an american knight · died at his home in annapolis, maryland. on that same day, i decided to write...

January/February 2010

Magazine

TThhee LLiiffee ooff CCoolloonneell JJoohhnn WW.. RRiipplleeyy,, UUSSMMCC

AN AMERICANKNIGHT

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Ideal

The Life of Colonel John W. Ripley, USMC

AN AMERICANKNIGHTNEW

BOOK!

Pope Benedict XVI, while Prefect of the Congre-gation for the Doctrine of the Faith, gave an ad-

dress during the May 1996 meeting of theCongregation for the Doctrine of the Faith held inGuadalajara, Mexico, with the presidents of theDoctrinal Commissions of the Bishops’ Conferencesof Latin America. The following is an excerpt fromthat address:

Precisely in those places where the Marxist liber-

ating ideology had been applied con-sistently, a radical lack of freedom hadbeen produced, the horror of whichnow appeared out in the open beforethe eyes of world public opinion. Thefact is that when politics want to bringredemption, they promise too much.When they presume to do God’s work,they do not become divine but diabolical. �

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Norman Fulkerson,An American Knight: The Lifeof Colonel John W. Ripley,USMC

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CRUSADECCRRUUSSAADDEE®

The American TFP The American Society for the Defense of Tradition,Family and Property (TFP) was founded in 1973 toconfront the profound crisis shaking the modernworld. It is a civic, cultural and nonpartisanorganization which, inspired by the traditionalteachings of the Supreme Magisterium of theRoman Catholic Church, works in a legal andpeaceful manner in the realm of ideas to defendand promote the principles of private ownership,family and perennial Christian values with their

January/February 2010

ContentsCover:

Col. John W. Ripley,USMC

IN BR IEF 4

COVER STORY� I Will Tell Your Story 5� An American Knight Foreword 5

COMMENTARYThe Allure of Lourdes 9

TFP IN ACT IONTempest and Confidence at the 2009 National Conference 12

ANF PROGRESS REPORT� Rosary Rally Captains Tell Their Stories 13� Our Readers Write 16� A Woman Returns to Confession After 50 Years 17

� Our Lady Receives Thousands of Roses at Fatima 17

PROPHET, MARTYRS , SA INTS AND HEROES Eusebio Francisco Kino, S.J.— The Apostle of Arizona 18

MANIFESTOA Call to Gratitude: Who Will Thank Our Heroes? 21

BACK COVERSlow Down, You’reNot on the Mainland! 24

Page 13 Stories poured in from 4,337 Rosary Rally Captains this year.

twofold function: individual and social. The TFP’swords and efforts have always been faithfully at theservice of Christian civilization.The first TFP wasfounded in Brazil by the famous intellectual andCatholic leader Prof. Plinio Corrêa de Oliveira in1960. His work inspired the formation of otherautonomous TFP sister organizations across theglobe, thus constituting the world’s largestanticommunist and antisocialist network ofCatholic inspiration.

Page 21 Calling upon the public to thank our military heroes.

Crusade Magazine is a publication of The American Society for theDefense of Tradition, Family and Property (TFP). Direct all requestsand inquiries to: Crusade Magazine, P.O. Box 341, Hanover, PA17331 or e-mail to: [email protected]. Web: www.TFP.org, Tel.:888-317-5571, Fax: (570) 450-6352. © 2010 by The Foundation fora Christian Civilization, Inc. This publication includes images fromiStockphoto™ which are protected by copyright laws of the U.S. andelsewhere.ISSN 1096-3782LCCN 98-641433 M-103

Page 9 The Rosary Basilicaat Lourdes

Antho

ny Edg

eworth

C r u s a d e J a n u a r y / F e b r u a r y 2 0 1 04

In brief

BBC: Global Warming Now Global CoolingThe warmest year recorded globally was 1998, and forthe last 11 years no increase in global temperatureshas been observed, ac-cording to a BBC report“Whatever happened toGlobal Warming?” PaulHudson, a BBC climatecorrespondent, quotes aclimatologist as sayingthere could be 30 years ofcooling because of the oceans’ falling temperatures.

Relics of Saint Mary Magdalene Touring AmericaEWTN reports that Father Thomas Michelet, a Do-minican priest, brought the relics of Saint Mary Mag-

dalene on their first visit to the UnitedStates. Father Michelet shares the story ofthe relics and the saint who was the firstwitness of the Resurrection. A letter of au-thentication from Bishop Rey reports thatthe relics were hidden at the time of theSaracen invasions and rediscovered in 1279,from which date they have been veneratedfor 730 years without interruption.

Top Embryonic Stem-Cell Researcher Convicted of FraudHwang Woo-suk, one of the most famous embryonicstem-cell research scientists, has been convicted bySeoul Central District Court in South Korea of ac-cepting $2 million in donations after knowingly fal-sifying embryonic stem-cell research. A paper byHwang and his fellow scientists at Seoul NationalUniversity claimed they had created the world’s firstcloned human embryos and extracted from themembryonic stem cells. A second paper announcedthat Hwang’s team created lines of genetically match-ing stem cells, thereby overcoming the immune sys-tem rejection issues plaguing embryonic stem-cellresearch. Both claims and all of the information inthe papers were false. To date, embryonic stem-cellresearch and human cloning have yet to cure a singlepatient while the more ethical use of adult stem cellshave helped patients with more than 100 diseasesand conditions.

Land of the Free and Home of the BravePolls show that America is more conservative than ithas been since 2004. According to Gallup, 40 percentof Americans describe their political views as con-

servative, 36 percent as moderate and 20 percent asliberal. Pew polls also found that 44 percent of Amer-icans are opposed to legal abortion in all or mostcases, and only 33 percent of respondents to a CBSNews/New York Times poll said homosexuals shouldbe allowed to marry.

Socialistic Control in Venezuela Leads to Water ShortageHugo Chávez, Venezuela’s so-cialist dictator, has ordered thatshowers should be limited tothree minutes to save water.Chávez blames the water short-age on El Niño, but according toinvestors.com, his decision to con-trol the price of water in 2003 isreally to blame. The price controlscut water companies’ revenues to80 percent and maintenance wasneglected, resulting in waste of 62 percent of thewater collected through broken water mains.

Forty Days for LifeTens of thousands of people in 212 cities conducteda unified 40-day campaign of prayer and fasting foran end to abortion, consisting mainly of peaceful vig-

ils outside abortion facilities and Planned Parent-hood offices. According to 40daysforlife.com, thecampaign’s official Web site, 542 babies were savedfrom abortion during these 40 days.

The Root of the ProblemThe problem of clerical abuse is not pedophilia buthomosexual abuse of adolescents, according to theVatican official Archbishop Silvano Tomasi who isthe Permanent Observer of the Holy See to the Of-fice of the United Nations and Specialized Institu-tions in Geneva. Responding to criticism of theVatican’s handling of the pedophilia crisis, Arch-bishop Tomasi said, “Of all priests involved in theabuses, 80 to 90% belong to this sexual orientation[homosexual] minority . . . .”

On November 1, 2008, Ron Darden was watch-ing the evening news when an item, scrollingacross the bottom of the screen, caught his

eye. He was shocked to find out that his former com-pany commander, Colonel John Walter Ripley, haddied at his home in Annapolis, Maryland. On that same day, I decided to write An American

Knight, The Life of Colonel John W. RipleyUSMC, the first biography of this great man.

* * *

Sergeant Darden admitted that he wasafraid when, as a 19-year-old lance corporal,he first joined Lima Company. He drew guardduty on his first night in Vietnam after beingwounded and described how his fears were putto ease when he received an unexpected visitfrom Captain John Ripley, Lima Company’sfearless commander, who jumped into the fox-hole next to him. The solicitous captain askedSergeant Darden where he was from, if he wasmarried and how his parents were gettingalong without him.

During this night visit, Captain Ripley spoke toSergeant Darden with the gentleness of a father andtold him it was OK to be afraid, but that he shouldnot let his fears dominate him. Sergeant Dardenwould go on to earn a Silver Star when he ran out intothe middle of a firefight to save the life of a woundedMarine. He is a man who has seen the worst of warwhile serving under the best of battlefield com-manders. As Mr. Darden related stories about Colonel Rip-

ley during a phone interview, I sensed that this Silver

It is safe to say that since the dawn of his-tory no warrior has captured man’s imag-ination as much as the medieval knight.Images of chargers frothing at the mouth asthey propel their steel-clad riders into thefray will likely fascinate mankind until theend of time.However, these knights were known for

more than their wartime deeds alone. Theyalso personified the Christian virtues to ahigh degree. They are the stuff of which leg-ends are made!

Thus, anyone who tries to compare anymodern man with these mythical warriorshas his work cut out for himself. However,this is the task which Norman Fulkersonhas striven to accomplish in the presentbook. In it, he recounts the crib-to-gravestory of Colonel John W. Ripley, making AnAmerican Knight: The Life of Colonel John W.Ripley, USMC an engaging read that will behard to put down, regardless of the reader’sbackground.Having known Colonel Ripley personally,

I can affirm that if there are still men whomerit the title “knight”— he is one of them. We were fellow Marines and shared that

friendship which unites all warriors whohave struggled together and shed their bloodon the same fields. In fact, the colonel and Ifought literally on the same battlefield, as,on April 30, 1968, I was ordered to defend theDong Ha Bridge in the Quang Tri Provinceof Vietnam. Ironically, Colonel Ripley wouldearn a Navy Cross four years later by de-stroying that same bridge. Because of thatfact, I would often tease him, complainingthat he had “destroyed my bridge!” However,my story had little to do with Dong Ha.Rather, on May 2, 1968, I led 180 Marines

of E Company in an assault on the hamletof Dai Do to relieve G Company that was

Foreword fromAn American Knight

C r u s a d e J a n u a r y / F e b r u a r y 2 0 1 0 5

CoverStory

I Will TellYour Story

This photo was taken four days before the EasterOffensive. Left to Right: Capt. James Johnson, Capt. John Ripley, Lt. Col. Gerald Turley and Capt. William Weschmeyer.

B Y N O R M A N F U L K E R S O N

Colonel Gerald Turley, USMC (R

et.)

John Ripley earned the status oflegend during his first tour inVietnam as a 28-year-old captain.


Star recipient was fighting back tears as he remem-bered this remarkable man and that unforgettablenight so many years ago. He could not believe the lackof news coverage of this great man. His surprisequickly turned to frustration and then anger as hesearched for more details about the passing of a manwho had already been revered as a “living legend.” The news of Colonel Ripley’s death did begin to

hit the airwaves and his obituary eventually appearedin The New York Times. What the New York Times andso many other newspaper articles recounted was thestory of a man who blew up the Dong Ha Bridge onEaster Sunday in 1972. This is understandable con-sidering Colonel Ripley almost single-handedlyhalted the largest Communist offensive of the entireVietnam War. This amounted to stopping 30,000enemy troops and 200 tanks. He was successful inthis task and would later sum up his actions in a suc-cinct way, “The bridge was there, the enemy wasthere, and I was there.”

Desiring to Tell theWhole TruthWhat he did on that day de-fies belief and I could not failto narrate the Dong Ha storyin An American Knight. Thereis so much more to ColonelRipley, however, that has beenconveniently overlooked bythose either unable or unwill-ing to tell the whole truth. Colonel Ripley was a rarewarrior who willingly and enthusiastically addresseda number of politically incorrect issues of his day. I saw the importance of one of the issues he ad-

dressed when I was “mugged by reality” in an airportsome years ago by the sight of a young lady about to

board a plane. She was a picture of femininity, inevery way, except for her battle fatigues and therucksack thrown over her shoulder. Moments later,her tearful parents said their final farewells to a

daughter being sent off to doa man’s job. It was only natural, there-

fore, that I drew an enormousconsolation when I first readthe heroic testimony ofColonel Ripley against sendingwomen into harm’s way. Whileothers paid homage to the“god of equality,” he chose todefend the noble ideals ofwomanhood and femininity.

These, and his care for children, were the things thatcaused me to see in Colonel Ripley a modern-dayknight. Since justice is the virtue whereby man renders

to each what is due to him, I could do nothing lessfor this great man. This was one of the motivating

stranded there. They had been separatedfrom the rest of their battalion and were fac-ing a situation that was getting desperate ina hurry. To accomplish our mission, we hadto advance across a 500-meter-long ricepaddy, under heavy enemy fire without anycover. On the way, we cleared more than onehundred A-frame bunkers which could onlybe taken by getting close enough to blowthem up from the inside—a difficult task,considering each one contained a freshNorth Vietnamese soldier hell-bent onkeeping his bunker intact.After securing Dai Do, my force of 180

had shrunk to 37 Marines. All the others had

been killed or wounded. A few hours later, Iheard over the radio that H Company, whichwas besieging a town within a couple hun-dred yards of my position, was in trouble. Ithen ordered my men to reenter the fray insupport of H Company. In spite of everythingthey had been through, every one of those 37Marines unhesitatingly responded, “Yes sir!”We ran the couple hundred yards to H

Company’s position and got back into thefight. Shortly after, I received a .50 caliber bul-let in my leg that incapacitated me. I pro-ceeded to offer cover fire for my men to getthem to safety, telling them to move on andleave me where I lay. Two courageous Marines

John Ripley standing on a slope near “Mudders Ridge,” explains LimaCompany’s recent action to his brother George.

The diorama at the U.S. Naval Academy depicting how John Ripley set the explosives toblow up the Dong Ha Bridge, an action which halted the Easter Offensive.

While others paid homage to the “god ofequality,” he chose to

defend the noble ideals of womanhood and femininity.

American

TFP

Mrs. M

ary Susan

Goo

dykoon

tz


factors that urged me to writeabout his life. Mysteriouslyenough, I was encouraged inthis project as much byColonel Ripley himself, as any-one. In a letter to a friend, hesaid something that struck melike a voice from beyond thegrave, “If a young officer orMarine ever asks what is the meaning of Semper Fi-delis, tell them my story.” After reading such a state-ment, I could not fail to tell this man’s story.

‘I Walked with a Hero’There was another motivating factor that urged meto write the story of Colonel Ripley, and that was mydesire to console hero-seeking Americans who yearnfor a role model they can admire and emulate. Duringthe researching of An American Knight, I took time toread numerous Web site commentaries and was in-spired by the eulogies posted by average Americans.

One man, no doubt in-spired by the Marines’ Hymn,which speaks of Heaven beingguarded by U.S. Marines, saidthe following, “We claim Sem-per Fidelis as our motto, butit was Col. Ripley’s life. Hisloyalty was complete, in alldirections. The earth is less

today without his soul, but the heavens are a saferplace tonight.” Another comment was even more impressive but

demands an introduction. Colonel Ripley was an out-standing officer who took great pride in the rank heearned. This can be seen in the picture I chose for thecover of An American Knight, which is the same onethat graces the cover of this issue of Crusade. Yet hewas a man that had a profound humility and neverwanted attention drawn to himself. Colonel Ripleywas not a man who tried to impress others with hisNavy Cross or his legendary status. In fact, he wouldoften point out the achievements of those of lesserrank and frequently expressed his unbounded appre-ciation for the common Marine Corps grunts that“get the job done.”He did this in a very refreshing way without ever

adopting the “one of the guys” egalitarian attitude solamentably common among many people of higherstation. Colonel Ripley was, from top to bottom, a se-rious Marine Corps officer and was not ashamed of it.Yet he never missed the opportunity to challengethose around him to reach higher. It is for this reasonthat toward the end of his life he gave himself whole-heartedly to mentoring. He loved to counsel youngmen starting out on their military careers, especiallythose of the U.S. Naval Academy, his alma mater,Left to right: Col. Ripley, his brothers Michael and George, and his father “Bud.”

disobeyed my orders, approached me and said,“Skipper, you’re coming with us.” They evacuated me and, after two

months in the hospital, I was back on myfeet. I received the Medal of Honor for myactions that day from President RichardNixon on May 14, 1970.With this background, it is understand-

able that I would read avidly An AmericanKnight. However, I was surprised to find abook that is attractive to any reader becauseit highlights a variety of Colonel Ripley’squalities in and out of combat.This is indispensable if one sets out to

compare him to our medieval predecessors,

because being a knight meant a lot morethan prowess on the battlefield. It meantupright and gentlemanly conduct, the prac-tice of the Faith, care for the weak and de-fenseless, and a whole slew of othercharacteristics the colonel possessed.Particularly noteworthy is the moral

courage he showed by taking controversialstances against allowing women in combatand homosexuals in the military. In doingso, he confronted intense pressure to capit-ulate, but stood true to his convictions. Thus, he lived up to his own idea of brav-

ery, which he believed was more praisewor-thy when practiced in defense of one’s

principles in face of hostility than against theenemy on a battlefield. “I have seen couragein many forms,” he said, “but that which I ad-mire far more than physical courage is moralcourage, which I define as the will to stick upfor your moral and ethical principles whensomeone turns up the heat.”This moral integrity demonstrates a sim-

ilarity between Colonel Ripley and the me-dieval knight, but so does his style ofleadership in battle. Like his armored for-bearers, the colonel led his troops from thefront lines. This corresponds with my ideaof leadership and the way I always led mymen. Simply put, an effective combat com-

“We claim Semper Fidelisas our motto, but it was

Col. Ripley’s life. His loyalty was complete

in all directions.”

Mrs. M

ary Susan

Goo

dykoon

tz


which he loved with his whole heart.All of this helps in understanding better a mid-

shipman’s comment after Colonel Ripley’s death: This is the same man who sat at dinner with

me and asked me, a first class midshipman, aboutto be commissioned as a Second Lieutenant, tosign his program for the evening because he wasgoing to read about me in the papers and all thegreat things I did for the Marine Corps. I walkedwith a hero. Semper Fidelis.

Rest in Peace NowI saved the best eulogy for last. It came from amother of four who called herself a “simple Ameri-can woman.” I pray that she someday know howmoved I was to read her words:

I never had the honor of meeting Colonel JohnRipley. In fact, before a dear friend suggested that

I look him up, I had never heard his name. But Ihave sat here and read stories of his life and count-less postings by the people that loved him and willmiss him dearly. I am a simple American womanenjoying a world that Colonel Ripley dedicated hislife to protecting. I am humbled by the recounts ofhis heroism and tireless dedication to his country.I suppose I’d just like to say thank you. Thank youfrom the core of my being and on behalf of my fourchildren. When the time is right, I will tell each ofthem of this great man, Colonel John Ripley. MayGod bless your soul.

I thank you also Colonel Ripley. Rest in peace now,I will tell them your story. �

mander must be close enough to the fight-ing to “smell the gunpowder.” If he cannotdo that, he is simply too far away.Colonel Ripley practiced this principle

to an extreme degree. At times he even ad-vanced alone. On one occasion, he single-handedly stormed a machine-gun nest and“silenced” a gunner who was threateninghis men.Another knightly quality that shone in

Colonel Ripley is disdain for danger. In Viet-nam, he earned a reputation for being ut-terly fearless. That is not to say that he wasfoolish, but when circumstances requiredhim to face a perilous situation, he neverhesitated.He saw accepting risk as part of his job as

a Marine. He expressed this while speaking toa group of young men considering a career inthe Corps. “Risk comes with the job,” he told

them. “If you are not comfortable with risk,you need to get into a new line of work.”These and many of Colonel Ripley’s other

qualities are enumerated in An American

Knight. Thus, I recommend it strongly. Ihope my thoughts will help its readers togain a better appreciation for this Marinewho will doubtlessly be remembered as oneof the greatest men ever to honor the Corps.As I said, comparing any modern-day

warrior to the medieval knights may seemimpossible, but if any man fits the bill it isColonel John Ripley.Demonstrating this fact in a work as

short as An American Knight is no easy task,but Mr. Fulkerson took it on and, as far as Iam concerned, mission accomplished.

Major General James E. Livingston,USMC (Ret.)

Medal of Honor RecipientAugust 31, 2009

A Marine pays his final respects beside Col. John Ripley’scoffin on November 7, 2008.

Major General James E. Livingston,USMC (Ret.)

American

TFP

American

TFP

Col. Ripley and the author at the 1993 launching ofNobility and Analogous Traditional Elites in theAllocutions of Pius XII by Plinio Corrêa de Oliveira.

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oorr ccaallll ((888888)) 331177--55557711..

As I sat down in the train for my trip’s finalleg to Lourdes, I could not help but reflectthat this was a trip repeated many times by

tens of millions of pilgrims from all over theworld over the last 150 years. They have em-barked with similar expectations. Upon writ-ing down my impressions, I was tempted tothink that my account would be of little value,since my story has already been told so manytimes before.However, though it is the same story, I have

no doubt each trip is different. Part of the al-lure of Lourdes lies exactly in that each pil-

grim’s experiences it differently. Lourdes draws each one to go onthe pilgrim’s route. Everyone takes different problems and miseries,and is filled with different expectations.Mine was a simple four-day pilgrimage, a retreat without Inter-

net, cell phone, camera or even air-conditioning. My expectationswere simple. I sought peace of soul in a world that aggressively dis-rupts that peace. I sought time to reflect and recollect. I expectedto be cleansed of so much. I just wanted time to pray to Our Ladyand ask her for all that I needed.

A Place of Violent ContrastMy first impression of Lourdes was that it is a place of dramatic con-trast, born of violence and extremes. I found it unexpectedly dramatic.The rocky foothills of the Pyrenees are filled with abrupt cliffs, myste-rious caves and scraggly brush. The Gave River rapidly flows with vi-olent intensity. While praying at the Grotto, it was not uncommon tofeel sudden gusts of strong winds that added to the sense somethingdifferent and important was happening there. The intensely hot sun ofthe July day contrasted with the chilly night mountain air.This contrast is above all present at the Grotto. The Grotto lies

inside a huge rocky hill near the river. I had always thought theGrotto was separate from the basilica. However, the huge Gothicsanctuary sits right on top of this massive rock and its stone foun-dations dig like roots into the rock, dominating and forcing itselfupon the wild landscape. However, the Grotto still retains that ex-uberant wildness that it must have had at the time of the appari-tions. The outside of the Grotto is covered with that untamed scrubbrush and wild grass that tenaciously cling to fissures in the rock.Almost as dramatic as the landscape is the violent contrast of the


B Y J O H N H O R V A T I I

Commentary

LourdesAllureThe

of

Lourdes belongs to broken humanity. It is full of the sick and troubled who gothere with their impossible cases.

. . . you feel as if a balm has been appliedthat makes it so much more bearable.

You leave less broken.


pilgrims. They come from all over the worldand speak in many languages. But the mostnotable contrast is the extreme culturalclashes one sees between genuine signs ofdevotion and faith and the most glaringsigns of our fragmented postmodernityfound in the modern fashions and icons thatare found on the pilgrims’ Che Guevarashirts and caps. You cannot help but feel it isthe affliction caused by this internal culturalwar inside souls that brings many of the pil-grims to Lourdes.All of this is a fitting stage for the drama

that takes place inside souls at Lourdes. Youpray in the context of this dramatic setting.

The Heart of LourdesThe heart of Lourdes is the Grotto. All overthe city, the signs point to the Grotto. Infront of the Grotto, I spent hours prayingbefore a life-size statue of Our Lady thatstands some 15 feet above in a large cavityinside the Grotto.The activities around the Grotto are im-

pressive. It is the site of Masses, adorationsand recitations of the Rosary. There aretimes when you can kneel very close to thestatue of Our Lady. There are other timeswhen you must stand back because of thecrowds. At night, a tree of large candles il-luminates the area and creates an atmos-phere of recollection and devotion.

There is a constant flow of people whoenter the Grotto and pass by its walls. Deepinside there is the spring of water fromwhich so many cures and benefits haveflowed. All enter the Grotto touching thewalls of the cavern, now worn smooth by somuch touching. Pilgrims touch the walls,bless themselves with the small streamlets ofwater that flow from little fissures. They puttheir foreheads on the rock walls. They leaveprayer requests, candles and flowers. Theyask, pray and beseech for Our Lady’s help.Some leave emotional; others merely curious.However, I noticed that everyone leaves theGrotto serious—no one is laughing.

Broken HumanityLourdes belongs to a broken humanity, fullof the sick and troubled who go there withtheir impossible cases. It is especially thephysically sick and handicapped that can beseen everywhere in an unfortunate displayof human ailments of all kinds. The mostimpossible cases are especially representedand they are cared for with touching solici-tude. Tens of thousands of volunteers lookafter their every need and one sees legionsof volunteer ladies who assume temporarywhite habits or other garb to help these“least of our brothers.”Here, the handicapped are given charity

wholeheartedly. Here, they accept this char-

ity with all humility and gratitude. They aresick and they show no shame in their weakcondition that will, in the final analysis, bethat of all men. Parades of antique three-wheeled wheelchairs can be seen at allevents—Rosary processions, Eucharisticadorations and Grotto visits. Many have re-ceived cures at Lourdes; others have simplyreceived the means to deal with their suf-ferings. All receive special care.There are, of course, the others who go

with maladies of a different kind. These arethose with spiritual sufferings. All bring theirown crosses and miseries, and I count myselfas one of these pilgrims. One is not neces-sarily relieved of one’s miseries, but you feel

Above: The Rosary Basilica sits directly above the site of the apparition. Our Lady came to SaintBernadette in a grotto in the foothills of the Pyrenees Mountains. Right: Thousands joined thecandlelit procession. Bottom: Pilgrims from all over the world fill the air with different languages.


as if a balm has been applied that makes it somuch more bearable. You leave less broken.

The Nightly Rosary ProcessionThe Rosary procession is the climax of theday. Every night at 9 p.m., the faithfulgather around the basilica for the simpleceremony of praying the Rosary. However,this is no ordinary procession. I witnessedan estimated 90,000 pilgrims on the cen-tral plaza at the Saturday night processionI attended.Every night as you proceed to the shrine,

you notice the shopkeepers have put out theprocession candles with their paper lanternshades. For a pittance, you buy a candle andhead for the procession. There is an atmos-phere of exaltation and even triumph that Ithink comes from a joy in being Catholic—atrue unity amid diversity. Although the HailMarys are said in various languages, all theother prayers are said or sung in Latin with-out any problem or confusion.A large life-size statue of Our Lady of

Lourdes is carried majestically on a litterdown the central plaza and the processionbegins. Thousands of Catholics join in.Hundreds of sick in wheelchairs are pushedand pulled by volunteers along the proces-sion route—the special guests of the affair.As night descends, the candlelight lanternscreate a marvelous and prayerful ambience.The procession covers the length of the

entire central avenue of the sanctuary. Aftereach decade, a Marian hymn is sung. “Im-maculate Mary” is a favorite hymn since it issung in so many languages. During the re-frain, all in the crowd raise their candlelanterns in triumph and praise of the BlessedMother, a practice that they repeat in thefinal “Salve Regina.” The basilica has twolarge esplanades that are like arms enclosingthe grand plaza. During the procession thesearms are also full of people praying andsinging creating the impression of a hugeamphitheater of unity. Finally the processionis over, and gradually the huge crowd dis-perses into the night.

A Lady of Passionate SolicitudeAnd what is to be said of the statue of OurLady of Lourdes? How does she express andcommunicate herself to the faithful? Suchopinions by necessity are subjective sinceOur Lady speaks to souls in different ways. Ican only report what I sensed at the Grotto.The statue of Our Lady of Lourdes is in

my opinion very French. She does not havethe Latin exuberance of Spanish or ItalianMadonnas. She stands in the Grotto, dis-creetly looking upward and measuring hergestures. However, this does not preventher from giving impressions of great mercyand goodness. Her goodness reminded meof the French merchants and pedestrians Iapproached with my broken French in thevillage. They would address you with a verycourteous “Bonjour monsieur” and then goout of their way to help you with yourproblem.Our Lady’s goodness at Lourdes has

something of that same polite and intensegoodness full of respect for the person de-spite his weaknesses. I felt dignified by mydialogue with Our Lady. Inside this enor-mous respect, she exhibited for me a kindof passionate and maternal solicitude that Ihad never experienced before.

It was with great sadness that I left Lour-des and the Grotto on that Sunday morningto catch my train. I bid my farewell andslowly left, turning back several times untilthat last glimpse and final au revoir, a scenethat remains in my mind’s eye.

A Change and a PromiseOn the train back, I reflected a bit on thepilgrimage. Indeed, it was so like the mil-lions of others that traveled the same route.However, it confirmed my idea that each pil-grimage is different and that this is the al-lure of Lourdes.Did I find what I sought? I received no

great miracle but then again, I did not askfor one. However, I found at the Grotto amaternal gaze, a place where one can go tobe heard. I found a place that violentlyclashes with our modern revolutionaryworld. Our Lady makes no compromiseswith the sins of our days but she calls thepoor faithful as they are, and beckons themto return to the practice of the Faith.I returned changed in ways hard to de-

fine. I definitely felt peace in my soul. Lour-des puts your soul in order. It has a cleansingeffect upon you. I sensed a promise not onthe part of Our Lady to me, but rather sheelicited from me a promise to return.My sentiments are those expressed by an

antiphon from the Little Office of theBlessed Virgin Mary that is sung at Vespersthat says, “Trahe nos Virgo immaculata,post te curremus in odorem unguentuorumtuorum.” (“Draw us, O Immaculate Virgin,we will run after thee because of the savor ofthy good ointments.”) �

A life-size statue of Our Lady in the Grottomarks the place where the Blessed Motherappeared to Saint Bernadette.

Lourdes draws each one to go on the pilgrim’s route. Everyone takes different problems and miseries,

and is filled with different expectations.

Approximately six million pilgrims and visitorscome to the shrine annually, making it one ofthe most visited places in the world.

TFP In Action


ATFP National Conference is alwaysan exciting event, but this year’sgathering was dramatic. On the

opening day, a storm swept over the area.The outdoor tent was buffeted by wind, andthe rain stopped just before the scheduledSaturday evening candlelight Rosary pro-cession started. The dramatic events seemed a fitting pic-

ture of the trials and efforts of those engagedin the struggle to defend Christian civiliza-tion in the public square. So often these ac-tions are buffeted by adversity yet afterwardsOur Lady rewards them with special graces.Such thoughts were present in the minds

of the more than 200 members and sup-porters of the American TFP who gatheredon October 24–25 in Spring Grove, Pa., todiscuss the theme “Human Solutions HaveFailed: The Fatima Moment Has Arrived.”Among the distinguished guest speakers

at the conference were Prince Bertrand ofOrleans-Braganza of the Brazilian TFP, whodelivered the Sunday closing speech aboutthe certainty of victory, and Duke Paul ofOldenberg of the German TFP, who spokeabout devotion to Our Lady.

Rallies and an American KnightThe conference was held in an atmosphereof celebration for the 4,337 Public SquareRosary Rallies nationwide on October 10,

2009. America Needs Fatima Director RobertRitchie delivered an account of the rallies.He reminded the participants that this mile-stone could only be properly celebrated inlight of the incredible obstacles faced by therallies’ organizers and the enormous gracesthat Our Lady gave to overcome them.Another highlight of this year’s conference

was TFP member Norman Fulkerson’s AnAmerican Knight: The Life of Col. John W. Rip-ley USMC. Mr. Fulkerson recounted how hecame to write Colonel Ripley’s biography, aMarine who defended the country on themilitary battlefield as well as the cultural bat-tlefield when he opposed women in combatand homosexuals in the military.

Talks on the Fatima MomentMr. Mario Navarro da Costa presented a talkon how the world arrived to the Fatima mo-ment with an historical overview of eventsleading up to Our Lady’s appearance at Fa-tima. American TFP Vice President JohnHorvat delivered the talk, “What is theCounter-revolutionary Alternative to theGlobal Financial Crisis?” Mr. Luiz Solimeopresented a talk on the devil’s objectives. Mr.Michael Whitcraft discussed the necessityof dealing with suffering in these times. Mr.Michael Chad Shibler presented anoverview of the activities of the TFP mem-bers and supporters since last conference.

Little Things That MatterOur Lady’s blessings upon the event wereevident by the great conviviality among par-ticipants. Even first-time participants feltpart of a great family of souls. Many wereencouraged that many new Rally Captainsattended the conference.There were events like an organ concert

and the singing of the Little Office of theBlessed Virgin Mary. Also, the magnificentLatin Mass was sung by TFP members wear-ing the TFP ceremonial habit at the historicImmaculate Conception Church in nearbyYork, Pa. Father Gregory Karpyn celebratedthe Mass and delivered the sermon. The re-cessional procession ended with the now tra-ditional majestic rendition of the Papal Hymnwith organ and trumpet.The weekend ended much different than

it had begun. Inside the calm grand ball-room of the nearby historic YorktowneHotel, participants sat down together forthe final dinner. As the final farewells fadedinto the night, all gave thanks to Our Ladyfor a wonderful weekend despite the tem-pests that had seemed so threatening. �

B Y J O H N H O R V A T

Left to right: Over 200 attended the conference in Spring Grove, Pa. Duke Paul of Oldenburg spoke about devotion to Our Lady. The candle light Rosary procession.

The Latin Mass at Immaculate ConceptionChurch in York, Pa.

Tempest and Confidence at the 2009 National Conference

October 10, 2009 marked the third annualPublic Square Rosary sponsored by Amer-

ica Needs Fatima. Every year, as more Catholicsunderstand the tremendous moral crisis thatAmerica is experiencing, the number of PublicSquare Rosary Rallies grows. Our first year sawover 2,000 Public Square Rosary Rallies, lastyear there were over 3,000 Public Square Rosary Ral-lies. This year we counted 4,337 Public Square Rosary

Rallies all across America!The devil understands very

well the importance of the PublicSquare Rosary Rallies. As a result,every year brings with it uniquetrials and obstacles. This year, aswe began enlisting captains inearnest, our computer systemcrashed despite our very capablecomputer technician, who hap-pens to be a full-time volunteer,having tested everything thor-oughly. Next, our telephone sys-tem inexplicably crashed,causing the loss of numerousmessages. One of our expensivemachines that print the banners

broke beyond repair. The final trial, on the day of therally, was the sudden onset of cold weather in manyparts of the United States that reduced attendingnumbers.But by no means did these trials discourage us.

Everything that is worthwhile in the apostolate bringsa multitude of temptations and trials. A cursory read-ing of the Church’s history and of the saints’ livesdemonstrates this.Catholics consecrated and devoted to Our Lady

don’t give up when obstacles are sent their way. Witheach blow received from the devil, they perceive that itis the devil who is threatened. As a result, they attackhim with greater vigor, using the weapons that OurLady has given to us, primarily the Holy Rosary.Besides the trials there were tremendous consola-

tions. A huge consolation was the volunteers who trav-eled all the way to Kansas, to a place that they hadnever visited before, to meet people they had never


America Needs Fatima ®®America Needs Fatima ®®January/February 2010 PROGRESS REPORT

Rosary Rally Captains TellTheir Stories

B Y F R A N C I S S L O B O D N I K

“Twenty people (including the Corpus Christi pastor) endured snow,sleet and freezing drizzle to pray the Rosary at Corpus ChristiCatholic School in Colorado Springs.” G.Z., Colorado Springs, Colo.

“All who attended were very glad they did andpromised to return next year. Thank you for lettingus have the privilege to share in this beautifuloffering to Our Lady.” P.W., Edgefield, S.C.

ANF Progress Report


met before. They placed themselves in our care andzealously recruited the overwhelming majority ofRally Captains. At a certain point in the campaign weset up two shifts of callers. Some of the volunteers in-sisted on volunteering for both shifts calling from 9a.m. until 9 p.m.! We were also blessed by veteran vol-unteers who called from home. They also were atremendous boost for the campaign.But our greatest consolation was the Rally Cap-

tains themselves, so full of love for Our Lady, and sodesirous of offering her reparation and so thirsty forthe conversion of souls. After all, what would the Pub-lic Square Rosary campaign be without the Rally Cap-tains?We know from the phone calls, e-mails and letters

that many of the Rally Captains also experienced trials,some quite difficult. As is always the case, some rallies were large such

as the rally in downtown New York, with an atten-dance of 150. These gave Our Lady external glory.Other rallies were small, plagued by trials, abandon-ment and even persecution. These offered Our Ladyinternal glory, that glory that only God can see.

Our Lord, during His crucifixion, manifested Hisinternal glory, which Our Lady alone fully understood.Our Lord’s resurrection manifested His public glorythat was made manifest to the apostles, disciples andmany others. Those whose rallies were beset with trials can be

consoled knowing that their heroic act gave much in-ternal glory to Our Lady, which Our Lady entirely ob-served and blessed.So that you too may see why we are so consoled by

Our Lady’s Captains, here are some excerpts of re-marks from a few of them:Joy from Texas wrote, “There was a sudden

overnight drop in temperature with heavy dark cloudsand a damp chill. Only four attended; however, webrought much attention with the banner and a statueof Our Lady. We prayed all of the Rosaries, all of theprayers and sang all of the hymns.”Josie from New Jersey wrote, “Forty people at-

tended despite the rain . . . from the ages of 3 to 87.May Our Lady touch all the hearts of those who donot believe, do not adore, do not hope and do not loveher beloved Son and her Immaculate Heart.”Anthony from California wrote that 20 attended

his rally, and a photo and story were published in thelocal newspaper about the rally.Elidia from Texas wrote to us that 60 people at-

tended her rally.Rita from Austin, Minn., wrote, “We held our first

“I wish to thank Our Lord, Our Blessed Mother and you forthe opportunity to serve Our Lady in such a lovely way.”A.H., Texas

“My first experience as a Rally Captain was truly awonderful blessing. My community has alreadyrequested that we make it a yearly event.”A.O., Milpitas, Calif.

“It’s impossible to describe the powerful feeling ofsaying the Rosary with 82 people and knowing thattens of thousands of other people are also joining youacross America.” G.E., Salinas, Calif.

ANF Progress Report


Rosary crusade inAustin. There were 20 of us present. It was 32 degrees.”Barbara from Jermyn, Pa., wrote, “My friend Kim

called and asked if I could attend the rally with her. Igot dressed in 15 minutes. Thirty-three people prayedunder a very gloomy sky. As wefinished the Rosary andstarted the litany, the cloudsparted and the sun was shiningdown on us. There was a realcontrast in the sky. Directlyacross from us was a funeralhome with an American flagflapping in the wind. Over that,the clouds remained dark andominous. I really felt that thedark clouds represented theevil that is trying to overtake our country.”Maria from Fullerton, Calif., wrote that over 20 at-

tended her Public Square Rosary at a park. Next tothem were 50 raucous college students. Someone ob-served how that was a typical picture of what is goingon in our country. Maria and her participants resolved

to hold rallies each month from now on.Aurora from Sacramento, Calif., wrote

about how she prayed to Our Lady askingher to help her find a good location. Shemet some pro-lifers and decided to holdher rally in front of an abortion clinic thatshe did not even know existed in her com-munity. The pro-lifers who were alreadypraying at the clinic were very happy to seethe banner with Our Lady’s picture.Elena from New York City held her Pub-

lic Square Rosary in front of MadisonSquare Garden. Before the Public SquareRosary began, she was able to teach threeteenagers, who joined, how to pray the

Rosary. She very wisely wrote, “What mattersmost is the quality and not quantity of prayers.Prayers that are a total surrender to God’s will

shall never be abandoned. Indeed the prayers of thehumble pierce the clouds.” Jenny from Hopkinsville, Ky, wrote, “Total atten-

dance was 38 people including three priests!”Valerie from Hawaii informed us

that there were 126 rallies in herstate!Finally, George from Canada

wrote, “With short notice we hadclose to 150 attending. There is al-ready much excitement for 2010 andI have five eager participants toform a committee. Canada needsFatima too!”This sampling of remarks, I

hope, clearly demonstrates the seri-ousness with which the Rally Captains take this cam-paign. They understand the tremendous battle that isheating up between the angels and the devils, betweengood and evil, between those who are of the Virgin,and those who are of the devil.

I hope that some of these remarks may inspire youto sign up to become a rally captain for 2010. You cancall us at (866) 584-6012 to sign up right now.Our Lady needs you now more than ever! �

Our Lord’s resurrectionmanifested His publicglory that was made

manifest to theapostles, disciples and

many others.

“I was very pleased and happy to honor Our Blessed Mother with the Rosary.I know that She did hear our prayers.” E.P., Midland, Texas

“I’d like to see more Rosary Rally Captains forSaipan. My daughter has enrolled 20 otherfamilies to join for next year.” E.C., Saipan Procession of Our Lady with TFP

members in ceremonial habit on 5thAvenue in New York City.

ANF Progress Report


�� Thanks for all you do to organize theseimportant Public Square Rosary Rallies inthese difficult times. You’re an incrediblegroup of people and we appreciate all yoursupport, including the banner that we willsave for next year.

N.M., via e-mail

�� Now I’m inspired to be a Rosary RallyCaptain every year. We showed the worldthat we were neither ashamed nor embar-rassed to stand up for our Catholic faith.

M.H., Florissant, Mo.

�� My first experience as a Rally Captainon October 10 was truly a wonderful bless-ing. My community has already asked me tomake it a yearly event.

A.O., Milpitas, Calif.

��This was our first attempt, and 25 peoplegathered on the very cold, windy day to pleadour case before God through Mary. We passedout blankets, caps and gloves to those whowere unprepared for the weather. The bannerheld up beautifully between two permanentposts. We are looking forward to hold anotherrally next year even if it’s snowing.

V.S., Brackett, Wis.

�� I had the pleasure of meeting two ofyour young representatives, Matthew andCharles. They did a Fatima home visit at thehome of a friend of mine. It is inspirationaland heartwarming to see such dedication.Thank you for your wonderful mission andall who make it possible.

J.P., Williamstown, Mass.

�� The statue at our Fatima home visit wasexceedingly beautiful and the presentation byCustodian José Ferraz was remarkably hum-ble and gentle. Our home was very blessed.

J.G., Ardmore, Pa.

�� I’m very happy to be a Child of Mary. Ilove the Child of Mary lapel pin and wear italways on my jacket. I also have the big pic-

ture of Our Lady of Fatima in my room andremember that my name is on the Child ofMary Plaque at your main hall.

C.S., Hales Corner, Wis.

�� I am most grateful for your courteouskindness in sending me the novena to SaintThérèse of the Child Jesus, which I did notknow about. I started praying it as soon asI received it.

M.C., via e-mail

�� The Miraculous Rose Novena and thepicture of Saint Thérèse gave me thecourage to keep trying.

M.F., Meridian, Idaho

��Thank you America Needs Fatima for allyour correspondence. It’s like a drop ofwater in a dry desert.

M.S., Edinburg, Texas

�� I read everything in your Crusade Maga-zine. WOW! There are conservative Catholicsout there! All of your articles, especially theone on Saint Thérèse, were edifying!

R.M., Horseshoe Bend, Ariz.

�� I just finished reading the July/Augustissue of Crusade Magazine, which I found byaccident and I am delighted with its content.I would like to subscribe and have more in-formation about fighting blasphemy.

D.M., Hampton, N.J.

�� Thank you so much for the viewpointthat you placed in the September 22 editionof the Washington Times against socialistichealthcare reform.

B.L., Onley, Va.

�� Please continue to spread Our Lady’spictures to other homes. I love the peacefullook in her eyes and really enjoy looking ather kind and gentle face. I hope and pray itwill bring peace and love to the people whowill receive it.

C.L., San Francisco, Calif.

��What a God-send! When my calendararrived in the mail I was so overjoyed Icried. It is such a beautiful calendar. I thankyou from the bottom of my heart.

M.L., Minneapolis, Minn.

�� The America Needs Fatima calendar ismy inspiration for the whole year.

R.Q., El Paso, Texas

�� The 2009 calendar was lovely but the2010 far surpasses it.

C.C., Falmouth, Maine

�� I don’t ask, “Maybe we could . . .” or“How about . . . .” When I think somethingis good for evangelizing in public, I do it;then I tell others about it. They can join me;if not, I keep doing it alone.I started serious efforts to have a Rosary

procession in our parish in May and Octo-ber. Didn’t know how or what to do, but de-cided to just do it. In 2002, at the age of 82,coming out of the church at noon, I started.While people were still coming out, I tookout my Rosary and walked and prayed alonearound a residential block, with the Rosarydangling from my hand. I sent a letter invit-ing people to do the same but no one came.I did the same in 2003 and 2004, but no oneelse came. Finally, in May 2005, a youngmother and son came with me. I pointedout that I was old and hoped that theywould keep going when I was no longerthere. In May 2008, another young mothertook over and formed a real processionthrough the streets. I made a carrier withtwelve little lights around the statue for twopersons to carry. Those rallies had about 24people at each. In 2009, there were morethan 60 people, including the priest andseminarians. Please pray this mother getshelp and that it becomes a yearly event.

C.J., Guelph, Canada

Our Readers Write...

All those who participated in the 2009 Public SquareRosary Rallies were remembered in a special way at

Fatima.On October 13, just two days after Our Lady received

4,337 spiritual roses from the Public Square Rosary Ral-lies across the country, the same number of red roseswas presented at her shrine in Fatima. The rallies werea special project of the American Society for the Defenseof Tradition, Family and Property and its America NeedsFatima campaign. A special five-member delegation ofcampaign members went to Fatima on October 13, theninety-second anniversary of the miracle of the sun todeliver the roses.The shrine was filled with pilgrims on this special day, and sev-

eral pilgrims helped the delegation deliver the roses. Mr. Felipe Barandiaran, the Spanish correspondent for Crusade

Magazine, prepared the roses the day before and arranged the lo-gistics to deliver so many fresh flowers at one time. Together with the red roses, the delegation unfurled a large

banner with the names of the 4,337 Rosary Rally Captains. In ad-dition, they delivered some 1,500 white roses to Our Lady of Fa-tima on behalf of those who helped this year’s Public SquareRosary Rallies financially. This offering closed with prayers foreach of the Rosary Captains and all those who helped in the prepa-rations for the 2009 Public Square Rosary Rallies. �

B Y N I C H O L A S M A K

USTODIAN’SCORNER We Custodians many times leave a visit

without knowing how grace wasworking inside the souls of the attendees.In fact, I experienced such a visit in SanFrancisco, California. There was nothingunusual about the visit. The small groupthat assembled was quiet and attentive.Nothing remarkable seemed to happen, yetgrace was moving behind the scenes. Months later, the hostess of the visit

mailed a letter to the America Needs Fa-tima office in Kansas. She wrote she hadbeen extremely moved by the statue of

Our Lady of Fatima, and had consequentlydecided to go back to the Church and con-fess for the first time in 50 years. She con-cluded her letter with, “I feel so blessedshe helped me find my way.” People often ask me if Our Lady has

done any miracles through the statue. I an-swer that no “sensational” type of miraclehas happened with the statue. However,Scripture teaches us that converting a soulis a miracle, and no small one at that. Sothe statue, or rather Our Lady through herstatue, did a huge miracle in converting the

hostess’ soul after 50 years away from theChurch! Can you imagine living that longaway from the Church? Saint Ignatius says that we should do

everything as if everything depended onmen, but know full well that everythingdepends on God, and this is very much theattitude of Fatima Custodians as we travelwith Our Lady, for she is really the onewho does all the work. �

TToo sscchheedduullee aa FFaattiimmaa vviissiitt iinn yyoouurr hhoommee,, ccaallll ((888888)) 446600--77337711

A Woman Returns toConfession After 50 Years

4,337 roses were delivered on behalf of Rosary Rally Captains and sponsors.

ANF Progress Report


Our Lady Receives Thousands of Roses at FatimaB Y B E N J A M I N H I E G E R T

The author with one of ANF's PilgrimVirgin statues.


Prophet,Martyrs,

Saints andHeroes

Arizona’s motto is “Ditat Deus,” which means“God enriches,” and God has certainly en-dowed Arizona with amazing natural treas-

ures. But, as beautiful as all these treasures are, theyonly served as a background for one the greatestriches Arizona ever received from its Creator, Fr. Eu-sebio Kino, S.J. Known as the Great Apostle of thePima Indians, his accomplishments in Arizona wereso widespread that Arizona honored him with a

statue in the state’s Capitol.During 1687 to 1711, Fr. Eusebio Kino established

over 24 missions. His apostolic travels totaled morethan 7,500 miles. He was an explorer, historian, as-tronomer, mapmaker and missionary.Father Kino was born in northern Italy in August

1645 and studied at the Jesuit College near Inns-bruck, Austria. In 1663, he became seriously ill andpromised God that if he recovered he would becomea Jesuit and devote his life to the foreign missions asSaint Francis Xavier had done. To his physician’samazement, he recovered, and in memory of God’sgoodness to him, he added “Francisco” to his name. Father Kino, living up to his promise to God, en-

tered the Society in 1665 and after two years of novi-tiate, he spent three years studying philosophy andscience at Ingolstadt. He was so competent in math-ematics that in 1676 the Duke of Bavaria offered hima full professorship at Ingolstadt, but his heart was inmissionary work. He petitioned the Father General

several times to send him to China or to some othermission.In 1677, the Father General of the Franciscans ap-

pointed Father Kino to the missions in Mexico. Hearrived in Veracruz in May 1681, and was appointedchaplain for Admiral Atondo’s expedition to colonizeBaja California. He remained only a year. After acolony was established at La Paz in 1683, theSpaniards had considerable trouble with the Indiansand withdrew to Sinaloa. Father Kino made a secondattempt within the same year and formed a missionat San Bruno, north of Loreto, where he baptized 400Indians. Never resting and with an inquiring mind,Father Kino was the first white man to cross BajaCalifornia from the Gulf of California to the PacificOcean. In 1685, he left the San Bruno mission due to

Eusebio Francisco Kino, S.J.—

The Apostle of ArizonaB Y W A L T E R T H O M A S C A M I E R

Never resting and with an inquiring mind,

Father Kino was the firstwhite man to cross Baja

California from the Gulf of California to the Pacific Ocean.

A statue of Fr. Eusebio Kino stands across from the ArizonaState Capitol in Phoenix, Ariz.


sickness. He pleaded unceasingly for the founding ofa mission in Baja California but was rejected. Sor-rowfully he wrote to his superiors for a solution,

Everybody was very much grieved to see such agentle, affable, peaceful, extremely friendly, lovingand lovable natives left deserted. Already many ofthem were begging for holy baptism . . . and theyconfessed that it was not easy to find another hea-thendom so free as these people from the ugliestvices, such as drunkenness and homicide.1

On November 20, 1686, Father Kino began a 1,500-mile trip to the Indians in the Pimeria Alta, a regionin southern Arizona, and to the land west of the SanPedro River, and as far north as the junction of theGila and Colorado Rivers. In 1687, Father Kino chosethe village of Corsari and named it Dolores, after OurLady of Sorrows. In the next 24 years this lone, zeal-ous, resourceful man surveyed the surrounding areas,explored and settled this frontier. He founded manymissions and baptized 5,000 Indians. He also im-ported seeds, cattle, horses and sheep, and gave themto the Indians. In this way hetaught the Indians to form astable society and lifestyle. Thisapostolic work was so blessedby God that the cattle ranchesthat he and the Indiansfounded still exist to this day.In 1701 and 1702, Father Kino

made one exploration down theColorado River, and another ex-ploration to the head of the Gulfof California. Using his tele-scope, he proved that the BajaCalifornia was a peninsula and not an island. His mapsof this region were so accurate that the U.S. govern-ment used these until the 19th century.On one of these explorations, Father Kino was ac-

companied by Father Juan Maria Salvatierra, born inMilan of a noble family. Fathers Kino and Salvatierrastarted from the Dolores mission on the Altar Riverin Sonora, crossing the heart of the desert to theshores of the Gulf of California. This was to becomeone of the hardest explorations in American history.Father Salvatierra describes it,

It was horrible country, which looked more likeashes than earth, peppered with bouldersand . . . entirely black, all of which formed figures,because the lava which flows down, solidifies, stopsand assumes shapes . . . . Indeed, I do not know thatthere can be any place [that] better represents thecondition of the world in the general conflagration.And it caused still greater horror to discover thateight leagues from here stretches a great cordillera,a range of mountains, which seemed likewise ofvolcanic ash.2

When these two intrepid men arrived at the Gulfof California, they saw there was no waterway leadingwest to separate California from the mainland. Fa-

ther Kino noted, The sun had set and from the

peak we saw with all clarity thesea below, toward the south, andthe place on the beach to whichwe descended. We saw the halfarch of California whose end hadbeen concealed from us by thespur of the mountains which keptgetting closer together and join-ing the other hills and peaks ofNew Spain [Mexico].

During the next year FatherKino confirmed these findings with a new expeditionto the Gila and Colorado Rivers junction and downthe Colorado River.It was soon after this last mission that Father Kino

died. In 1711, he had gone to the Santa Magdalenamission, 12 miles west of his headquarters at Doloresmission, to be present at a ceremony dedicating anew chapel to his patron saint, Saint Francis Xavier.During the ceremony, he was taken ill and diedshortly after. The bed on which he died was the sameas he used in his lifetime: two calfskins for a mattress,two Indian blankets and a packsaddle for a pillow.The final tribute to him was fitting:

Padre Eusebio Francisco Kino—On the fifteenthof March, a little after midnight, Father EusebioFrancisco Kino died with great peace and edifica-tion in this house and pueblo of Santa Magdalenaat the age of seventy years, having been for nearlytwenty-four years missionary of Nuestra Señora delos Dolores, which he himself founded. He workedtirelessly, with continual [peregrinations] and in theconversion of all this Pimeria. He discovered theCasa Grande, the rivers Gila and Colorado, the In-

[Fr. Kino] also importedseeds, cattle, horsesand sheep, and gavethem to the Indians toform a stable society

and lifestyle.

Fr. Kino began the building of the Mission of San Xavier del Bac, southwest ofTucson, AZ, in 1697.

OSSaaiinntt FFrraanncciiss XXaavviieerr,, wweellll bbeelloovveedd aannddffuullll ooff cchhaarriittyy,, iinn uunniioonn wwiitthh tthheeee,, IIrreevveerreennttllyy aaddoorree tthhee MMaajjeessttyy ooff GGoodd;;

aanndd ssiinnccee II rreejjooiiccee wwiitthh eexxcceeeeddiinngg jjooyy iinn tthheessiinngguullaarr ggiiffttss ooff ggrraaccee bbeessttoowweedd uuppoonn tthheeeedduurriinngg tthhyy lliiffee,, aanndd tthhyy ggiiffttss ooff gglloorryy aafftteerrddeeaatthh,, II ggiivvee HHiimm hheeaarrttyy tthhaannkkss tthheerreeffoorree;; II bbee--sseeeecchh tthheeee wwiitthh aallll mmyy hheeaarrtt’’ss ddeevvoottiioonn ttoo bbeepplleeaasseedd ttoo oobbttaaiinn ffoorr mmee,, bbyy tthhyy eeffffiiccaacciioouuss iinn--tteerrcceessssiioonn,, aabboovvee aallll tthhiinnggss,, tthhee ggrraaccee ooff aa hhoollyy

lliiffee aanndd aa hhaappppyy ddeeaatthh.. MMoorreeoovveerr,, II bbeegg ooff tthheeeettoo oobbttaaiinn ffoorr mmee [[mmeennttiioonn hheerree tthhee ssppiirriittuuaall oorrtteemmppoorraall ffaavvoorr yyoouu wwiisshh ttoo oobbttaaiinn]].. BBuutt iiff wwhhaattII aasskk ooff tthheeee ssoo eeaarrnneessttllyy ddootthh nnoott tteenndd ttoo tthheegglloorryy ooff GGoodd aanndd tthhee ggrreeaatteerr ggoooodd ooff mmyy ssoouull,,ddoo tthhoouu,, II pprraayy,, oobbttaaiinn ffoorr mmee wwhhaatt iiss mmoorreepprrooffiittaabbllee ttoo bbootthh tthheessee eennddss.. AAmmeenn..

((RReecciittee aann OOuurr FFaatthheerr,, HHaaiill MMaarryy aanndd GGlloorryy BBee..))


dian tribes of the Yuma speaking nations, the Co-comaricopa and Suma Indian nations, and theQuicimaspa Indians. And now resting in the Lord,he is buried in a coffin in this chapel of Saint Fran-cis Xavier on the Gospel side where fall the secondand third choir seats. He was German by national-ity and of the province to which Bavaria belongs, be-fore he entered the Pimeria having been missionaryand cosmographer in California, in the time of Ad-miral Don Ysidro de Atonda.

[signed] Agustin de Campos.3

Fathers Kino and Salvatierra never gave up pro-moting the plan to Christianize the Indians in BajaCalifornia. In 1697, their persistence was rewardedwhen the Spanish government turned over the mis-sionary work to the Jesuits. With Father Juan deUgarte’s aid, who became its treasurer, the famousPious Fund was raised from gifts of devoted Catholicsin Spain and Mexico. Fathers Kino and Salvatierrawere given complete authority to minister to the In-dians in that area. Father Salvatierra was appointedsuperior, and arrived in Loreto in October 1697. Here,with the aid of three baptized Indians, a handful ofsoldiers and Father Picolo, they marched northwardalong the Pacific coast. They formed 17 Jesuit mis-sions from Cape San Lucas to almost San Felipe.Later on, the Spanish government asked them to helpfind a suitable harbor for a Spanish galleon to anchor,which they did, and this opened the way to evangel-ize the area of what is now San Diego.All of this is a consequence of Father Kino’s work,

whose vision it was to discover new lands and newconversions for Our Lord’s glory. Catholic historianstoday would agree that the tremendous growth ofCatholicism in this area of the southwest was be-cause of the vision, hardships and sacrifices of thisselfless priest. Father Kino’s process for canonizationis ongoing in Rome today. The effort to elevate Fa-ther Kino to sainthood took a major step forward,with 130 pounds of documentation supporting Fa-ther Kino’s beatification presented to the Congrega-tion of Rites in Rome, on May 4, 2008.Father Kino introduced in America the prayer for

the Novena of Grace, which is a devotion in honor ofSaint Francis Xavier. It was the novena Father Kinoprayed to restore his health when he was near deathin Austria in 1663. �

Notes:11.. Shea, John Gilmary, Catholic Missions Among the Indian

Tribes of the United States (New York, Arno Press, 1969).22.. Ibid.33.. Pourade, Richard F., The History of San Diego, v.1 (San

Diego, Union-Tribune, 1960), p. 50.

PPrraayyeerr ffoorr tthhee NNoovveennaa ooff GGrraaccee


For nearly twenty years, a crowd has gathered atFort Benning in mid-November to protestagainst the activities of the Western Hemisphere

Institute for Security Cooperation (formerly called theSchool of the Americas) and demand its closure. The annual event is more than just a protest. It is

a gathering of the scattered fringes of the religious,political and cultural left that use the event as a plat-form to push ideas that range from drug legalizationto abortion or even women’s ordination. Leftist Mary-knoll Father Roy Bourgeois leads this gatheringwhich includes a large collection of socialists, liber-ation theology advocates and anarchists. It is no sur-prise that the 71-year-old priest automaticallyincurred excommunication for openly opposingCatholic Church doctrine. For nearly twenty years,both he and his protesters have resisted the U.S.Army’s efforts to “dialogue.”

They reject outright the Army’s unconditional of-fers to open its doors to any who wish to review theschool’s operation. Nearly twenty years of protest calls to mind an-

other twenty-year milestone – the fall of the BerlinWall. In light of this commemoration, we offer someconsiderations.

A Continued DangerOn the twentieth anniversary of the fall of the BerlinWall, we might be tempted to think that the world’sgreat military dangers have passed. However, that isnot the case. We still live in a world of violence anduncertainties. Our enemies are no longer concen-trated behind an Iron Curtain but are scattered aboutthe world in the form of radical groups and rogue na-tions all too willing to threaten the peace.With the fall of the Berlin Wall, one would hope

that at least the outdated Marxist ideas that causedso much misery all over the world would be con-signed to the dustbin of history. However, that is notthe case. Guerrilla groups in Latin America likeColombia’s FARC still cling to subversive Marxistideas, causing violence and bloodshed. There is stillStalinist North Korea, poverty-stricken Cuba andcommunist China oppressing its people and tram-pling on human natural rights. There is HugoChavez’s Venezuela exporting his Bolivarian socialistrevolution across Latin America - including thebuilding of a nuclear program.Twenty years after the fall of the Berlin Wall, it

would be hoped that the terrors of our age might also

Manifesto

A Call to Gratitude:Who Will Thank Our Heroes?

On November 21 and 22, 2009, dissident Catholics and radical leftists led by an excommunicated Fr. Roy Bourgeois, staged a protest at the gates of Fort Benning against theU.S. Army’s Western Hemisphere Institute for Security Cooperation – the former School of theAmericas. In response, TFP Student Action published the following article in the local news-paper of Columbus, Georgia, the Ledger-Enquirer and eleven TFP volunteers traveled to FortBenning to distribute 4,000 copies of the statement which called upon the public to thank

our military heroes and not attend the protest.

The TFP’s “Call to Gratitude” campaign began on November 20 at a busy intersectionin downtown Columbus, Ga.


fall. However, that is not the case. Terror or the threat ofterror lives as the tactic of choice among Islamic radi-cals who can be found in Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan,Sudan or Palestine. Iran’s mullahs stand ready to de-velop nuclear arms. Suicide bombers strike terror intowhole nations and put fear into the hearts of thousandswho might become the next innocent victims.

Pacifists Do Not Keep the PeaceNow more than ever, we need the soldier to keep thepeace. We note, however, that it

was not the pacifists thatbrought down the BerlinWall. Theirs was a constantmessage of concession, “dia-logue,” and defeat.When the terrible wall

came crashing down, theseMarxists were nowhere to be found to condemn themassive misery that lay exposed in those communistcountries. They did not renounce their adherence tothis system which they fought so hard to imposeupon the West.We tend to forget that it was the soldier that helped

bring about the fall of the Berlin Wall. The soldier tookupon himself the thankless task of confronting evil by

force of arms. It was the soldier that risked all to dohis duty wherever he was called to go without hesita-tion or complaint. The American soldier and his coun-terparts all over the world stood down the communistthreat in Europe, Asia and Latin America. His services are no less needed in our days.

Thank the HeroesThus, we need to thank – not protest – these heroeswho put their lives on the line. These heroes guarantee

the peace. We live freely becausethey made the greatest of sacri-fices – even that of life itself. We remember Medal of

Honor heroes like SpecialistRoss A. McGinnis, trained atFort Benning, who distin-guished himself by acts of gal-lantry and intrepidity above

and beyond the call of duty when he threw himselfupon a fragmentation grenade and saved four sol-diers from certain serious injury or death in Iraq inDecember of 2006. We remember Navy Seal MichaelMonsoor, who likewise unselfishly gave his life, inorder to save his fellow Seals on September 29, 2006. We can also remember heroes like the late Col. John

W. Ripley whose heroism in Vietnam was legendary.

We live freely because they made the greatest of sacrifices – even that of life itself.

Chants and speeches from the protest stage unjustlyaccused the U.S. military at Fort Benning of beingresponsible for the deaths of thousands of innocent peopleand called for its closure. The flier alerted the demonstrators to the pacifist and socialist

agenda behind the protest.

Spc. Ross A. McGinnis received the Medal of Honorfor jumping on a live grenade to save his men.

The virtues of theAmerican soldier deserve our esteem and admiration.


These and so many more make up those legions of he-roes that deserve not our scorn but our gratitude.

Where Will They Turn?There are those who protest against the soldier. Theysee his role as one buttressing structures of oppres-sion and power. They are ready to unfairly label thosewho still fight against Marxism as murderers and as-sassins. They turn a blind eye to a ruthless enemy whobreaks all rules and conventions as Marxists have al-

ways done. They would deny defenseless populationsthe training and tools needed to defend themselvesagainst this enemy. In the case of the Western Hemisphere Institute for

Security Cooperation, the protesters ignore the factthat the overwhelming majority of its graduates havecommitted no crime, unless it is a crime to keep theircountries safe and free. They are prepared to amplifyany alleged crime of a soldier to gigantic proportionswhile reducing to nothing the blatant abuses of Marx-ists in countries like Cuba, China, Nicaragua, andVenezuela.We ask those who protest: When the fury of the

terrorists turns upon them, who will they appeal to?When their freedom is taken away with the same dis-regard as Colombia’s FARC guerrillas take the free-

dom of their innocent hostages, wherewill they turn? When their right toprotest is met with bullets and tankslike that of Tiananmen Square, who willbe there to defend them?They will turn to the soldier who de-

fends even those who calumniate him.

A Call to GratitudeThe American Society for the Defense ofTradition, Family and Property (TFP)calls upon the public to thank the heroes.Let us thank them for standing up to

the Soviet menace that lurked behind theBerlin Wall that fell twenty years ago. Letus thank those who still fight and keepour nation safe and help other nations dolikewise. Let us, of course, censure any abuses,

but let us also be consistent and con-demn the systemic and widespreadabuses that have come from Castro’s Cuba, the FARCguerillas and other leftist movements that still up-hold the outdated and iniquitous Marxist ideologiesthat built the infamous Berlin Wall. As Americans, let us be proud of our heroes as

they continue to fight and train others to defend theirnations against those who threaten the peace. May God protect them and their families in their

daily battles around the world.November 18th 2009The American TFP

As Americans, let us be proud of our heroes as they

continue to fight and train others to defend theirnations against those who

threaten the peace.

Long choruses of enthusiastic honkinggreeted the “Call to Gratitude.”

The reception of the TFP’s bagpipes,drums, banners and flags showed thepublic’s overwhelming admiration forthe military.

General White, a retired US Army general and formercommander of Fort Benning, invited TFP Student Action tosee The National Infantry Museum in Columbus, Ga. whichhe opened in June 2009.

Slow down,You’re Noton theMainlandB Y T H O M A S R Y D E R

Ambiences,Customs andCivilizations

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an american knight · died at his home in annapolis, maryland. on that same day, i decided to write...

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