Philip of Jesus, OFM (Spanish: Felipe de Jesús) was a

Novohispanic New Spain, officially the Viceroyalty of New Spain ( es, Virreinato de Nueva España, ), or Kingdom of New Spain, was an integral territorial entity of the Spanish Empire, established by Habsburg Spain during the Spanish colonization of the A ...

Franciscan

Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

missionary who became one of the

Twenty-six Martyrs of Japan The were a group of Catholics who were executed by crucifixion on February 5, 1597, in Nagasaki, Japan. Their martyrdom is especially significant in the history of the Catholic Church in Japan. A promising beginning to Catholic missions in Japa ...

, the first Mexican saint and patron saint of

Mexico City Mexico City ( es, link=no, Ciudad de México, ; abbr.: CDMX; Nahuatl: ''Altepetl Mexico'') is the capital city, capital and primate city, largest city of Mexico, and the List of North American cities by population, most populous city in North Amer ...

.Ronald J. Morgan, ''Spanish American Saints and the Rhetoric of Identity, 1600–1810.'' Tucson: University of Arizona Press 2002, pp. 143-169 Philip was born in

in 1572. Though unusually frivolous as a boy, he joined the Reformed

Franciscans , image = FrancescoCoA PioM.svg , image_size = 200px , caption = A cross, Christ's arm and Saint Francis's arm, a universal symbol of the Franciscans , abbreviation = OFM , predecessor = , ...

of the Province of St. Didacus, founded in Mexico by Peter Baptista, with whom he suffered martyrdom later. After some months in the Order, Philip grew tired of religious life, left the Franciscans in 1589, took up a mercantile career, and went to the

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

, another Spanish colony, where he led a life of pleasure. Later he desired to re-enter the Franciscans and was again admitted at

Manila Manila ( , ; fil, Maynila, ), officially the City of Manila ( fil, Lungsod ng Maynila, ), is the capital of the Philippines, and its second-most populous city. It is highly urbanized and, as of 2019, was the world's most densely populate ...

in 1590.Bihl, Michael. "St. Philip of Jesus." The Catholic Encyclopedia
Vol. 12. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1911. 28 July 2018 After some years it was determined that he was ready for

ordination Ordination is the process by which individuals are consecrated, that is, set apart and elevated from the laity class to the clergy, who are thus then authorized (usually by the denominational hierarchy composed of other clergy) to perform v ...

and sent to Mexico for this, since the episcopal see of Manila was vacant at that time, and thus no

bishop A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is c ...

was available locally to ordain him. He sailed on the '' San Felipe'' on 12 July 1596, but a storm drove the vessel upon the coast of Japan. The governor of the province confiscated the ship and imprisoned its crew and passengers, among whom were another Franciscan

friar A friar is a member of one of the mendicant orders founded in the twelfth or thirteenth century; the term distinguishes the mendicants' itinerant apostolic character, exercised broadly under the jurisdiction of a superior general, from the ...

, Juan de Zamorra, as well as three other friars, two Augustinians and a Dominican. The discovery of soldiers, cannon and ammunition on the ship led to the suspicion that it was intended for the conquest of Japan, and that the missionaries were merely to prepare the way for the soldiers. This was also said, falsely and unwarrantably, by one of the crew, and it enraged the Japanese Taikō,

Toyotomi Hideyoshi , otherwise known as and , was a Japanese samurai and ''daimyō'' (feudal lord) of the late Sengoku period regarded as the second "Great Unifier" of Japan.Richard Holmes, The World Atlas of Warfare: Military Innovations that Changed the Cour ...

, generally called Taicosama by Europeans. In consequence, he commanded on December 8, 1596, the arrest of the Franciscans in the friary at Miako, now

Kyoto Kyoto (; Japanese language, Japanese: , ''Kyōto'' ), officially , is the capital city of Kyoto Prefecture in Japan. Located in the Kansai region on the island of Honshu, Kyoto forms a part of the Keihanshin, Keihanshin metropolitan area along wi ...

, whither Philip had gone. The friars were all kept prisoners in the friary until December 30, when they were transferred to the city prison. There were six Franciscan friars, seventeen Japanese Franciscan tertiaries and the Japanese Jesuit Paul Miki, with his two native servants. The ears of the prisoners were cropped on January 3, 1597, and they were paraded through the streets of

; on January 21 they were taken to

Osaka is a designated city in the Kansai region of Honshu in Japan. It is the capital of and most populous city in Osaka Prefecture, and the third most populous city in Japan, following Special wards of Tokyo and Yokohama. With a population of ...

, and thence to

Nagasaki is the capital and the largest Cities of Japan, city of Nagasaki Prefecture on the island of Kyushu in Japan. It became the sole Nanban trade, port used for trade with the Portuguese and Dutch during the 16th through 19th centuries. The Hi ...

, which they reached on February 5, 1597. They were taken to a mountain near Nagasaki city, "Mount of the Martyrs", bound upon crosses, after which they were pierced with spears. The bones of Philip were brought to Mexico City in 1598: "Annals of His Time", Chimalpahin.

Beatification & Canonization

Philip was beatified in 1627 by Urban VIII, and, with his companions, canonized 8 June, 1862, by Pius IX. He is the patron saint of the city of Mexico.

In Popular Culture

In 1949 a Mexican film '' Philip of Jesus'' portrayed his life and death. It was directed by Julio Bracho with the actor Ernesto Alonso playing Philip.

References

Sources

External links

* http://evangelhoquotidiano.org/main.php?language=PT&module=saintfeast&id=12486&fd=0 (In Portuguese) {{DEFAULTSORT:Philip 1597 deaths Reformed Franciscans Japanese Roman Catholic saints Mexican Roman Catholic saints Roman Catholic missionaries in Japan Mexican Roman Catholic missionaries Mexican people executed abroad People executed by crucifixion 26 Martyrs of Japan 16th-century Christian saints 1572 births People of Spanish colonial Philippines People of New Spain Catholic Church in the Philippines Spanish Roman Catholic priests 16th-century Roman Catholic priests 16th-century Spanish people Franciscan missionaries Mexican expatriates in Japan Franciscan saints