and the war that ensued.

Outcome was predictable: the Church survived despite being called the counter revolutionary. Actually, now the strongest Catholic Church in the world today is in Mexico with their devotion to our lady of Guadalupe and to Christ the King. If you happen to enter a factory throughout Mexico you will see a statue of “The Lady” at the center of the work area.

Carranza was assassinated, Obregon was assassinated by a Cristero, and Calles was exiled to the US [which he passionately hated for the anti-Communist attitudes of her people — RMB] in 1936. The Cristero war took 90,000 lives: 60,000 government, 30,000 Cristeros guerrillas, plus countless civilians. A settlement was finally reached between the Vatican and the government which ended the conflict in 1929.

This war was started by the liberals under the direction of Plutarco Calles against his own people and is not included anywhere in the memories of a nation. It was basically covered up, so much so, that few Mexicans are even aware that this ever happened.

The Vatican conferred sainthood to twenty-three clerical and laymen martyrs at the beginning of the 21^st century. A brief accounting of their sacrifices will be listed in the next and final post on the Cristiada.

Plutarco Calles (center) and American Ambassador, Dwight Morrow (right), circa 1928. Morrow negotiated a cease fire to the Cristiada but not before tens of thousands had been killed.

Miguel Pro, Roman Catholic priest, executed in 1927. Although Mexican President Calles fully expected him to recant and had planned to use his recantation for propaganda purposes, Rev. Pro prayed, then stood before his executioners, spreading his arms as a sign of the cross and said his last words, “May God have mercy on you…. Lord, you know that I am innocent. With all my heart I forgive my enemies. Viva Cristo Rey!”

Prelude To The Cristiada I

October 22, 2022October 22, 2022 Richard Barnes

“To understand the Mexican situation it must be understood in the beginning that the present is more or less the normal condition of Mexico; the era of peace during the Díaz regime from 1876 to 1910 was an abnormal period in the [post-colonial] history of that country. All revolutions in Mexico work along conventional lines and the present series of revolutions are in no material sense different from those that beset the country from 1810 to 1876; the abnormal element of the present series of revolutions is the active participation in them by the American Government [emphasis mine].” — William F. Buckley, Sr., testimony before the House Committee on Foreign Relations, December 6, 1919 (7 years before the major outbreak of the Cristiada)

Mike Ashe will soon be posting on the unjustly memory-holed Mexican Cristiada or Cristeros War of the early 20th Century.

However, events do not simply “occur” by spontaneous generation or by a sudden explosion of sentiment or rebellion. There are leaders and, more importantly, philosophies that have taken root or to which key elements of society have submitted, which in turn can lead a culture or civilization to heights of achievement or depths of torment and depravity.

To better grasp the immensity and the nature of the calamity which befell Mexico and, by extension, the United States, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, it is worthwhile — and necessary — to take a moment to review what went before.

1810 — We begin with a brief allusion to 1810, which is the date usually associated with the initiation of Mexico’s independence from Spain. Invariably, historians generalize with comments such as, “revolt against a large reserve of resentment” or “the pressure cooker finally exploded” and more such terminology. This is found in scholarly as well as popular, Wikipedia type essays.

However, the first thing one must notice about the date, 1810, is that it is barely two decades after the storming of the Bastille and the ensuing French Revolution, which Lenin, a century later, criticized because the Jacobins stopped the terror, something he (Lenin) was determined not to do. And his disciple, Stalin, agreed and fully proved his devotion to Lenin’s counsel. Even after tens of millions of deaths later, large swathes of American colleges and elites indulge their love affair with the French Revolution and its Communist progeny.

Clarence B. Carson wrote, “What particularly intrigued revolutionary socialists, Karl Marx among them, about the French Revolution was the drastic changes it made in the lives and ways of a people. It demonstrated, at least for them, in embryo form, the potentialities for changing man and men in society by revolution…. In sum to … totally reconstruct society.”

With that background, let us briefly consider what happened in 1810 when “Father Hidalgo” allegedly shouted his call for independence from Spain. “During the siege of Guanajuato, his followers captured the city granary in which nearly five hundred Spaniards and criollos [descendants of Spaniards] had taken refuge, many of them women and children. The massacre that followed shocked [all] throughout Mexico….” This event, and others like it, identify the atrocities in Mexico with those in France and with the rest of South America and the Caribbean, as witness Haiti and Venezuela.

In other words, Mexico and Hidalgo were no different than Venezuela and Bolivar and the denouement of each is unsurprisingly similar: massacres, rapes of women, girls, and boys, cold blooded murders of prisoners, invalids, hospital patients, and other defenseless men and women, blighted fields, mines and manufactures burned and buried, homes and offices delivered to pillage, and much more.

In my childhood and youth I invariably heard comments expressing alarm or marvel at the alleged Spanish propensity for cruelty and pillage as seen in the Spanish colonies’ 19th century revolutions. Well, in the first place, a propensity to evil is in all men; however, more importantly, what those comments alluded to were acts that were totally alien to the Spanish colonies. To see such acts in Europe, one would have to visit revolutionary France, not Spain. It is truly a wonder how France and its nefarious, hateful Jacobin ideology gets a free pass.

Just as it can be mystifying to contemplate today’s college professors and their benighted students’ dangerous infatuation with modern Jacobinism, including an overriding hatred of Christianity.

This explains Mr. Buckley’s comments on Mexican revolutions from 1810 to 1876 quoted above.

1876 – 1911 — This was the “Porfiriato” the rule of Porfirio Díaz. As alluded to in Mr. Buckley’s testimony (see quote above), this was a time of post-colonial peace and order not seen before or since.

The Cristero period, which officially began in 1926 under the Plutarco Calles administration, was actually sown in 1911 with the Francisco Madero administration. Madero was opposed to Christianity, or at least any ecclesiastical manifestation of it. He was deposed and allegedly murdered in 1913.

But we must briefly consider how Francisco Madero became president of Mexico.

Madero had launched a revolution from San Antonio, Texas, declaring himself president in November, 1910. Men such as Pancho Villa and Pascual Orozco rallied to him in northern Mexico, creating and fomenting turmoil and mayhem, which eventually culminated in the resignation of Porfirio Díaz in May, 1911, who sincerely wished to avoid further bloodshed.

Francisco Madero was elected president in October, 1911, hailed as the “apostle of democracy”. However, discontent with his administration set in almost immediately and rebel factions erupted throughout Mexico. For example, Zapata rebelled against Madero in November, 1911, barely a month after the elections.

Similar to like men in politics today, Madero was an aristocrat, having been schooled by private tutors in Paris and in the United States. He had little in common with the peon classes that he waxed lyrical about. He had promised everything to everyone and therefore pleased no one.

More worrisome, disorder and lawlessness were such that the Mexican ambassador to the United States resigned in December, 1912, saying, “I lied to the American government for ten months telling them that the Mexican revolution would be over in six weeks…. The truth is that the situation is desperate.”

General Victoriano Huerta was a soldier and natural leader. His drinking was legendary — think Ulysses S. Grant. One example of his fearlessness occurred in Cuernavaca. He was in a hotel when a group passed in the street shouting, “Death to Huerta!” The General “heard the cry, got up, and walked to the door — alone, ‘Here is Huerta,’ he said. ‘Who wants him?'”

General Huerta had been a loyal and dedicated soldier, having fought under three presidents: Porfirio Díaz, Francisco de la Barra (interim president between Díaz and Madero), and Francisco Madero. In over 40 years of service, he had applied for only two leaves.

After putting down multiple rebellions against Madero, General Huerta was once again called upon to defeat yet another insurrection in Mexico City, in February, 1913. It was during this event that he decided to work to depose President Madero. He saw that lawlessness persisted in Mexico and lives and properties of citizens as well as foreigners were continually in danger. The fighting in Mexico City was frightful but is beyond the scope of this post.

Suffice it to say that the government forces were defeated after much property damage and human carnage. Americans as well as diplomats from other nations flocked to the American embassy for shelter. The ambassador demanded that all combatants respect American rights. The patience of the ambassador, Henry Lane Wilson (no relation to Woodrow Wilson, who was to be inaugurated as president in March, 1913) was exhausted and he worked to seek a permanent solution that would protect American and foreign interests and people in Mexico, believing that would also protect the Mexican people.

“This situation is intolerable … I am going to bring order,” declared the ambassador, who then worked with British, Spanish, and German ministers, whose countries had the largest colonies in Mexico City. In addition, twenty-five Mexican senators urged President Madero to resign. Madero rebuffed all approaches.

Concurrently, General Huerta was completing his preparations for a coup which took place February 18, 1913. At 5:10 P. M., the cathedral bells sounded and a large crowd assembled. The people “wildly cheered” Huerta and a general air of celebration prevailed. American newspapers reported that President Taft and his cabinet showed “great relief”.

There were many delicate negotiations between the factions which are beyond the scope of this post. In sum, negotiations were concluded but General Huerta refused to declare himself president. He wished to follow constitutional norms. While Madero was prisoner, he was technically still the president, since he had not resigned.

Huerta, although “in de facto control, cooperated with Congress and the Foreign Minister to secure legal title to the presidency.” He requested Congress to convene and expressed a desire to “place himself in accord with the National Representation” to “find a legal solution” to the crisis.

On February 19 Francisco Madero signed his resignation, which was submitted to the Congress later that morning. The Congress, which had a Maderista majority, accepted the resignation by an overwhelming vote and at 11:15 A. M. the Congress confirmed Huerta as constitutional president by a vote of 126-0.

Thus Huerta assumed the presidency not at the time of the coup, but upon the resignation of Madero and the vote of the Congress, in accordance with Mexico’s constitution at the time.

Turmoil still persisted as several factions refused to recognize Huerta or even the Congress. Added to the tensions were rumors of Madero’s ambitions to foment yet another revolution akin to his actions against Porfirio Díaz in 1910.

On February 22, 1913, after 10 P. M. Francisco Madero and the former vice president, José María Pino Suárez, were shot as they were being transferred from the presidential palace to the penitentiary. There were several “versions” purporting to explain the assassinations, including that relatives of persons killed on orders of Madero’s government attacked the convoy transporting the prisoners. However, there is general agreement that, at the least, President Huerta should have taken more serious precautions to protect Madero. Of course, the most accepted version is that Huerta’s cabinet, including Huerta, ordered the shooting.

Whatever the truth, the fact of repercussions became clear upon the inauguration of President Woodrow Wilson, whose actions led directly to the Cristiada.

(To be continued)

Expected to be released in March, 2023. Pictured: William F. Buckley Sr. (1881-1958)

Ambassador Henry Lane Wilson (1857-1932)

The Mexican Revolution 1910 – 1920: Part 4 — US Interventions — Mike Ashe

September 6, 2022September 6, 2022 Richard Barnes

[This is the fourth of a 4-part post: Prologue and Beginning; Civil War and Ending; Scorecard; and US Interventions. This part, “US Interventions”, focuses on the major investments US companies and others made in Mexico, especially in the railroads — which are a true marvel — but also in oil. This was an era of remarkable men such as Weetman Dickinson Pearson, 1st Viscount and William F. Buckley, Sr., who, though long gone, have nevertheless left their mark — RMB]

The US Investments in Mexico that needed to be protected during the ten years of revolution

As mentioned earlier, during the Porfirio Diaz presidency there was a great influx of US and British investments in Mexico. US railroad companies had extended their lines to the border prior to Diaz presidency. When Diaz took office the Southern Pacific and the Santa Fe extended their lines into Mexico which represented 66% of the system valued at about $650Million. Along the rail routes telegraph lines were erected.

[Porfirio Diaz was truly a visionary for his beloved Mexico. The development of Mexico’s railways owes much to this remarkable man. As Mike put it in earlier post, his body should eventually be returned to Mexico, where he belongs. In the 1870s Mexico was a land of horsemen, pack mules, and cargadores (human burden-bearers) for goods traffic. Diaz was quick to realize the possibilities of railways and he ensured they spread rapidly. Mexico had a stable government for the first time since her independence and disorder did not reappear until his exile. By then railway mileage had increased from 350 to more than 13,000 miles. Significant foreign investment had poured into Mexico — RMB]

US mining companies explored and began mining; one of the most famous Mines was in Cananea, Sonora. The Smelting and mining interest alone were worth more than $250 Million.

As an aside, my grandfather worked in Anaconda’s mine in Cananea for 20 years as the power plant superintendent. My visits to Cananea were very memorable, especially the drive from Naco/Bisbee Arizona to Cananea. At that time the roads were not paved and without bridges so the fun part was crossing the many arroyos in route — some dry, others full of water so we would have to wait until the water receded to pass. The desert was teeming with wildlife but very few people until you arrived in Cananea.

Tracks of land for timber/cattle/sugar/rubber were sold to American Investors; some of these tracks were as large as one million acres. Valued at $80 Million.

Oil discoveries by US and British engineers around Tampico and Tuxpan, Veracuz, followed with its development circa 1905. Valued at about $15 Million at that time the oil business was in its infancy when the Revolution started but managed to grow rapidly to the point that it furnished a large percentage of oil needed by the British Warships during WWI.

As an Aside: Weetman Dickerson Pearson a British Engineer 1^st Viscount Cowdray was a very interesting participant in the Mexican Oil business along with other business adventures in Mexico during that time. Note the size of his castle in Scotland.

[He was one of many remarkable men of that era. He went to Mexico in 1889. Per Encyclopedia Brittanica: “He drained swamps; built railways, power lines, waterworks, and harbors; and acquired much oil-rich land. He began drilling to obtain fuel for his locomotives and, in the first two decades of the 20th century, secured control of the Mexican oil industry. His firm built the Blackwall Tunnel under the Thames River, London, and several railroad tunnels under the East River, New York City; enlarged the Dover harbor; and in 1926 completed a large dam on the Blue Nile in Sudan.” — RMB]

The United States of America’s Interventions In Mexico

There were a lot of behind-the-scenes manipulations by the US government during the revolution with the main event being the invasion of Vera Cruz in 1914.

The primary reason for the intervention was to protect US financial interests in Mexico which were estimated at between $1.5 to $2 billion.

The other issue was Huerta’s assassination of Madero, the duly elected president in whom the US government was heavily vested. One must also understand that at the time, Huerta only controlled a small portion of the Mexican republic, mainly Mexico City. Wilson’s refusal to acknowledge his administration as legitimate created the atmosphere for conflict which Wilson acted upon as a pretext for intervention after some minor incidents in the port of Tampico.

The US lost the PR war first by indiscriminately shelling the port of Veracruz resulting in loss of civilian life, and, second, the battle of Chapultepec Castle. The battle was memorialized by both sides including:

Los Niños Héroes — Five military cadets refused to retreat, defending the castle to their deaths including one that jumped from the castle with the Mexican Flag wrapped around his body so that the Americans could not capture it.

Saint Patrick Battalion — Thirty US army deserters who fought on the Mexican side were executed at the exact time the US flag was raised over the castle.

US Marines Hymn — The famed line “From the halls of Montezuma” in honor of the 90% of the officers’ corps who were killed during the battle).

Marines Blood Stripe — Scarlet red stripe on Marines dress trousers worn by all US Marines remembering those who died at Chapultepec.

Huerta left the country after the taking Mexico City; US forces left Mexico after 6 months.

One of the highlights for the US intervention was the use of amphibious landing equipment on the Veracruz beaches. The exercise was a laughable failure but it led to perfecting the exercise during WWII.

The second intervention was a punitive action resulting from Pancho Villa’s raid on the border town of Columbus New Mexico in 1916. There was also an attack by Villa on a train Near Santa Isabel, Chihuahua, that killed several ASARCO employees (a US mining company) and fifteen from American Smelting and Refining company. A lone survivor was able to recount the incident. General Pershing led the expedition with 5,000 troops to capture or kill Pancho Villa.

The military failed in its objective to capture Villa and was another PR failure of the inept Woodrow Wilson. Wilson’s restriction on Pershing made it impossible to meet the initial objectives, the incursion only lasted 8 months. It was a humiliating defeat for great General Pershing who was embittered by Wilson’s duplicity.

The real story behind all this was that Villa was once friendly to the US even visiting Pershing in Fort Bliss, El Paso Texas. Wilson (once again the meddler) in late 1915 felt that supporting Venustiano Carranza was the best way to stabilize the Mexican military chaos and withdrew support for Villa. Villa felt betrayed by the US when the US stopped arms sales to his army.

[There are two fascinating accounts narrated by the late Reid Buckley, youngest of the William F. Buckley, Sr. clan, about his father’s encounters with Villa. The first was when Villa held up a train and, pointing his pistol at the hapless conductor’s skull, cocked the hammer, demanding he tell his men where the gold was hid. Buckley had hid the gold in cuspidors but the conductor had no knowledge of this. As the conductor begged Villa to believe him, that he knew nothing, Villa’s men burst from the men’s room, “We have found the gold!”. But Villa raised his pistol, again cocking the hammer, “I will kill you anyway.” At this Buckley called out in a loud voice, in Spanish, “Do not hurt that man. I hid the gold. He knew nothing about it.”

[It is a fascinating account, at the end of which, Villa said to Buckley, “And you, Guillermo Buckley, come see me at a better time. I respect courage.”

[The second was no less dramatic but space does not permit. Reid Buckley affirmed that the Mexican frontier shaped his father’s creed. A high compliment indeed. For more, see An American Family: The Buckleys by Reid Buckley — RMB]

Wilson’s meddling resulted in Mexico non-support of the US during WWI. They instead remained neutral during the war.

Obviously not a fan of Woodrow.

[Neither am I – RMB]

Cananea in Sonora, Mexico: one of the world’s largest open-pit copper mines opened in 1899

Railway Station, Nogales, Arizona, bordering Mexico, circa 1920

The Culiacan River Bridge, built by Southern Pacific Railroad of Mexico (US subsidiary), on the west coast of Mexico. The railways were constructed chiefly by American and British enterprise, but are now owned mostly by Mexican companies.

Weetman Dickinson Pearson, 1st Viscount Cowdray (1856 – 1927)

Dunecht House, a residence in Scotland of 1st Viscount Cowdray and the place of his death in 1927

William F. Buckley, Sr. (1881 – 1958), nicknamed “Blue Eyes” by Pancho Villa

The Mexican Revolution 1910 – 1920: Part 3 — Scorecard — Mike Ashe

August 31, 2022August 31, 2022 Richard Barnes

[This is the third of a 4-part post: Prologue and Beginning; Civil War and Ending; Scorecard; US Interventions. This part, “Scorecard”, focuses on names and I found it to be of much help in “matching” names to timeframes and events. Americans are well-advised to be more cognizant of the major events of our neighbor to the south — RMB]

Scorecard of the Revolution

It’s hard to follow the events and participants of the revolution without a scorecard. Hopefully this will help answer the questions raised in the prologue.

[Mike’s prologue asks whether the Mexican Revolution advanced the interests of the Mexican people. See Part 1 for more — RMB]

Presidents in Chronological Order After Porfirio Diaz beginning in 1910:

1) Francisco Madero — In office 1911-1913. From Mexico’s wealthiest families, from the State of Coahuila. Educated in UC Berkley. Assassinated by Victoriano Huerta in 1913. Resting place: Monument of the Revolution, Mexico City

2) Victoriano Huerta — In office by coup 1913-1914. From the state of Jalisco. Military Career. Presidency not recognized by US as legitimate. US President Woodrow Wilson ordered troops to Vera Cruz and into Mexico City. Huerta fled the country to Jamaica, UK, Spain, and the US, continuing to plan another coup until his death in El Paso Texas. Viewed with great disdain then and now.

[Huerta is indeed viewed very negatively. But, as usual, there is more to the story, especially the catastrophic effect of Woodrow Wilson’s supposedly moralistic approach to foreign policy and his responsibility behind Huerta’s actions. If interested, The United States and Huerta, by Kenneth Grieb is a good resource — RMB]

4) Venustiano Carranza — 1915-1920. Wealthy land owner from the state of Coahuila-Northern Mexico. A shrewd politician and Primer Jefe of the constitutionalists. A pragmatic governing style did not win him many friends at the time but history has been kind to him. His assassination in 1920 marks the ending of the Revolutionary Period in Mexico.

Noteworthy Combatants:

1) Alvaro Obregón — From the State of Sonora (Northern Mexico). Most successful of all the Constitutionalist Revolutionary Generals. A practitioner of Modern Warfare used in WW1, he was able to defeat all his enemies including Huerta, Villa, and Zapata. In his fight against Villa his right arm was blown off, which nearly killed him. His severed arm was recovered, embalmed, and put on display at the Parque de la Bombilla in Mexico City. Obregón was the first post revolution president from 1920-1924. In 1928 he was again elected president but assassinated shortly after his reelection.

[Obregón chose Plutarco Calles (see below) as his successor. He is rarely held accountable for this nefarious decision, but ought to be — RMB]

2) Emiliano Zapata — From the state of Morelos (south of Mexico City). A champion of the peasants and agrarian reform, Zapata was a fierce fighter and feared by many which resulted in his assassination in 1919, ordered by Carranza.

3) Jose Doroteo Arrango Arambula, aka Pancho Villa — Northerngeneral allied with Zapata against Carranza in a full-fledged civil war. Lost to Obregón. In 1916 invaded Columbus New Mexico to goad the US into war with Mexico. Was assassinated in 2023. In 1976 his remains were reburied in the Monument to the Revolution.

4) Pascual Orozco Vázquez, Jr. — Army General who led forces that ended Diaz’s presidency by first raiding government garrisons. In 1911 after ambushing federal troops, he ordered their uniforms to be removed and sent to the President with a note which read, “Ahí te van las hojas, mándeme mas tamales” (Here are the wrappers; send me more tamales). He later joined Huerta in planning a coup to overthrow Carranza supported by the Germans circa WWI years. He exiled himself to the US from whence he, with Huerta, sought financial assistance to take power in Mexico. He was arrested along with Huerta in Texas, but escaped. He and three of his men were ambushed and killed in 1915. In 1925 his remains were returned to Chihuahua.

5) Plutarco Elias Calles — Northern General under Obregón; later became president in 1924-28. Responsible for the Cristeros War.

[Plutarco Calles was born in poverty; his mother and alcoholic father were not married, at a time when such was keenly disapproved of. After his mother’s death, he was reared by his uncle, an ardent atheist and fanatical anti-Christian. Unsurprisingly, Calles was vehemently anti-church and worked tirelessly to eliminate her. No public religious services were held for three years, until 1929, after he left office, although his influence persisted for over half a decade more. Upon the election of Lázaro Cárdenas — even more leftist than Calles — in 1934, he was exiled and lived in California until 1941, when he was allowed to return to Mexico where he died in 1945 — RMB]

6) Enrique Gorostieta — Huerta’s youngest general who fled to Cuba after Huerta was defeated. Later, he returned as General of the Cristeros even though he was a Mason and anti-cleric.

[Andy Garcia played the role of Gorostieta in the film, For Greater Glory, in which Ruben Blades played a credible Plutarco Calles — RMB]

The 1917 Mexican Constitution

There were four constitutions before 1917. The 1917 constitution created a minimum wage, the right to strike, and an eight-hour workday. It also implemented a strict separation of church and state, land reforms, and term limits for the president and the legislature. It also contained a statute limiting the amount of land that a person could own and legalized the federal government’s expropriation and redistribution of land.

Articles 3, 5, 24, 27, and 130 were anticlerical and restricted the Roman Catholic Church in Mexico.

Article 3 — According to the religious definitions established under article 24, educational services shall be secular and free of any religious orientation.

Article 27 Places of worship are owned by the state, not the church

Article 130 Gave the right of the federal government to regulate church services. President Plutarco Elias Calles issued an executive decree to strictly enforce this article that led to the Cristeros war.

Like Mexican slavery, most Mexicans do not know much about the Cristeros war; it was shamefully covered up.

[Calles’ power continued for over half a decade beyond his presidency. He named his ally, Tomás Garrido Canabal, to serve in Lázaro Cárdenas’ cabinet. Garrido, like Callas, was a virulent atheist. He named his son, Lenin, because he (Lenin) was an enemy of God. He had a farm with a bull named God, a cow named Mary, and a donkey named Christ. He zealously pursued the anti-church policies of Callas, even years after the official end of the Cristeros War. After he ordered the murders of Christians in Mexico City, in 1935, Cárdenas sent him to Costa Rica. He died in Los Angeles in 1943 — RMB]

[Unsurprisingly, both Calles and Garrido ceased to be atheists upon their respective deaths — RMB]

The constitution was amended 62 times from 1917-1979 and 137 times from 1980-2016.