Читать книгу The Philippine Islands, 1493-1898. Volume 17 of 55 - Unknown - Страница 52

VII. The harvest of souls at Bohol has increased with the decrease of the audacity of the enemy, and of the almost annual invasion by the people of Mindanao. As many as a thousand have been baptized, if children and adults are reckoned. In this number are several bailans, or priests of idols; and one there was who, before his baptism, did nothing but rage, and attack with teeth and nails those who passed by, who came forth from the waters of the sacred font, gentle and in his right mind. And when some Indians saw this, snatching the cause from the fact, they went to the father and begged him to sprinkle a dying Indian woman with the same healing waters. Our father, suspecting that they made this request with the the purpose of enabling the woman to avoid the trouble of learning the catechism refused, unless she would first learn what Christians know. “Father,” said they, “that ought not to be the way in which you act; we want her baptized to keep her alive.” “And I,” said one, “when I was lying near to death, was by the command of another father sprinkled by an Indian cantor, and as soon as I was sprinkled immediately I began to recover. Then that madman, as you know, washed away his madness in the same font; and this companion of mine, who was already despaired of, when he received baptism was restored to himself and his kinsfolk.” The father yielded to all these arguments, ordered the sick woman to be carried into the church, and after putting the questions demanded by the occasion and the need, cleansed her with that purifying sacrament: she immediately began to improve, and soon recovered all her former strength. Every day several feel the healing power of this font. An equally great miracle is that the chiefs of this tribe, who have been very ill disposed towards us, and from whom not even the lives of Ours were safe, have been so suddenly changed at the sight of one of our fathers that they not only—themselves, without being urged—have submitted to the Christian ordinances, but also seek out the barbarians, even in the mountains, where they wander and are dispersed like wild beasts; and partly by the exercise of their authority, partly by persuasion, bring them down to the villages, and offer them to the fathers for instruction and baptism. Together with these there were once offered more than seventy idols, the spoils of the bailans, which were publicly burnt by Ours before the uplifted cross. The same thing has been done again and again elsewhere, especially at Jalibon, Ingaon, Orion, and Canliron, where the joyful Indians in this manner took vengeance upon the evil demon who had so often deceived them by the delusions of idols. The bailans are conspicuous in this zealous attack upon the enemy. They go so far as to scourge themselves14 until they draw blood, in order to atone for their sins; and thus they who formerly opened the door to all kinds of impiety are now the means above all others by which the rest of the bailans who still work their impious sacrifices are led to the faith, for the art of these latter loses its power when the others reveal the deceit. Indeed the deceit not seldom reveals itself by their predicting that which never comes to pass, or threatening terrors which injure no one.

VIII. The members of the Sodality of the Blessed Virgin are devoting their attention to themselves, and striving to root out from their souls those sins which have grown old there. There was an Indian woman who was seized by a suitor in her bed, and who, to protect her chastity, threw herself out of the window; there was a youth who, being unable to keep a crowd of wanton girls out of his cottage, so savagely scourged his own back with cords that they, alarmed at the fierceness of the sounds, at last dispersed. There were some who, to avoid the sin of drunkenness, entirely denied themselves the use of wine.

Of old there were among these Indians no bowels of compassion, no signs of family affection. Nay, parents sold their very children for food; children did the same by their parents; and this sort of avarice (or rather of cruelty) was still more common among kinsmen by marriage or blood, so that they did no kindness without doing an injury. Now, by the grace of God, all these things are reversed, and these people delight in doing to others as they would be done by; and on that account the hospital which has been built never wants for necessaries, and always has some, even of high rank, who rejoice in giving themselves to the service of the poor.

Moreover, this hospital is supported thus: during the week a basket is placed before the doors of the church, in which every one puts what he pleases, according to his ability, either of food or herbs, to be carried to the hospital. On Sundays, besides, each village in turn serves the sick, after the following manner. Those whose turn it is go hunting boars or stags, and on the appointed day bring flesh, boiled or roasted, with rice, or bring some equivalent food, for the sick. Now this tribe, which is at this time so Christian, formerly observed the custom of never going hunting without consulting their idols. When they perceived that the fathers of Ours detested this custom, and indeed wholly annulled it, some of them asked them what they ought to do then when they went out on such enterprises. When they were told that they should go to some church and beseech God through the Virgin Mother of God to give them success in their hunting, they did so; and at noon of that very day they killed twenty-two boars and stags not far from the village. When they came home loaded with their game, every one marveled greatly; and they said: “Ah, Father, how good is the God of the Christians! The gods that we used to worship would scarcely grant us, in return for long continued implorations, at last two boars or stags, and most often nothing; but now the true God after having been barely prayed to has freely given us all these beasts in a short time.” The pious example of these people having been followed by others in another village, they too had slain five and twenty of this kind of game within three or four hours; and they went about shouting: “Away with you, lying bailans, who were about to destroy us and all that we had! For us there will be henceforth no God but Jesus Christ, who has displayed so great liberality to us who have recently turned to Him.” I might say more as to the Gospel of St. John, the saving sign of the cross, and other mysteries of the Christians, whose marvelous efficacy these tribes have experienced; but I would not be prolix. Let it be enough to state that seven or eight sick persons at least have been cured by amulets of this sort.