FR A N C I SC A N ST U D I ES “M m -m m “ 1 6 No. 18 JULY , 93 THE MARTY RS OF FLORIDA ( 1513-1016) BY E . LUIS GERONIMO DE OR , o . F M. h tio Translated , with Biograp ical Introduc n and Notes E E MAYNA RD G IG R, O . F. M. om MISSION, SA NTA BARBARA . CAL . I n S a n c t i t a t e é t D o c t r i n e JOSEPH F. WAGNER. INC. NIHIL O BSTAT Rev . Mario n A . M Ce nso r Dep utatu s IMPRIMI PERMI'I' I‘IT UR er Rev . No v t Benzin . M V a us O . F y g , Minister P ro v inc iali s NIHIL OBSTAT Rev . i e . Ms Am os E. i . V r r G ust J 0. D y g , Ce n so r Lib ro rum IMPRI MATUR t Mo st J A . i ames Griffin , Bishop o f Sp ri n g fie ld i n Illi n o i s Ju ly 8 , 1936 . HT BY COPY R G 1936 REV . A D G F M . I . MA Y N R GEI ER, O . FRANCISCAN STUDIES A series of monographs published under the auspices of Of the n United States a d Canada. BOARD OF EDITORS EDITOR-IN-OHIEF E R R . N . M . V MA IO A HABIG , O . F . , A . M ASSOCIATE EDITORS L . P D . REV. A OYSIUS M . FISH , O . M . c , h . HTMA Ph D. REV . VINCENT FOC N, O . F. M . , . REV . REGINALD LUTOMSKI, O . F . M . P D. REV . BERARD VOGT , O . F . M . , h. B REV . TURI IUS DEAVER, O . F. M; REV . FERDINAND PAWLOSKI, O . F . M . REV . MAYNARD GEIGER, O . F. M . RE E . T . V . B DE HESS, O . M . C , s. D RE P T V . CYRIL KITA , O . M . C h . D . , S. D. RE L E R B I LMAIER M a . V. SY V STE R E , . C p , J. C D RE . R EL . V U BAN AD MAN , O . M . Cap J. C . D Y ff 54 a o . n . Publicatio O ice, P rk Place, New Y rk, N Correspondence inregard to contributions Should be sent ff 1 o to E 85c ea 3 2 n o t . di torial O ice, H rt Friary , 6 M r e S , to . N . E. , Washing n , D C BIOGRAPHICAL INTRODUCTION Fray Luis Geronimo de Oré, O . F. M . , the author of the ’ Relaci on d e los marti res que ha habid o en las Provincias d e “ Fl i f nd la orida, s according to Means, one o the least known a ” 1 least often cited chroniclers of Peru . It might be added ’ e ni that anent Oré s R lacién , there are few writers concer ng whom so many chaotic bibliographical references have been tr made both in Spanish and English . If the present ansla tion , here offered for the first time in English , serves the humble purpose of dispelling this chaos, the labor entailed in its preparation will not have been in vain . On the other el o a s hand , the R acién , though relatively sh rt , will be a me n Of making better known an illustri ous and learned missionary who in his day was an international figure . t a Father Oré was born a Guam nga, Peru, in the year Don Antonio de Oré and Luisa Diaz y Roj as reared seven chil r im dren, four boys and three girls . Luis Ge On o was the third n hi of the boys. He a d s three brothers entered the Francis can Order and were ordained to the priestho od . All were f o v s s a members o the Pr vince of the Twel e Apo tle in Peru . F ’ o ther Gré s three bro thers were kn wn as Fray Pedro de Oré , n Fray Antonio de Oré a d Fray Dio nisio de Oré . The three girls became Poor Clares in their native city , Guamanga, where Antonio de Oré was instrumental in - establishing a con vent Of that Order. Joined to their ability in renderl ng plai n chant and in r playing the organ , the fOu brothers became indef atigable m1ss1onar1es among the Indians and approved preachers for L the Spaniards . Fray uis Geronimo was destined to become the most famous of the brothers by reason Of his several ‘ o hi m scholarly writings . Am ng s many Offices ay be men i f a t L o t oned tho se o pre cher a ima, Cuzco , Trujill , Guanuco , and Arequipa ; parish priest at Collaguas and Santiago de 1x X BIOGRAPHICAL INTRODUCTION Coparaque ; guardian at Valle de Jnaj a guardian at Potosi ; a at L a. T professo r of Indian langu ges im he bishop of Cuzco , Don Antonio de la Raya, made Father Oré pastor of an Indian a an parish in that city . So gre t impression did the friar make on the bishop by his eloquence and his Skill in the na a o n tive languages , that the l tter requested the p pe a d the - king to make Father Oré cO adjutor of Cuzco . NO action, how ’ n o r . i ever, was taken o the bish p s equest One s not surpri sed to learn that the highest Office of the province was conf erred upon Father Oré in the form of the provincialate . m ol d In 1598, Father Oré published at Lima, his Sy b o C ’ tholico In dian o which contained an explanatio n of the Apos ’ n . o e tles , Nicene , a d Athanasian Creeds This w rk also includ d me a description Of the new world , together with a practical diam for teaching Christian doctri ne in the Quechua and Ay 3 f o hi o - r maralanguages . In Of ering this w rk to s fell w p iests in r o o Peru, Father Oré was conscious of its utility f o the c nversi n n a d instruction Of multitudes Of abo rigines. He considered s f a a a a u a li o s t him el p thfinder in th t p rtic l r field Of re gi u wri , ing in the native languages and humbly asked his readers to overlook whatever errors they might find in the volume pre pared after much labor and study . a a Fray GerOnim o de Valenzuela, Dominican prior Of P rin m bo l Co cha, wrote a dedicatory sonnet for the Sy o wherein he evaluates the work of the Franciscan linguist : Y Si saber quisieres el camino u o Deste placido , ameno é empirico p ert n Aunque o tengas guia ni piloto , Fray Luis HierOnim o de Oré ques digno e l l o De sce sa oa, te lo muestra abiert En len 4 tu guaj e con su libro docto . a o a di d not With the public ti n Of this volume, F ther Oré e s rest on his laurels . He had other proj ects in mind but b cau e n a r a o a n fina cial me ns we e l cking , he was hindered fr m h vi g o o s 15 a d e o ther w rk printed . In 99, Fray Fern n o de Tr j , Franciscan bishop of Tucuman wrote to the king of Spain that BIOGRAPHICAL INTRODUCTION xi Father Oré was going to that country in order to have some of s his boo ks published . On this same occasion the bishop prai ed the efforts of the zealous missionary who had preac hed ‘ 5 throughout the entire kingdom . In 1604 the bish op of Cuzco approved Of another work of n m . rit Father Oré , entitled Rituale sen Manuale P erm u This a Pu ual or manual contained prayers in the Quechua, Aym ra, i n . n quina, Mochica, Guarani , a d Brazilian tongues It was pr t in 1 o i e to as ed Naples in 607 . This w rk s sometimes r ferred o Manual d e adminis trar los Sacram entos . Two other w rks in Indian by Father Oré are : A rte y Bocabulari o en las d os le n i h ni guas qu c ua y aimard, and Serm onario d e las d omi cas y e ii n u imm 6 fi stas d el a o en las dos le g as quichua y a d . It was probably in the year 1605 that Father Oré travelled o r a 1 06 t Spain . Thence he went to Italy . At Alexand i , in 6 t n n n he published his Tra ad o so bre las i dulge cias . Accordi g to Medina who cites the Franciscan chro nicler COrdova y Sa of linas, Fathe r Oré wrote the boo k in Latin while in the city R 7 i it e o e o . mal a a me In the following year, h s B , lre dy menti n d, i a appeared at Naples . It s quite understandable that F ther o a Oré became interested in publishing alife of St. Francis S l n o , the great Franciscan apostle of Peru and Tucuman . In Spain he had ample opportunity for gathering the necessary n la documents.